Top Ten Page

I’ve been asked many times for a list of my top 10 hikes, backpacking trips, scrambles, climbs and so forth. I thought about it for a bit and decided that it would be best to separate my top 10 lists into several categories, so here goes. Please note that I will update these lists as I continue to find “better” options. These are obviously very subjective and are rated as much based on the weather and mood I was in at the time, as the actual trip itself. The lists are ordered alphabetically as it's impossible for me to choose an "absolute best one". 😏

As long time followers of this blog will already know, I'm weird when it comes to what types of trips I find especially satisfying. Some of the peaks on my top 10 lists will leave you scratching your head wondering, “is Vern dumb?!”. For example, I rate Recondite as a top 10 alpine climb. Most folks avoid that loose, distant peak until they ‘have’ to climb it to finish the list of summits over 11,000 feet. I apologize in advance for having a soft spot for long, off trail approaches and more distant, loose and obscure summits than some folks would like to spend their weekends and free time chasing.

Top 10 Recent Trips

These are my top 10 recent trips in alphabetical order from the past few years. Eventually they will work their way into other "top 10's" or will be replaced with new favorites. 

1. Castelnau, Mount

2. Elk Peak

3. Job Lake Excursions (Quixote, Ribbon, Horseshoe, Obstruction, Night Rider)

4. Marpole, Mount

5. McCrae, Mount (Loomis Lake)

6. Mercer, Mount

7. Michele Lakes

8. Nosecone Peak

9. Owl Mountain

10. Parrish, Mount

Honorable Mentions

11. Back, Mount (+ Tipperary, Cradock)

12. Bourgeau, Little

13. Charles Stuart, Mount (+ SE2)

Top 10 Overall Scrambles

As you can imagine, it’s very hard for me to choose just 10 scrambles as my overall favorites. Something you’ll notice is that my top favorite scrambles are either remote, difficult, or both. I think the reason for this is simply that I get the most satisfaction out of long trips that aren’t done too often and aren’t too easy.

1. Amery, Mount (+ Monchy & Hooge)

2. Brussilof, Mount (+ Alcantara)

3. Catacombs Mountain

4. Cataract Peak

5. Chephren, Mount

6. Ishbel, Mount

7. Sira Peak

8. Temple, Mount

9. Wolverine Peak (Auditor)

10. Zeke's & Whistling Rock Peak

Honorable Mentions

11. Abruzzi, Mount

12. Barrier Mountain to Mount Gable Traverse

13. Crypt Lake Circuit

Top 10 Easy Scrambles

For some less fierce options that many hikers will enjoy, these are my top 10 favorite easy scrambles that don’t involve a ton of bushwhacking or exposure. You shouldn’t feel like you’re going to die on any of these or you’re off route. I make no promises as to the ease of access to any of these peaks. 😏

1. Abruzzi, Mount

2. Hangman Peak (+ Littlehorn)

3. Harris, Mount

4. Iceface Peak

5. McDonald, Mount

6. Melanin Peak

7. Minnow Peak

8. Schaffer, Mount

9. Sira Peak

10. Whelk Peak

Honorable Mentions

11. Struan, Wurzburg & Andover (Beauty Creek)

12. Pharaoh Peak, Greater

13. Jutland to Sage Mountain Traverse (Matkin, Font)

Top 10 Moderate Scrambles

These are my top 10 scrambles where there is no need to feel like you might die on route, but there are wonderful views and some hands-on work involved in reaching the summit.

1. Cataract Peak

2. Cautley Traverse, The

3. Cone Mountain, Turbulent, Fortulent Traverse

4. Dungarvon, Mount

5. Lougheed IV, Mount (Wind Mountain)

6. Puma Peak (Palliser)

7. South Totem & Spreading Peak

8. Temple, Mount

9. Willis, Mount

10. Wolverine Peak (Auditor)

Honorable Mentions

11. Apparition Mountain

12. Marvel Peak (+ Little Marvel)

13. Wardle, Mount

Top 10 Difficult Scrambles

My top 10 difficult scrambles are a mix of short, difficult cruxes and loose, terrifying ascents which will take coins from your luck jar no matter how proficient you are at climbing without a rope to arrest a slip or fall. They should all be treated with proper respect.

