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Yukness Mountain |
| Elevation 2,847m Height Gain Time to Reach Summit Degree of Difficulty Scenery Date of Most-recent Ascent |
Yukness Mt. is in the heart of the Lake O'Hara alpine region. Due to the delicate environment access is tightly controlled. In order to get in there you have to book a reservation up to 3 months in advance by calling (250) 343-6433. There is a $10 reservation fee and $12 per person for the 12km bus ride into the day-use area. You can skip the reservation step by showing up in person. If there are empty spots at the time the bus leaves you can just pay for the ride. To avoid disappointment I'd advise booking exactly 3 months in advance, especially if you're planning to hike on a weekend. There are two bus runs daily into Lake O'Hara: 8:30am and 10:30am. Departure times are 3:30pm and 6:30pm. The bus operates from June 19 through September 30. From Calgary, the drive west to Lake O'Hara is about 2.5 hours. The parking area (GPS reference 51d26m44s N, 116d19m44s W) is off Highway 1, 10.3km west of the Jasper exit (Highway 93). The bus ride into Le Relais Day Shelter (GPS reference 51d21m29s N, 116d20m19s W) takes about 25 minutes. On arrival follow the signed trail to Mary Lake. You should be at the north shore in about 15 minutes (GPS reference 51d21m12s N, 116d19m54s W). Continue on the left side of the lake until you reach the south end. From here numerous switchbacks take you up the steep headwall. Once on top you'll see Opabin Glacier directly ahead. The gap is Opabin Pass. Wander through the open alpine surroundings of Opabin Plateau passing a couple of still ponds. Your next stop is Opabin Lake. Opabin Lake is nestled at the foot of Yukness Mt. Once you arrive at the lake stay on the trail that angle up the towards the top of a greenish-grayish outcrop (GPS reference51d20m31s N, 116d18m37s W). The cairn here is the first of many which line to route to the Yukness south summit. Initially you go almost straight up towards the mountain's middle cliffband. The trail then zigs left and traverses in a northwest direction until it reaches a narrow rocky gully. It is here and a couple of sections shortly after that'll require the hands-on scrambling. Once through this pitch you are on a rather large rocky terrace. If you're heading to the north summit you'll leave the trail here and angle left towards a boulder-strewn slope. There are no trails; just keep to the left of a diminishing rock band, and beyond this point head towards the ridge directly above and turn left to the finish (GPS reference 51d21m06s N, 116d18m42s W). Time from the terrace to the nouth summit is about 45 minutes. The way to the south summit from the terrace is well defined and marked with cairns and the occasional red paint splotch. The angle is moderate but the footing is solid. You'll top out at a gentle saddle (GPS reference 51d20m52s N, 116d18m29s W) before turning right to gain the summit cairn some 5 minutes away (GPS reference 51d20m46s N, 116d18m24s W). The summit view is terrific. The first thing you would have noticed on reaching the saddle is Mt. Huber to the north. A minor peak to its right drops into Abbot Pass. The alpine hut is clearly visible at the saddle. To the northeast above Abbot Pass is Mt. Lefroy. A massive hanging glacier is nestled against the east face of Glacier Peak. Nearby to the southeast the lower ridge of Ringrose Peak are crowned with odd-looking pinnacles. Impressive Mt. Biddle is directly south above Opabin Pass. Schaffer Ridge is to the southwest. Looking in the direction of Lake O'Hara, Cathedral Mt. is visible to the northwest. On return, once you re-join the Opabin Lake trail you have many different options. You can of course go back the same way, but you can also consider taking the Opabin Highline trail which connects up with the East Opabin trail lower down before ending up at the south shore of Lake O'Hara. Alternatively, a more scenic route is to follow the Yukness Ledge Alpine trail and connect up to the Lake Oesa trail before descending to the north side of Lake O'Hara. If you plan to summit both peaks of Yukness, you would not have enough time to do the later option and still make the 3:30pm bus ride out (unless you're going to jog the whole way).
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