Peyto to Yoho Ski Traverse with Patagonia Ambassador Jenn Shelton

The Peyto to Yoho Traverse is a challenging but very fun and rewarding itinerary.

April 20:  Meet us at our office in Canmore at 5:00pm (MST) for introductions, trip review, equipment check and to pack and sort gear and food.

April 21:  Departure is set for 7:30am for the 1.5 hour drive north to Peyto Lake, our start point. After an avalanche safety session, we commence our traverse by descending through the forest to Peyto Lake. After crossing the Lake we travel up the outwash valley from the Peyto Glacier to the base of the lateral moraine which we climb, carrying skis for a short section. From here we travel a further 3km up the Glacier to reach the Peyto Hut which is perched on a rocky shoulder overlooking Peyto Glacier. Peyto Hut is completely surrounded by glaciers and peaks and is arguably the most spectacular location of any of the Wapta huts. We travel 9km and climb 2200ft / 670m.

April 22: We will leave the comforts of the Peyto hut behind and gain the Wapta Icefields Neve. We will continue traversing across the icefield under the beautiful Mt Rhonda and Mt Collie before descending to the new Louise and Richard Guy Hut.  The Guy Hut is a truly beautiful spot which overlooks Mount des Poilus and the des Poilus glacier. This will be our home for the night. Expect a full day with 11 km traveled and 760m gained.

April 23: Today is our chance to explore the ski runs and summits in the area. If conditions permit, we will set our sites on the 10387 foot Mount des Poilus. This is not only the highest peak in the area but offers an amazing 500m ski decent! We will sleep a second night at the Louise and Richard Guy Hut. Expect a full day of skiing covering 9 km and 800m gained as a minimum for the day, more if we decide on a second run.

April 24: Crossing Isolated col is our objective today and is one of the cruxes of the trip. You have a good view of the col from the hut and a short ski will put us under the steep 300m accent. Once we arrive at the col we will be treated to an amazing view into the Little Yoho Valley which is commanded by the President and Vice President peaks. An excellent ski descent will bring us to the historic Stanley Mitchell hut. We will likely have the chance to explore the area surrounding the hut if time and energy permits. Minimum travel will be 7.5 km and 350m of elevation gain.

April 25: Our reward for the previous days of hard work will be to explore and enjoy the rarely visited Little Yoho Valley. In “Summits and Icefields”, Chic Scott continues his description by saying: “The Little Yoho Valley in Yoho National Park offers some of the best backcountry skiing in the Canadian Rockies. The terrain is excellent – there are long and uniform descents and some excellent glade skiing below treeline if conditions dictate. Situated along the great divide in what is called the Yoho Snow Belt, the valley gets deep and consistent snowfalls. Finally, the presence of the beautiful Stanley Mitchell Hut makes for a perfect combination.”  The Presidents will be top on the tick list but many other options exist depending on conditions. Light packs, enjoying a beautiful area and looking for amazing powder turns are the goals of this day.

April 26: We will be starting early in order to travel out to Field, BC and the end of a great trip. Expect a full day as we slide out the 25 km to the road and descend 760m past the famous Takakkaw Falls and the slopes of Mt Field.

Instructors and Group Size

Your lead guide, Darcy Chilton, is a Ski Guide certified by the internationally recognized Association of Canadian Mountain Guides and also licensed by Parks Canada. There will be a maximum of 6 participants per guide. There will be a maximum of 12 guests, minimum 4.

Darcy has been an ACMG ski guide since 2000 and feels fortunate to have guided throughout British Columbia, Alberta, Europe, and Japan meeting wonderful people and skiing great snow. Darcy works all the ski and avalanche programs through the winter and in the summer, is Yamnuska’s Program Director at the Rocky Mountain Cadet Summer Training Centre.  Darcy is an ACMG Ski Guide and holds Level 2 certification with the Canadian Avalanche Association.

Program Logistics

We will meet the group at 5:00PM on the first day here at our office in Canmore (Map).  Please come prepared with all of your personal gear and clothing, but leave enough room in your pack for some additional group gear and food as well.

