Mount Hector

Parks Canada Visitor Safety , Monday 25th March, 2024 3:50PM

Skied Mt Hector today. Good conditions. The glacier snow depth ranges 100-200 cm and we did lots of probing. Occasionally we could easily dig down by hand to glacier ice. We wore a rope the whole way up and checked several sags that we had to ski over. Some beta: - Previous parties had traveled up the lookers right side of the glacier, weaving through many crevasses. The lookers left side of the glacier offers a smoother and less crevassed way up (and down). There are sags, but we probed and felt good everywhere. - The summit block has a few moves of 4th class done in crampons. Not hard but bring a red camalot to protect "the move". There is a nice 2 bolt station 15m up which we belayed and rapelled from (thanks). - There have been 2 large (size 3) avalanches from the slopes overhead as you move up towards the glacier (and ski down). One was reported on the MIN today as a skier remote close call (ugly). Between these two avalanches is a large slope that is a common part of the route, but it has not slid yet. We called it the "loaded gun slope". It looks very appealing and the ski quality will be good, but with large avalanches out on both sides - don't do it. Take the ridge option full of tracks and rocks. Worse skiing but much safer.