Jul 2, 2011
This ridgetop scramble is well worth the long approach and we were fortunate enough to have good conditions. The first interesting difficulty was finding a way onto the west ridge of Whirlwind, which was well guarded by cornices. Alan spotted a small rock outcrop that broke the nearly continuous line and offered us passage. From here it was an easy walk along the wide windswept ridge up to the summit. Here we hunkered down behind a drift for a few minutes, trying to get a short break from the relentless wind. Once over the top we were able to see the rest of the ridge out to Overlord. From here out it was beautiful views and fun scrambling on snow and rock. There were some large cornices to be aware of, but they were easy to avoid. We had a great view of the surrounding glaciers from the summit of Overlord, but did not linger too long due to the strong wind. The round trip took us 6 hours, which left us just enough time in the day to pack up and make the long stroll back to Whistler village. I organized this trip through the ACC and I thank Alan, Ross, and Annika for joining me.
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