2020-08-08 - Jutland Mountain (via La Coulotte Ridge)
Jutland Mountain is one of the more secluded peaks in the Castle Wildland and for this reason has taken me a long time to get around to climbing. There are at least two ways to reach the summit. The first approach would entail coming up the South Castle Valley Rd. a good distance on foot or bike and then setting up camp near where Scarpe Creek meets the Castle River. Then the next day making the way to and then up from South Scarpe Lake, which sits below the north face of Jutland.
The second approach involves driving far back into the East Kootenay area in BC along forest service roads and camping at a trailhead along Roche Creek that leads to Sunkist Ridge and La Coulotte Ridge (LCR). I opted for this approach as car camping seemed a lot easier, even though the drive was long (about 5 hrs. from Lethbridge, AB). I also wanted another opportunity to saunter along LCR, which I had hiked a year ago but a long day and a lack of water made into a tough slog.
The trail below LCR is good and goes all the way to a little lake below Sunkist Ridge. It is so good that I think it must be maintained by the Fernie Snowmobile Association. A lot of the dense shrubs and trees were cut which was great and made for a quick walk. There are two drainages that I saw that I could get up to the ridge on. The first is near a low point on LCR but for whatever reason looked too cliffy for me. I instead went up at a drainage that comes right off of the high point of LCR. This was a good, steady incline but not the worst I've been on and the light vegetation was a plus. The only scree was right at the end of the hill. I topped out just below the high point.
From there the way to Jutland is clear as one can see the mountain directly across the valley between it and LCR. There is a long ridge off of Jutland that extends to the south. I did use my 'Canada Maps' app a couple of times, just to find the spot to get off of LCR and onto the Great Divide Trail (GDT) (which passes right by Jutland) and then in a woodsy area when I left the GDT to get to the long south ridge.
There is a little exposure from the long ridge to the summit. At one point I did cliff out but that was easily bypassed on the left -- a 15 min. detour at best. And from there the way to the summit was a pleasant hike. The views from the summit are grand, as mountains surround you in all degrees including the familiar sights (to me) of Castle Peak, Victoria Peak, Lys Ridge, Spionkip Ridge and others in the Castle Wildland and Waterton Lakes NP.
On the return trip once I got back to LCR I turned south instead of going back the same way. I had a great time as, one I had a lot of water, and also because that part of the ridge has lot of varied terrain, alternating between open clearings, little canyons and rocky exposed ridges that I either hit straight on or circumvented on the right. The only negative of this route is the steep grassy hill that you have to take to exit LCR. I slip a lot on grass! Give me a rocky drainage any day over an easy looking grassy slip and slide.
All in all a wonderful hike and a route I would take again.
Music:
Feeling Whitney - Post Malone (Acoustic Instrumental)
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Agustin Amigo - Video Killed the Radio Star
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FREE ACOUSTIC GUITAR MUSIC DOWNLOAD NO COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS
-not sure of the link. From YouTube
