Panamerican Peaks Project

Mt. Logan, Canada

March 5th, 2009

Mount Logan expedition 2009

Photos: Picasa Logan album

Videos:

Sunset on King Col, 4150m, at Mount Logan expedition 2009:

Large crevasse above King Col at 4700m on Mount Logan:

Arriving at Camp 3, 4850m, above crevasse on Mount Logan:

Ski descent from Camp 4, 5250m, to Camp 3 on Mount Logan:

Reaching the summit of Mount Logan, highest point of Canada:

Mt. Logan Facts (copied from my friend Zoran Vasic’ expedition page):

Height: 5959 m (19551 ft)
Location: Yukon Territory, Canada; N 60°33′ 60.0″ W 140°24′ 14.4″

First Ascent: Tuesday June 23, 1925 A. MacCarthy; H. Lambar; W. Foster; N. Read

Mt. Logan is the second highest in North America.
The Logan massif rises about 3000 m from the surrounding glaciers and has the largest base circumference of any mountain on Earth. A glaciated plateau, about 20 km long and 5 km wide covers the top of the massif. About a dozen peaks rise from the plateau – the highest, being Mount Logan’s main summit.

Due to its proximity to the Gulf of Alaska, severe snow storms can hit the upper part of the mountain any time of the year. The climbing season is from late April to early July. Generally, the weather deteriorates as the summer progresses. Springtime winds can exceed 160 km/hour; temps on the glacier can range from -40° to +80° F.

The mountain is normally accessed by ski-equipped aircraft or helicopter.

2009 Expedition with Canada West Mountain School

Mount Logan expedition 2009 at SpotAdventures

Map created by SpotAdventures:GPS Geotagging

You can’t just ride to the base of this mountain and climb it solo. Just getting there is a considerable project. I joined the Canada West Mountain School 2009 expedition to Mt. Logan, Kings Trench route.

I was surprised to find only one expedition going to Mt. Logan in 2009. There are 50-100 times more people on Denali than on Mt. Logan. Denali is part of the Seven Summits and in some years more than 1000 climbers reach the top. On Mt. Logan, there are years where nobody stands on its summit! It is the most remote place I have ever visited.

We were a small and completely self-sustained team with 3 clients and 2 guides. We brought food and fuel for several weeks; if the weather turned bad, we would have to wait and hunker down. We can’t get off the mountain unless the weather is suitable for flying. Hiking out doesn’t appear to be an option, probably a 1-2 week journey through no-mans land in itself.

There are very little technical difficulties on the Kings Trench route. We ascended using skis and roped up for glacier travel. The main challenges here are the extreme cold and high altitude. I can now say that Mt. Logan is likely the wildest and most remote of all Panamerican Peaks!

The above picture is from the interesting and educational Yukon Government Museum’s page on Mt. Logan.

See more pictures from the successful 2009 expedition here.

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