1. Allenby, Mount

2. Amery, Mount

3. Brussilof, Mount

4. Chephren, Mount

5. Gould Dome

6. Ishbel, Mount

7. Mercer, Mount

8. Smuts, Mount & The Fist

9. Stephen, Mount 

10. Zeke’s & Whistling Rock Peak

Honorable Mentions

11. Fisher Peak (Kananaskis)

12. Lougheed I, Mount

13. Marpole, Mount (+ CarMar)

Top 10 Remote Scrambles

These scrambles will all have you pretty bagged by the time you drag your tired carcass back to your vehicle either after a very long day or multiple days off grid. All of these trips left me with an impression of untouched, undisturbed beauty, special alpine views and solitude. A generous helping of alpine tarns, meadows, flowers and wildlife only added to the reason they are on my top 10 list.

1. Alberta Little, Mount

2. Apparition Peak

3. Bonnet & Hickson Peak

4. Catacombs Mountain

5. Cataract Peak

6. Cheshire & Dormouse Peak

7. Deluc Mountain

8. McDonald, Mount

9. Night Rider Peak

10. Profound Peak

Honorable Mentions

11. Breaker Mountain

12. Obstruction Mountain

13. Revenant Mountain

Top 10 Alpine Climbs – Non Winter

The cream of the crop are on this list. Mountains that I’ve dreamed about for years before ascending them. Mountains that I never thought I’d stand on top of. At heart I’m nothing other than a hiker and scrambler, so any alpine climbing I’ve done is a gigantic bonus for me and I’ve managed to grovel up a few beauties, including the ones on this list. I owe the folks who are more climber-oriented than me, who have been willing to drag me along on most of these trips. 

1. Alexandra, Mount

2. Assiniboine, Mount

3. Edith Cavell, Mount

4. Forbes, Mount

5. Fryatt, Mount

6. King Edward, Mount

7. King George, Mount

8. Sir Douglas, Mount

9. Victoria, Mount

10. Woolley, Mount (+ Diadem)

Honorable Mentions

11. Cline, Mount

12. President, The & Vice President

13. Recondite Peak

Top 10 Easy Alpine Climbs

The following is a list of my top 10 easy alpine climbs – either not requiring special climbing gear, or a very minimal amount of it (i.e. short rappel or easy glacier crossings). 

1. Athabasca, Mount

2. Bident Mountain

3. Brazeau, Mount

4. Cathedral Mountain

5. Christian Peak (Lyell V)

6. Cirrus Mountain

7. Des Poilus, Mont

8. Joffre, Mount

9. President, The & Vice President

10. Willingdon, Mount (+ Crown, South Tower)

Honorable Mentions

11. Aberdeen & Haddo

12. Warren, Mount

13. Woolley, Mount

Top 10 Winter Alpine Climbs

These mountains will make you work for their summits. The hardest part with most of them is surviving the approach and the winter camping that’s required. Many of these have severe avalanche slopes and / or crevasse fields and should not be underestimated. From a technical climbing perspective, none of these are especially difficult.

1. Ayesha Peak

2. Balfour, Mount

3. Collie, Mount

4. Columbia, Mount

5. Hector, Mount

6. North Twin Peak (+ Twins Tower)

7. Resplendent Mountain

8. South Twin Peak

9. White Pyramid

10. Wilson, Mount

Honorable Mentions

11. Andromeda, Mount

12. Ernest Peak (Lyell III)

13. Patterson, Mount

Top 10 Easy Winter Alpine Trips

The following are easier winter alpine trips, many are snowshoe trips in some big alpine terrain. As with the harder winter trips, these should only be attempted by alpinists who have some training and experience on an Alberta snow pack and are well versed in traveling safely through avalanche terrain and on glaciers.

