Observation Peak

August 7, 2009, murchison group, banff national park

Summit
3174 m
Gain
1100 m
Distance
8.5 km
Round trip
4 hr
Technical
SC5 YDS (3rd)
Activity
scramble
Quick 'n dirty
Class 2 - you fall, you sprain something
Difficulty
As long as it's dry, this is mostly an off trail hike, or easy scramble. All bets are off when there's snow on the route.
Route
GPS trackMap

Finding myself with a free weekend in the summer is a very rare occurrence, so when it happened on the weekend of August 7, 8 and 9 I arranged a 3 peak extravaganza! The first summit would be a solo effort so I chose something without a lot of difficulties and a short approach, Observation Peak.

Observation Peak Route Map.
Observation Peak Route Map.

There really isn’t a lot to say about this scramble, it’s pretty easy and it’s hard to get lost. Simply follow Alan Kane’s instructions and you’ll encounter no difficulties. A number of people have either attempted or done this mountain with snow and apparently this can be tricky due to avy slopes. I started the day with a pleasant walk down the approach road towards the access avalanche gully. It was obvious where to branch into the gully and soon I was sweating my way up the gully on grass (lots of mosquitoes) until it finally transitioned to scree.

The approach gully is already visible after a very short jaunt in the forest on a faint trail.
The approach gully is already visible after a very short jaunt in the forest on a faint trail.
Looking up the avi gully. Stick to climber's right for the best trail / ascent options.
Looking up the avi gully. Stick to climber's right for the best trail / ascent options.
More easy scree slopes up to the summit ridge.
More easy scree slopes up to the summit ridge.

Once on scree I followed a trail (still very loose) up interesting terrain. Despite appearances the terrain stayed within the realm of easy scrambling. Once near the “top”, I discovered I wasn’t. The south ridge kept going and going but the views were so stunning and the day was so pleasant I didn’t care.

More easy scree slopes up to the summit ridge. It's much easier than it appears thanks to a clear trail most of the way up.
More easy scree slopes up to the summit ridge. It's much easier than it appears thanks to a clear trail most of the way up.
Fun scrambling on a pretty obvious trail.
Fun scrambling on a pretty obvious trail.
The true summit lies at the north end of the ridge and is quite a bit further along it than I was expecting.
The true summit lies at the north end of the ridge and is quite a bit further along it than I was expecting.
Traversing over to the main summit - trying not to get too distracted by all the wonderful views!
Traversing over to the main summit - trying not to get too distracted by all the wonderful views!

I think the summit of Observation holds the record of my longest stay on a summit - definitely the longest solo one. I spent 2 hours napping and enjoying the unbelievable summit panoramas in every direction. Smoke levels were very low and my camera almost overheated as a consequence.

(L to R), Quill, Conical, Siffleur, Loudon, Isabella Lake, Fuhrer, Abstruse, Marmot, Profound, Recondite, Kentigern, Clearwater, Harris, Willingdon, Bobac, Dip Slope, Watermelon, Cataract, McConnell, Drummond, Puzzle, Douglas, Molar, Minnow and Hector (R). And many others.
(L to R), Quill, Conical, Siffleur, Loudon, Isabella Lake, Fuhrer, Abstruse, Marmot, Profound, Recondite, Kentigern, Clearwater, Harris, Willingdon, Bobac, Dip Slope, Watermelon, Cataract, McConnell, Drummond, Puzzle, Douglas, Molar, Minnow and Hector (R). And many others.
L to R, Hector, Bow, Temple, BowCrow, Crowfoot, Balfour, Vulture, Olive, St Nicholas, Gordon, Portal, Thompson, Jimmy Simpson, Rhondda, Habel, Ayesha, Baker, Peyto, Trapper, Caldron, Mistaya, Mummery, Barbette, Freshfields, Patterson, Breaker, Aries, Midway, Forbes, Howse, White Pyramid, Chephren, Erasmus, Amery, Wilson, Weed, Murchison, Spreading and Cline. And many more, believe it or not!
L to R, Hector, Bow, Temple, BowCrow, Crowfoot, Balfour, Vulture, Olive, St Nicholas, Gordon, Portal, Thompson, Jimmy Simpson, Rhondda, Habel, Ayesha, Baker, Peyto, Trapper, Caldron, Mistaya, Mummery, Barbette, Freshfields, Patterson, Breaker, Aries, Midway, Forbes, Howse, White Pyramid, Chephren, Erasmus, Amery, Wilson, Weed, Murchison, Spreading and Cline. And many more, believe it or not!
One more panorama over the Recondite approach which runs up the foreground valley from right to left, past Isabella Lake and then back right all the way to Recondite, which is the pointy peak at center. Siffleur Mountain at distant left which I wouldn't ascend until 30 years after Rick Collier with Wietse in 2023.
One more panorama over the Recondite approach which runs up the foreground valley from right to left, past Isabella Lake and then back right all the way to Recondite, which is the pointy peak at center. Siffleur Mountain at distant left which I wouldn't ascend until 30 years after Rick Collier with Wietse in 2023.

Descent was fast and easy. I still can’t believe that I didn’t meet anyone else on such a gorgeous day, but I suppose many folks were still working. I’m sure glad I wasn’t. As a summer objective this is a fast outing (I took less than 4 hours up and down but had a 2 hour nap / break on the summit!) and has very respectable views - I highly recommend it.