Cougar Mountain Scramble

Lat/Lon: 50.67361°N / 114.89722°W- CLICK FOR TOPO MAP
Cougar Mountain (not to be confused with Cougar Canyon) is on the front range in
Kananaskis Country which is a maze of provincial parks encompassing over 4,000
square kilometers of foothills and mountains bordering Banff National Park to the east
and south in the central Canadian Rockies. Cougar Mountain is more specifically located
in Elbow-Sheep Wildland Provincial Park. Its official name is a direct result of the large
cats who hunt its northern slopes. I saw fresh cougar tracks in the snow on my bike
approach in mid-October. I also saw coyote, white tailed deer, mountain sheep, weasel
tracks and three golden eagles, one screaming past me on the summit ridge. The front
range always offers its share of wildlife, particularly late in the fall.

The only published route on Cougar Mountain is the moderately rated scramble up its
northeastern ridge. Alan Kane’s Scrambles in the Canadian Rockies is pretty easy to
follow on this one. The crux is the final summit ridge involving several hundred meters
of hands on scrambling. With snow conditions, this portion becomes more of a difficult
scramble. The approach involves a hardy bike ride, particularly in snow, along the Big
Elbow Trail for approximately 12kms. In snow conditions it took me two hours to
complete this bike approach and only one hour return as the trail became dryer.

The view that dominates most of your ascent is Banded Peak. As you reach the false north
summit, you start to take in Tombstone Mountain along with other mountains to the west
and south in Kananaskis Country. Of course on a very clear day, you can also make out
Calgary to the northeast.

Getting There
The Bragg Creek and the Elbow-Sheep Valley area of Kananaskis Country can be
accessed from Calgary via a number of roads. The simplest is to take the Trans-Canada
exit for Bragg Creek, Highway 22. Travel south through Bragg Creek on Highway 22 until it
dead ends into Highway 66. Turn right on Highway 66 and follow it until a dead end into
the Little Elbow Campground. Park on the right at the sign for trailhead parking. When the
gates are closed in October, you will be forced to park at the first parking area on the left
near the river. There are restrooms at this location.

Watch for cattle and deer on the road as you will be driving through open range land.
Highway 66 is closed from December 1 through May 14. If the gates are open, do not
park in the camping spots. Provincial park enforcement does take the time to issue tickets.

Red Tape
There are no permit requirements to enter, climb and/or park in Kananaskis Country. The
Elbow Valley Information Center is located on your right after you turn right on Highway 66.
Any recent notices will be posted on the bulletin board at that location.

This is active grizzly country, therefore, you should always have bear spray on your person.
I found the remains of an elk kill along side the Little Elbow River when ascending Mount
Remus in 2005. I do advise checking with the park website link provided above for
possible wildlife trail closures.

When to Climb
As with most climbs in the Canadian Rockies, the driest time is from June through
September. I did this scramble in October, post holing in knee deep snow along the
ridge and dealing with four inches of fresh powder on the approach bike trail.
At times the front range can get more snow than the Icefields Parkway. There are no
published backcountry ski routes on Cougar Mountain, but it might be conducive to ski up
to the north summit in winter. These would no doubt be avalanche prone slopes however.

Camping
This is actually an excellent scramble for camping due to the Big Elbow camp site
along the Elbow River on approach. This is a pristine spot. There is also the Little Elbow
Campground in which you park to start your bike approach. Do not expect much of a
backcountry experience however, as many city residents use this campground as a
holiday type resort. There are several other backcountry sites further along the Elbow Loop
Trail. You cannot camp outside of the marked specific camping areas in Kananaskis.
Refer to the Kananaskis Provincial Park website for more information regarding camping
and/or lodging.

Mountain Conditions
The Kananaskis Provincial Park website is a very thorough park website, including trail
conditions or closures, wildlife notices, weather conditions, avalanche conditions,
camping permits, whitewater conditions, etc. It is an excellent source if you are going to
spend any time here and comparable to any National Park website I have used. Outside of
the parks web site, Canadian Avalanche Association is also useful, particularly for winter
travel. Canadian Alpine Accident Reports are also extremely useful

Route Description
This is a 4900’+/- total ascent day. If late or early season, you will be forced to park at the
first parking area before the gate. There are restrooms at this location and you are directly
adjacent to the Elbow River. Find the trail along the river and proceed south to the
suspension bridge. Cross the river and bike or hike approximately 11kms+ along the Big
Elbow Trail to reach another bridge. You will pass the Big Elbow camp site on your left.
After you cross this 2nd bridge, proceed up the steep trail until it levels out. You can start
your off trail ascent on the left through the forest anywhere along the next kilometer. Your
goal is to break out of tree line below the first northern ridge of Cougar Mountain. Cougar
Mountain makes a horseshoe shape. If you ascend early, it means more
bushwhacking. If you ascend later from the trail you will find an open avalanche gully
earlier, but you will have lost some elevation on the Big Elbow Trail as well. In either
case, move in a southeastern direction at all times. If the wooded terrain you are on
flattens out, move right again.

As you break through tree line (photo), Cougar Mountain’s north summit (false summit)
comes into view. You will not be able to ascend the steep cliff bands protecting the
north summit’s northeastern flank. Instead, zig zag your way up talus and/or snow to the
first north ridge, turn left and follow it along via mild scrambling, staying to the right side,
until you reach a steep wall, then turn the ridge to the left and continue to its highpoint.
Towards the end of this ridge you will find one section of hands on scrambling to reach
this first summit point.

From here (photo), proceed up the short broad ridgeline to the north summit of Cougar
Mountain. Towards the end, turn the ridge on the left to reach the summit. There was a
significant cairn on this summit in 2006. This is not the true summit of Cougar Mountain.
Continue southwest down to the col between the north and south summits. You will lose
approximately 300’. Once at the col, start up the true summit ridge. I did this portion in
snow conditions which makes for a difficult scramble. Covered in snow it is difficult to
perceive the breaks in the ridge slabs and you end up on several snow- on-slab
situations. It is best to stick to the ridge as close as you can to the east side. From time to
time, you can bypass more difficult sections by making out-sweeps on the east side. If in
dry conditions, I cannot imagine this ridge presenting much of a challenge.

Descent
Return the same. It is easier to descend by circumventing the exposed aspects of the
ridge to the east. Of course you have to hump back up to the north summit. As you
descend back to tree line, angle left into an avalanche gully to avoid some of the
bushwhacking. When you are forced to re-enter the forest, angle back right on your
descent to the Big Elbow Trail.

Essential Gear
Bike or skis make this approach more bearable unless you are going to camp. Helmet,
Bear Spray, Hiking Poles, Gaiters, Alpine Ax if Snow Conditions, Possibly Crampons as
well. I needed neither in October snow conditions. Heavy Boots to Protect against the
Large Talus on Descent