Transportation

Participants are responsible for their own transport to Canmore which is a 1 hour (100km) drive west from Calgary.

We will supply transportation from Canmore to reach the program trailheads.

Frequent shuttles connect Calgary International Airport and Canmore.

Accommodation and Meals

During the trip we will be staying and the Alpine Club of Canada’s Peyto, Guy and Stanley Mitchell huts. Sleeping areas in the huts are communal and facilities are basic. Cooking in the huts is done on propane stoves and all dishes are provided.

All meals, snacks and drinks are supplied from lunch on April 21 to lunch on April 26. Meals are prepared by our in-house chef from fresh, nutritious ingredients and then dehydrated to make them suitable for backcountry travel. For guests with dietary restrictions, we are able to modify the program food pack to meet your individual needs.  As food pricing and preparation for these diets is more costly, we have implemented the following surcharges.  For vegan, gluten free, lactose free, soy free, nut free or any similar type of single restriction menu requests there will be a $16/day surcharge. For a diet requiring any 2 restrictions a $25/day surcharge will apply.  For any 3 restrictions a $30/day surcharge will apply.  Vegetarian meals will not be surcharged.  For more complex diets our kitchen staff will assess the restrictions to inform you if the diet can be accommodated and what surcharge would apply.

Accommodation in Canmore is not included. A variety of accommodation options exist in both Canmore and Banff.  We recommend that you book your own pre and post-trip accommodations well in advance as all levels of accommodations in the Bow Valley fill quickly.

Weather and Conditions Note

This is a challenging program in complex terrain and as with any trip into the mountains neither weather or avalanche conditions can be guaranteed. Poor visibility or avalanche conditions may require a change to the itinerary. This may involve an extra night at the Peyto hut or the inability to reach the Stanley Mitchell hut due to avalanche danger. Regardless expect the trip to be a great adventure in a beautiful area.

Equipment and Clothing

You will need to bring your own clothing, skis, poles, climbing skins, avalanche gear, backpack, sleeping bag and sleeping pad. We have many of these items available to rent and can pre-arrange them for you. We supply group items (ropes, harnesses, crevasse rescue gear, tents, stoves, etc).

You will be able to leave excess gear in Canmore while on the trip.

The equipment and clothing you bring will have a big impact on the quality of your experience. Please be sure to bring all items listed. If unsure about anything please don’t hesitate to call and ask us!

Skis

There are two ski systems you can use: System 1: Alpine Touring skis are essentially downhill skis with a special touring binding which allows the heel to lift when going uphill or across the flats and then locks down to become a regular downhill safety binding. We recommend this system to anyone with a background of downhill skiing. System 2: Telemark skis. These should only be used for this program if you are at least an advanced-intermediate telemark skier with some backcountry experience. This system is more difficult and less forgiving than the other.

Which should you use? If you are a downhill skier then you should use Alpine Touring gear. Only if you are already an advanced Telemark skier should you bring Telemark gear.

Snowboards can be used on this program however, due to the number of flat areas you are better off on skis. If ‘boarding’ you need to be an advanced backcountry boarder and you need to be on a splitboard.

Skis, boots, poles, and boards can be rented in Calgary and Canmore prior to the trip.

Equipment List

You need to bring:

