Notes: Via Big Gully route, east and west peaks. Route is shared with a via ferrata tour. Stairs have been built into the gully.
Trip Report
The big gully portion of the route is largely shared with the descent route of Mt Norquay Via Ferrata. Their tours go as far as the east peak. I had the west peak (the true summit) to myself. I passed a guided group at the start of the day. I briefly said hello and let their guide know I would be scrambling the Big Gully route. They seemed friendly enough and didn’t voice any concerns. I was far ahead of them within a few minutes as the group paused to review technical aspects of the via ferrata.
A large parking lot is available at the ski resort. From the parking lot, the walk up the ski hill is fairly straightforward. I tend to agree with Kane that the crux of the day is the low cliff wall to the right of the Cliffhouse Bistro. The solution pockets make for fun climbing moves, similar to the climbing at Grassi Lakes, but this is a steep scramble. Keeping things interesting, this difficult wall is directly adjacent to a moderately trafficked path. So, I had the added pleasure of answering questions from bewildered walkers and pausing mid-climb to avoid kicking rocks down while people passed below – which is also much like climbing at Grassi Lakes!
Beyond the Cliffhouse and starting up the Big Gully. Looking back, a person can be seen crossing the suspension bridge further down. The suspension bridge is part of the via feratta tour, not the scramble route, but it really looks fun! Banff townsite can be seen at distant center, with Mount Rundle towering over it to the right.Travel up the big gully has been made easier by stairs built into the slope.Once on the summit ridge I passed the via ferrata ascent route. It’s much spicier than the scramble route and looks like a great day out.I would say a few moves along the ridge on the way to the east summit are difficult scrambling, such as this section. Fall hazard was present due to steep cliffs at either side here.The east peak offers fantastic views, including Mount Louis (center-right) and Mount Fifi (right). I learned while preparing this trip report that Mount Fifi was named after a dog, not the hook used in aid climbing, nor my pet rabbit (Fiona, or Fifi for short). The west peak of Mount Norquay is to the left.Continuing on to the west peak, looking back at the way I’d come along an easy to moderate stretch.Reaching the west peak, looking back at the East peak. Cascade Mountain is in the background. To avoid climbing a cliff to the base of the west peak I detoured to climber’s right (out of frame to the left in this photo) on an obvious trail across a gully. The detour was moderate scrambling.A victory selfie at the west peak of Mount Norquay with the east peak and Cascade Mountain in the background.Looking west: The taller ridge in the background is Mount Cory. The jagged peaks lined up in front are: the three peaks of Mount Edith, Mount Louis, and Mount Fifi (in shadow).Looking southeast: Mount Rundle (left) and Sulphur Mountain (center-right) stand above Banff townsite.Returning to the ridge between the east and west peaks, I chose to bypass the east peak and ridge on the return trip. I dropped down to the right at a low spot in the ridge, then side-hilled below the ridge and came up at the notch in the ridge above the Big Gully.
On the way back down the Big Gully I came up behind another via feratta tour group. Their guide was considerate and paused the group to let me pass. I had no problems with rock fall from the groups, but was still more comfortable wearing my helmet, just in case. Everyone on the tours was wearing a helmet too. I made it back to the parking lot in 5 hrs 20 min, which is faster than Kane’s estimate, but seems consistent with other trip reports.
Peak Bliss 