Winter Cragging in the Canadian Rockies

A select guide to 14 crags and over 200 ice, mixed and drytooling routes throughout the Bow Valley, Radium Highway and Icefields Parkway of the renowned Canadian Rockies. The first guidebook to mixed climbing in the Rockies since 2004!

The Canadian Rockies are home to many world-class ice and mixed climbs, ranging from short, burly cave routes all the way through to thousand-meter alpine faces. And while many climbers still come here to test themselves against classic multipitch testpiece routes, an increasing number are choosing to climb at one or more of the many single-pitch crags scattered around the range. These crags provide early-season training, a place to find refuge and get a few laps in during midwinter cold snaps or avalanche cycles, and even to climb on tools throughout the summer.

This guide provides information to 14 different crags, from the classic Haffner Creek, Bear Spirit and Grotto Canyon through to areas never published in a print guidebook such as Mythos Crag or the Temple of Silence. With over 200 routes listed, there are options for every type of climber, ranging from entry-level WI3s and M4s all the way to massive prolonged masterpieces like Will Gadd’s InstaGrade (clocking in at a whopping M14+, the hardest so far in the range).