Guided trip: Climb Banff’s highest mountain
Despite being Banff National Park’s tallest peak, and technically easy, Mount Forbes remains little known and rarely climbed. Its remote location, plus a two-day approach on a glaciated plateau, requires organization akin to a small expedition. And that’s where the guides at Yamnuska Mountain Adventures come in. Their Mount Forbes Expedition is a mini leadership course where participants learn to pull off a mountaineering objective with a guide sitting shotgun to make sure everything goes smoothly. The first day is spent at the mountain school’s Canmore base, working on route and gear selection. Once packed, it’s off to Saskatchewan River Crossing on the Icefields Parkway, and then a 15-kilometre hike to Glacier Lake. With no trails from here on, participants are expected to take turns route finding and leading the group to the base of the peak, 10 kilometres and 900 vertical metres away. Day four is summit day, up the moderately difficult west ridge on snow, ice and rock. From the peak, views stretch from the Purcells to Lake Louise and deep into the Banff wilderness.
When: July 14 to 19
Cost: $2,200
Yamnuska Mountain Adventures
