Mount Niblock was a generally fun endeavor composed of sections of scrambling, a bit of exhilarating exposure, and an airy view of the surrounding mountains from the summit zone. The adventure begins from the standard viewing area for Lake Louise, which is an amazing sight in its own right. An hour or so of hiking brought Carly and I to the Lake Agnes Teahouse. We took a brief break at this spot, and then began making our way uphill through a glacially carved valley/cirque. Scree and boulders became more numerous, and steepness reached an apex at the base of a cliff band. There is a weakness through the cliffs, such that anything resembling climbing didn't exceed class 3, though there was mild exposure at times.
After passing the cliff band, we traveled through a boulder field, and then began an ascent toward a ridge that towered above. Route finding was interesting at times on the way to the ridge, but nothing too difficult. After reaching the ridge, we turned right toward the summit of Niblock. This last portion of the route to the summit was mainly a walk, with a few brief class 3 obstacles. However, the exposure increases a bit more on the way to the summit, but again nothing prohibitive. And at last, we reached the summit block and encountered a pinnacle of small rocks that held in place a thin two foot long spire-like summit ornament. We then took our pictures, refueled, and began rock skiing our way back down the mountain. We rewarded ourselves with tea (Carly) and lemonade (myself) at the Teahouse. It was quite a contrast being alone on top of an exhilarating mountain summit just a few hours earlier followed by the safety and crowdedness of the Teahouse.
YouTube video is here. Google map is here.
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