1. Athabasca, Mount

2. Castleguard Mountain

3. Chapel Peak

4. Cirrus Mountain

5. Emerald, Mount

6. Field, Mount

7. Gordon, Mount

8. Olive, Mount & St. Nicholas Peak

9. Patterson, Mount

10. Rhondda, Mount

Honorable Mentions

11. Ramp Peak

12. Spine Peak

13. Turquoise Peak

Top 10 Ski Tours

A ski tour might still involve a peak but is more focused on the “tour” part of the ski rather than full-on snow climbing. Obviously all the winter ski ascents in the previous section also included tours, but in general the following trips are more benign and less exposed to serious avalanche risk and / or crevasse hazards, but obviously still somewhat exposed in several cases.

I'm assuming you are familiar with Avalanche risks and how to mitigate them and are an intermediate level of experience traveling on an Alberta Rockies snow pack.

1. Chick-a-boom Ski Traverse, The

2. Burstall Pass Ski Tour (South Peak, Snow Peak)

3. Dolomite Ski Circuit, The (Puzzle Shoulder)

4. French-Haig-Robertson Glacier Ski Tour

5. Mosquito Creek Peaks (Quartzite, Ramp, Puzzle Shoulder)

6. Nosecone Peak

7. Observation Sub-Peaks

8. Saskatchewan Glacier / Castleguard Meadows (Peak)

9. Sunshine Meadows (Citadel Pass & Peak, Quartz Ridge, Hill, Sunshine Landing)

10. Youngs Peak Ski Traverse (Illecillewaet Glacier)

Honorable Mentions

11. Cascade Fire Road (Elaphus Peak)

12. Ogden Bench (Sherbrooke Lake)

13. Wolverine Valley (Ridge, Lipalian, Purple Mound)

Top 10 Backpacking Trips

Strap on a backpack and give any of the following trips a shot – but only if you like adventure and some of the most in-your-face views in the Canadian Rockies. They range from more remote and difficult to access (Trident Lake, Fortress Lake) to easy with good trails and established campgrounds (Berg Lake, Assiniboine Provincial Park). As with any Rockies trip, late August and September might be the best time of year, but these areas are good any time you might try them. These are rated using  hikers in mind, not scrambling or climbing folks.

1. Assiniboine Provincial Park

2. Clearwater River, The

3. Job Lake (Coral Creek, Job Pass)

4. Laughing Bears Creek

5. Martin Creek, Upper

6. McConnell & Roaring Creek

7. Ram River, The

8. Spectral Lakes, The

9. Three Passes, The

10. White Goat Wilderness, The

Honorable Mentions

11. Berg Lake

12. Clearwater Pass Area (Devon Lakes)

13. Lake O'Hara

Top 10 Worst Trips

My readers thought it was only fair that since I posted so many awesome and favorable trips, I should include at least 10 of my least favorite outings in the Rockies. I agree. Following are some mighty fine, crappy days spent wasting my time in the hills. Looking at them, I realize a pretty common thread going on. A good number of these are snowshoe trips. That’s no big surprise. I also notice that they’re all fairly easy trips – probably chosen because of crappy conditions / weather when I really didn’t actually feel like being anywhere other than my warm, comfortable couch.

1. Barwell, Mount

2. Baseline Mountain

3. Cockscomb Mountain

4. Dawson Hill

5. Fortune, Mount (Snowshoe)

6. Hell's Ridge

7. Johnson Creek Ridge & Cell Phone Ridge

8. Kidd Junior, Mount

9. McLean Hill

10. Pringle, Mount

Honorable Mentions

11. Okotoks Mountain

12. Mustang Hills, The

13. Two Pines & Last Break (Lyon)