Distance: 6.5km return
Elevation Gain: 450m Physical Difficulty: 2/5 Technical Difficulty: 2/5 Avalanche Terrain Rating: Challenging Map: 82 J/11 |
To Get Here: From Canmore, take Smith Dorrien / Spray Lakes Trail for 55km to Black Prince Parking on your right. Alternatively, take HWY 40 and exit on Spray Trail to reach the parking lot.
Route Description: From the Black Prince Parking Lot, head SW across the flats and cross the Smith Dorrien Creek. Follow an old logging road to the right, as it climbs to the West. Continue half a kilometer down this road. watching for a narrow ski trail that breaks off to the right, dropping down to the creek. Cross the creek and follow a narrow drainage on climbers' right of the Black Prince Cone. Use caution while climbing the drainage as avalanches have run into this gulley / terrain trap. Half a kilometer down the drainage, the forest opens up and allows you to start ascending the gladed fan (located ~3km NE of Mount Black Prince). At the top of the fan, turn around and ski the glades on the cone. Be aware of overhead hazard and avoid the large slide paths to the west and the upper ridge. The runs on skiers left of the cone are called Johnny's line and to the right is a great run when conditions are safe, that drops all the way to the meadows. Lots of avalanches have ran in this area, if you're unsure of the conditions, avoid it. When you've had your fill, follow the drainage back to your uptrack.
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