Summit Elevation (m): 2629
Elevation Gain (m): 1010
Trip Date: November 12 2011
Round Trip Time (hr): 5.5
Total Trip Distance (km): 18
Quick ‘n Easy Rating: Class 2 – You fall you sprain something.
Difficulty Notes: Mostly hiking and easy scrambling with some very loose terrain. Can be done in the off season.
Technical Rating: SC5; YDS (Hiking)
GPS Track: Gaia
Map: Google Maps
I’ve wanted to scramble Mount Bryant for a while already. We’d gone past the mountain back when we scrambled Mount Howard and I met So Nakagawa for the first time afterwards – he’d just come back from Bryant. I wasn’t expecting anything spectacular but I was very pleasantly surprised by this outing.
First of all, it felt quite remote. I stopped several times in the creek bed on approach and listened to the sound of silence – a very pleasant sound. The creek approach is also surprisingly fun and easy, thanks to a great trail that runs along the sides.
I was paranoid about missing the trail to the left along Bryant Creek that both So and Wietse had warned me about, but didn’t realize that it’s quite far up the creek – almost at the end of it! Someone has also put in a new trail to the lake from the stream bed, it’s about 200m further up the creek than the “3 cairns” trail.
It’s slightly better, but not by much. I’m not sure why someone put in the effort when there’s already an established trail? The lake was a very pleasant area. I want to come back in the summer or fall some day. There was evidence of random camping near the lake and I wonder if there might be fish stocked in it.
The scree slog to the summit wasn’t too inspiring and the views were rapidly disappearing under a very gray and snowy sky. I was very surprised by the lack of register entries considering the good trails into the lake. I guess a lot of folks don’t bother with this summit. I was only the 2nd entry for 2011, and the average since 2006 when the register was placed, seems to be around 2 ascents per year.
Mount Bryant was a pleasant surprise, I wouldn’t hesitate recommending this peak for an easy and fast outing. Just don’t do it in a blizzard, if you value your mountain views.
Ken Myhre and I scrambled this mountain, named after my maternal grandfather, in 1978. My grandfather was a forest ranger in Jumping Pound in the 1910s and 1920s. So, I figured I needed to ascent. We got a late start and were fortunate to find the obvious route up the MTN. After reaching the false summit we realized we needed to scramble a bit more. Eventually had some great views. Not sure the total elapsed time. Got hit by rain on the descent. Terry Kimmel
Interesting! I love these historical references and personal connections. Thanks for sharing.
Hello Terry. Your parents showed me where your grandfathers homestead was and also the old Ranger station back in the 1960s. Back then Hermitage Road was the only way into the Jumping pound and Sibbald flats area. Apparently my parents were distant relatives of yours, we visited you when your parents lived beside the Bow River in Bowness. Your parents visited us often at our Calgary home. It’s a small world indeed.
Wow. Thx for the comment Roland. Very interesting.