August 25, 2019
Mount Tyrwhitt
Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, Alberta
Stats as Recorded by Suunto Traverse
Distance : 9.99 km
Elevation : 841m
Ascent : 2h39m
Descent : 2h27m
Summit in the centre, arch halfway between the tower and summit. Trail circles around.
Thunderstorms were predicted for 1 P.M. We decided to get an early start and were out at the Highwood Meadows parking lot by 8 A.M. Having just done Pocaterra Ridge last year, the first 4 km were relatively uneventful. The trail was wet from the previous night's rainfall and mud squished underneath our shoes at various points in the trail. It's usually muddy though, rain or not. Just past the unnamed lake at Pocaterra Cirque (3.3 km into the hike), you will reach a junction in the trail. Turning right brings you up lush green forests (golden during larch season) to Pocaterra Ridge. We aimed left for Grizzly Col in order to summit Mount Tyrwhitt.
The pink routes I've drawn in are alternate routes if you are not looking to do an out-and-back. They would add significant amount of time and we were already pressed given how cold we were and the warning of impending thunderstorms.
Pink route circling left is a difficult scramble to attain the summit of Mount Pocaterra (about 100 m higher than Tyrwhitt) and then dropping down via. what I believe to be Sonny Bou/Bob Parr's route to Pocaterra Ridge.
The pink route circling right is a much more defined route which loops down grizzly col to the beginnings of grizzly and highwood ridge, where you can look South for miles (not so in our case due to the low cloud cover that day).
Picture on right is the junction of Grizzly Ridge as seen from the descent on Mount Tyrwhitt. Trailing right you would be heading down grizzly ridge, while left takes you Northeast and eventually to the junction of Highwood ridge and the descent back to the parking lot.
I'm not too sure why many reports view Tyrwhitt as not a fun scramble. Maybe it was the company I was with, but we had a blast laughing to ourselves how ridiculous it was that it was snowing at the end of August, and that we were scrambling in snow. We both were unprepared gloves-wise and at times opted to put our hands in our pockets for warmth rather than onto the rock for security. By the time we reached the arch, we were so happy (given that we thought we had missed it earlier). The scramble route is fairly well defined, following up faint paths in the large, freezing rock. Stay to the left as you ascend and you'll eventually reach the summit.
We had an hour-long photo shoot for each other at the arch, hoping the clouds would break and we could see into BC to our West, or back out to Pocaterra Ridge through the arch. It didn't, but we still got some sick photos. By this time I was cold and hungry, and was not convinced the views would improve at the summit, but my partner said we should just bag it regardless. About 15-20 minutes later, we summitted (glad she suggested it - I didn't realize it was that close! Reports had said the arch was only 2/3 of the way up...), snapped our pictures and then headed back down.
On a clear day, the Continental Divide and Mount Joffre would be visible.
First sign of life today! Surveying Pocaterra Ridge
@says_rah on the final descent from Mount Tyrwhitt. 'Snow fun.
We later discovered that thunder and lightning can still occur
even if it is snowing. I guess rain from a thunderstorm is just snow at high elevations, but why didn't we hear the thunder and lightning?
Glad we did not get hit by that part of the storm and made it safely down!
Below is a picture at the High Rockies Suspension Bridge, since we were already so far South and would have to head back in that direction to return home anyways. Neat little feature that requires little effort to get to - highly recommended for those visiting who aren't as active but still want to see the mountains. From the side of the highway, it's a 1-km-60m-elevation-change-round-trip hike, with opportunity to be extended particularly if you are mountain biking it.
Sneak peak of the view you would be treated to on a clear day. Clouds are just starting to move away to reveal the mountains.
Sneak peak of the view you would be treated to on a clear day. Clouds are just starting to move away to reveal the mountains.
