Mount Lorette Alpine II 5.4 Climb

Lat/Lon: 50.89°N, 115.31°W
Mount Lorette is a relatively insignificant peak located on a small ridge bordering the
Kananaskis River Valley in Kananaskis Provincial Park. Kananaskis Provincial Park
encompasses over 4,000 square kilometers of foothills and mountains bordering
Banff National Park in the central Canadian Rockies. Mount Lorette is more famous
for its name than its size no doubt. It was officially named in 1922 after the “Lorette
Spur” in WWI. The capture of the Lorette Spur from the Germans by the French was a
significant battle in the war. Mount Lorette was first ascended via the alpine route by
Hind, Richardson, Keeling, Dodds and McAllister in 1952.

Mount Lorette sits directly across the Kananaskis River Valley from the popular
scramble objective of Mount Baldy. The only published route up Mount Lorette is an
Alpine II-5.4 route via the south ridge. This route does involve a river crossing. It is
such an accessible alpine climb compared to most in the Canadian Rockies that it
sees its share of traffic.

Two solo climbers died in two separate incidents on Lorette in 2003. Armed with this
beta, I chose to ascend Mount Lorette with a partner versus a solo attempt. I found
the route nothing more than a difficult scramble and would do the route solo, but can
imagine the looseness of the ridge no doubt contributed to the two fatalities in 2003.
I believe it was a mere coincidence that they occurred in the same year.

The most immediate views on ascent are Mount Bogart, The Wedge and Mount Kidd
to the south. Once on the summit, Mount Joffre, Mount Lougheed and the backside of
Three Sisters come into full view.

Getting There
Take the Kananaskis Highway (Highway 40) exit off of the Trans-Canada Highway
between Calgary and Canmore. Travel past Kananaskis Park headquarters and
Barrier Lake on your right and look for the Mount Lorette Ponds Day Use Parking
area on your left. Continue past this pull out and park along side the road on the right
hand side before the next bend, placing you squarely in line with the southeast ridge
of Mount Lorette. This spot is approximately 40 minutes from Canmore, or 50
minutes from Calgary.

Red Tape
There are no permit requirements to enter, climb and/or park in Kananaskis
Provincial Park. This is active grizzly country however. Take bear spray. My partner
indicated he spotted a dead grizzly cub near the descent route in 2004. There have
been numerous 2005 trail closures in Kananaskis due to mountain lions and
grizzlies. Therefore it would be prudent to check recent notices posted on the
park’s website. You will pass the park headquarters en route on Highway 40
(Kananaskis Trail) several kilometers south of the Trans-Canada (on your right).
Notices are posted outside if they are closed. This is a solid information center with
good staff and beta.

When To Climb
As with most climbs in the Canadian Rockies, the driest time is from June through
September. We did this climb in September and conditions were completely dry.
There are no published backcountry ski routes on Mount Lorette, however, skiing to
the col north of the summit via the descent route might be plausible.

Camping
There is a significant lodging and campground complex several kilometers south
called Kananaskis Village. The lodging options here include the Ribbon Creek
Hostel and posh Delta Lodge. You cannot camp outside of the marked specific
camping areas in Kananaskis. Refer to the Kananaskis Provincial Park website for
more information regarding camping and/or lodging.

Mountain Conditions
The Kananaskis Provincial Park website is a very thorough park website, including
trail conditions or closures, wildlife notices, weather conditions, avalanche
conditions, camping permits, whitewater conditions, etc. It is an excellent source if
you are going to spend any time here and comparable to any National Park website I
have used. Outside of the parks web site, Canadian Avalanche Association is also
useful, particularly for winter travel.

Route
This is a 3600'+/- ascent day. From your car, descend down the east bank of the
Kananaskis River. This is a dam controlled river (even has its own kayaking course)
therefore, proceed with extreme caution (this could be called the crux of the climb).
This is not necessarily an easy crossing.   Once across the river, bushwhack your
way to the grassy base of the southeast ridge. You will cross under power lines.
Once across a flat meadow like area full of birches, you will start a fast ascent on
good ground to the ridge. A faint trail forms on top of the ridge. Continue on easy
ground moving onto a ledge system on the right and continue from time to time to
regain the ridge where appropriate.

After some fun hands on climbing, you find yourself at the first crux (photo above)
which is a short and narrow chimney feature on the right side.   After the first tight
move or two you fall into the problem and it moves well back up to the ridge. There
are several hands on areas, but nothing remarkable. Stay to the ridge and eventually
you come to the main crux. This is the only spot we used a rope. We pitched it out
about 40 meters. There is a gap that used to be filled with a large chock stone that is
mentioned in a variety of beta. That feature has since fallen off the ridge. Before you
climb down into the gap you will find a relatively new (2005) piton to clip into.
There are several old ones across the gap as well. Make a few moves to climb down
into the notch and then you have to make an airy step over the gap. Once on the other
side, use a nice hand feature to slide across to the base of a steep loose section.
Stay on the ridge.

At this next buttress, still on the same pitch out, avoid the temptation to place
pro into a crack on the right side. This crack is nothing more than the bottom of a
huge piece of ridge that could easily be dislodged. I avoided hanging on to this piece
of the buttress and skirted back left over an airy section where I found a placement
and then back to the ridge crest itself. You will land on a decent platform on the ridge
in which to belay the 2nd.

The ridge goes straightforward after this with maybe another 600-700’ to go. One
more crux involves some solid rock ascent straight up a minor wall. There was no
summit register in 2005. The interesting views from the summit were the traverse
route of Mount Lougheed’s four summits, the extended ridge between Mount Bogart
and Mount Sparrowhawk, Mount Kidd, The Wedge, Mount Joffre, and Three Sisters
out towards Canmore.

On descent, head down the north ridge between Mount Lorette and an unnamed
higher peak (photo included) to a col above a scree field. You can descend on this
scree which will lead to a washed out bowl, thus a little trickier ground, or you can
ascend the next hump north and catch a longer scree descent with less technical
difficulties. We chose the first scree col we came to and descended fairly rapidly
through the washed out bowl. Be cautious through this area to not dislodge large
sections of crumbly mountain on top of your partner(s). Since there is a certain
amount of washed out slab on descent, any rock fall can pick up dangerous speed.
Once through the washed out bowl area, you will hook back left into a scree descent
and recognizable trail that takes you back down to the power line easement where
you simply bushwhack your way back to the river crossing. Remember again, that the
volume is controlled, therefore, unpredictable. It could be considerably higher than
when you crossed it.

Essential Gear
Old Running Shoes for River Crossing, 50 Meter Rope, Harness, Small Rack
consisting of Medium Pro, Several Runners and Biners (I would solo this route if I did
it again however), Helmet, Bear Spray, Alpine Ax and Gaiters if Snow is Prevalent

Trip Report
Peter and I were looking for a short day in the mountains and Mount Lorette fit the bill.
Our weather was spectacular and both of us had ease with the route. Rather more of
a social outing with perfect weather and views. I recommend this route for
Calgarians looking to get more into the sport of mountaineering. However, its
traditional Rocky Mountain rock conditions and exposure are to be respected. Two
separate deaths occurred here in 2003. We climbed the route 6 hours round trip, the
guide book says 6-8 hours. Cheers.