Not Quite Cayoosh: Skiing The Armchair Glacier

Cayoosh Mountain was an appealing objective: a summit overlooking the spectacular Joffre Group followed by a 1000 metre east facing descent first down the Armchair Glacier and then through sparse trees and avalanche slopes. As a bonus, the approach through forest was short.

Joffre Group from the Armchair Glacier

This route starts off the Duffy Lake Road just a little southwest of the route to Marriot Basin and Mount Rohr. A short logging road runs north for a couple of kilometres following a drainage around to near the base of a talus slope below a tiny tarn southeast of Cayoosh Mountain.

Skinning up the rock slide beside avalanche debris

From the logging road, you can see the big east side of Cayoosh, the Armchair Glacier and the route up into the high alpine basin. We skinned up (climbers) right side of the rock slide avoiding frozen avalanche debris and were soon contouring out into the upper valley with the tiny tarn. Some more avalanches had come down here. The only really awkward part of the trip is skinning up steep slopes above the lake where you emerge onto lightly forested slopes - these are actually big slide paths so not a good place to be in poor stability.

Route up to the Armchair Glacier

Once out into the open avalanche slopes, we contoured north, sometimes climbing a little, until we could skirt first around a steep ridge, and then skin up onto a steep lateral moraine. Once we skied off the north side of the moraine, travel was easy and pleasant up the Armchair Glacier. The glacier is quite benched so it is easy to skin up lower angle slopes.

Skinning up the Armchair Glacier

Up under the steep east face of Cayoosh Mountain we came across some large fresh avalanches. The route to the summit, crosses a high shoulder and then either goes straight up the face on a steep east facing snow slope or takes the lower angled but often corniced north ridge.

Slab avalanches on Cayoosh Mountain

We were concerned about snow stability. There were some minor pinwheels running but more concerning was the dry slab that had released on the immediately adjacent slopes. Not going to the summit was an easy call. In a day or two, this route would probably be safe, but not today.

Doug under the slopes of Cayoosh Mountain

As a consolation, we skinned across to a high point on the south ridge where we had wonderful views of the Joffre Group and over to Mount Rohr and the Marriot area while we enjoyed lunch and a cup of tea.

Not a bad spot for lunch

And then there was that wonderful 1000 metre descent right down to valley bottom.

Spring skiing can be so crowded