• Skis. We recommend a short (160 – 185cm) wide ski designed for powder. Please see note under rental information if you are renting ski equipment.
• Climbing skins ‘Stick-on type’
• Ski Poles
• Ski Boots
• Ski Crampons
• Climbing harness (light weight if possible) loaners available
• Locking biners (2), non-locking biners (2) loaners available
• Prussick cord (1) loaners available
• 120cm sewn sling (1) loaners available
• Avalanche Transceiver – digital transceiver with a triple antennae rentals available
• Collapsible Avalanche Probe rentals available
• Avalanche Shovel (lightweight snow shovel designed for companion rescue) rentals available
• Backpack (at least 65L, large enough for sleeping bag, spare clothes, and your share of group food & equipment) rentals available
• Sunglasses and ski goggles
• Water bottle (at least 1 liter capacity), a Thermos for Hot Drinks is optional
• Sun block and lip cream
• Pocket knife
• Sleeping Bag. We recommend a three season bag rated between -7 to -9 °C. Expect hut temperatures to be cool overnight. Make sure you bring a stuff sac that will reduce your bag to its minimum size (i.e. one with compression straps) so you don’t use up all the room in your pack. Rentals available.
• Headlamp with fresh batteries
• Small Blister and personal First-Aid Kit
• Camera
• Personal Toilet Items (keep to a bare minimum)
• Ear Plugs for dorm sleeping (optional but recommended)
• Insulated Booties or Sandals

Clothing List

We suggest layers of light, easily carried clothing that allow for fast and easy adjustment to best suit fast changing temperature conditions. Cotton clothing is not appropriate as it causes rapid heat loss when wet. Feel free to call us if you have any questions about what to bring.

• Long underwear top and bottoms (light weight synthetic or wool)
• Extra warm shirt (synthetic or wool)
• Medium weight fleece sweater
• Soft shell or fleece jacket
• Soft shell pants
• Insulated jacket (down preferred)
• Insulated pants (fleece or other synthetic) (optional)
• Waterproof jacket with hood (Gore-Tex or equivalent)
• Waterproof pants (Gore-Tex or equivalent, with side zippers)
• Socks (wool or synthetic) – 2 to 3 pairs
• Wool or fleece hat
• Waterproof ski mountaineering gloves or mitts
• Light weight ski gloves
• Neck tube or balaclava
• Sun hat

Rental Information

Skis, Boots, Boards, Skins & Poles can be rented from:

• Calgary: Mountain Equipment Co-op. – 830-10 Ave. S.W. Calgary (Tel: 403 269-2420)
• Canmore: Gear Up – 1302 Bow Valley Trail (403 678-1636)

*Please note that your ‘DIN’ or ‘Release Value’ settings on your ski bindings are critical to your safety while skiing.  Our expectation is that everyone arrives on programs with their ski binding’s release value correctly set. We have noted that some ski rental shops will not set release values on touring bindings. We advise you to rent from a shop that will set release values on your ski touring bindings unless you are proficient and comfortable setting your own DIN / release value. Failure to have Release Values correctly set could result in a serious injury.

Yamnuska has equipment as noted above for rent should you require. Please advise as early as possible.

Please book as early as practical to avoid disappointment. We require a 35% deposit on booking.

It is wise to ensure that your health plan will cover you in case of illness or accident while here. Obtain extra coverage if necessary. There is no charge for rescue so long as you have a valid National Park Entry Pass which you can obtain on entry to Banff National Park.

We ask that you familiarize yourself with our detailed booking instructions and conditions.

Please note that you will be required to sign our waiver before commencing the program. Please view our sample waiver copy.

There are two basic types of insurance that most travelers need to consider: Medical and Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance. We offer our guests coverage for both and highly recommend you purchase it.

Emergency Medical Expenses Insurance:

It is wise to ensure that your health plan will cover you in case of illness or accident during your trip. Obtain extra coverage if necessary. There is no charge for rescue in the national and provincial parks, however costs such as air or ground transportation, long term care and other services are not covered.

Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance:

We recognize that our guests’ schedules may change for many reasons; business, family, flight delays, injuries and other unplanned events. For these eventualities the Trip Cancellation/Interruption insurance is a great way to protect your investment.

For all your travel insurance requirements we recommend the Simpson Group. This agency offers a wide range of travel insurance options including Trip Cancellation/Interruption, Travel Medical and Personal Effect Loss for Canadian Travelers. We highly recommend purchasing this insurance.

Please note that this coverage is for Canadian residents only. For guests who are not from Canada and who are interested in the ‘Visitors to Canada’ insurance package please contact the Simpson Group directly at JSimpson@simpson-group.com and reference your Yamnuska Mountain Adventure’s trip.