Noseeum South Couloir

Banff Yoho Kootenay

Mike M , Monday 6th May, 2024 7:45PM

Coming from a camp in Mosquito Creek, we ascended South Molar Pass and Andromache Noseeum Col, before descending to Noseeum Lake and then down the Noseeum South Couloir. Great (firm) travel conditions around the back of Noseeum. South Molar Pass was straightforward, with a few bootpack steps due to the waterfall in the gully. Great (firm) travel conditions from South Molar to the ascent slope to the col. Ski crampons were required to gain the slopes to the col. Flat light and convoluted terrain from the col to the lake meant that we kept our skins on. Finding the couloir was simple thanks to the excellent beta and photo in Marcus' guidebook. The couloir skied well (corn) for a few turns, but then the debris and rocks took over. There were multiple choke points where we walked on rocks/scree or scraped our tips/tails on the walls, or sometimes both of those at the same time. It went without removing skis though and we skied out to the highway without incident, though there were some pockets of isothermal snow.

Source: Avalanche Canada MIN