Mount Cascade

Trip No. 136

Elevation

3003m

Height Gain

417m to Cascade Amphitheatre

1332m to summit

Distance (one-way)

6.29km to Cascade Amphitheatre

9.83km to summit

Time to Reach Summit

1.5 - 2.5 hours to Cascade Amphitheatre

4.0 - 5.5 hours to summit

Degree of Difficulty

1.5 of 5

Scenery

2.5 of 5

Date of Most-recent Ascent

September 7, 2003

Download GPS Track

From Highway 1 take the west Banff exit and follow signs to Mt. Norquay ski area. This exit is 16.9km past the east park entrance. From the exit drive the curvy road for 5.7km and park in the large parking lot (GPS reference 115d35m51s N, 51d12m10s W) on your right, near Cascade Lodge.

From the parking area wander past Cascade Lodge and the Cascade ski lift. As you approach the Spirit Chair you can take the right branch or continue on the road until the Mystic Chair (Pathfinder Express). From here drop down to the right and join the path coming in from the first access.

You may wonder why the initial going is so easy - and then you realize that you're going downhill! In fact, you will drop some 70 vertical meters for the first 30 minutes as you descend to Forty Mile Creek. Once you reach this junction (GPS reference 115d26m48s N, 51d13m18s W) turn right and cross the creek in a few minutes via a wooden bridge. From here on you finally start gaining elevation. At a moderate pace you will reach the Cascade Amphitheatre trail junction (GPS reference 115d36m38s N, 51d13m53s W) 1.6km away in half an hour or so.

The trail beyond the Cascade Amphitheatre junction rises in sluggishly slow switchbacks up the western slopes of Mt. Cascade. The relatively close forest only allow brief glimpses of Mt. Edith and Mt. Louis from time to time. After some 35-40 minutes of mundane hiking the trail flattens out. Almost immediately you will find a trail branching off to the right with logs laid across the entrance (GPS reference 115d35m51s N, 51d14m00s W). You can take this trail which provides direct access to the skyline ridge leading to Mt. Cascade's summit. If your objective is Cascade Amphitheatre march on. In no more than 10 minutes you will arrive at the mouth of the amphitheatre (GPS reference 115d35m38s N, 51d14m02s W). From here on the trail into the upper bowl is obvious, albeit still more than 1km away. As you proceed pass the entrance near the second clump of trees you should find a trail peeling off to the right. This is the alternate line to gain the skyline ridge above.

Regardless of which trail you take, the hike up to the ridge is steep initially but quickly eases off as you make your way up open forest. The trail alternates on the rocky edge or just inside tree cover. As you exit tree line you can hike straight up the boulder field with the green and black lichen covered rocks (very slippery when wet) or wend right following a line of cairns. I'd recommend going straight as traversing the rocks doesn't really reduce the angle, plus they are often loose.

When you reach the top of the boulder slope you'll need to down-scramble a short pitch and descend to a low-point. From here the trail can be seen zigzagging its way up grassy slopes ahead. In the distance to the right you can see the path clearly slicing up to the right skyline ridge across a slabby section. It looks more difficult than it actually is. Once you reach the bare slabs you'll see that there are sufficient ledges for you to simply walk across. If this section is covered in ice or snow your strategy may be very different. In fact, you should think about turning back, as a tumble on the steep slopes will surely result in injury.

With the slabs behind you, turn a corner at a cairn. You should have a clear view of Mt. Rundle to the south and the town of Banff below. The trail continues its way below short cliffs to a second corner. Shortly after you'll need to scramble down a couple of rockbands. Just follow the line of cairns and you should have little trouble negotiating these brief sections. There is no exposure.

Ahead you can see the final push to the summit. The trail is clear but you'll likely want to stay to the left or right for more secure footing going up.

For some reason the summit cairn is not at the highest point. The summit itself (GPS reference 115d33m46s N, 51d13m44s W) is rather long and narrow, but does offer ample room for lounging about as you enjoy views overlooking Lake Minnewanka with Mt. Alymer to its left and Mt. Inglismaldie to its right. The view south features Mt. Rundle. In the distance you can see the Three Sisters. The three summits of Mt. Edith are to the west just in front of Mt. Cory, while arrowhead-shaped Mt. Louis is slightly north. Beyond Mt. Norquay, Mt. Bourgeau lies to the southwest.

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Mt. Cascade

From Mt. Norquay near Spirit Chair

Cascade Amphitheatre

From Mt. Cascade summit ascent ridge

Mt. Cascade

From low point looking back at minor highpoint beyond boulder field

Mt. Cascade

Looking toward summit from low point; trail ascends to top of grassy slope and traverses to right-hand skyline ridge

Access Map

Elevation Profile