Squaws Tit Scramble

Lat/Lon: 51.13°N, 115.33°W
Squaws Tit is a local Canmore, Alberta climb located 4000’ above the Bow River
Valley just east of the Banff National Park gates. It is 2 km northwest of the much
more popular scramble, Lady MacDonald, both belonging to the Fairholme Range
in Kananaskis Provincial Park.   Squaws Tit’s name is unofficial as you might
imagine, but its summit does in fact resemble a woman’s breast. It is one of the
most prominent landmarks surrounding Canmore.   Despite its minor stature, the
ascent of Squaws Tit offers exposed scrambling towards the summit and can be
quite the serious challenge if laden with snow.   The only published route is the
difficult scramble up the northeast ridge exposing a solid view of Mt. Assiniboine to
the south.

This is one of the best scramble experiences in the Canmore area.   The southwest
approach offers an excellent ridge to gain.   You have exposure at the top combined
with route finding at the bottom.   Everything one wants in a scramble.

Getting There
The Trans-Canada Highway runs through Canmore as you travel from Calgary in
the east to Banff in the west.   Harvie Heights is a small hamlet, practically a suburb
of Canmore 2 km to the west that borders Banff National Park.   The Harvie Heights
exit will be your last exit off of Trans-Canada before you hit the park gates.   Take the
shoulder road into Harvie Heights and zig zag your way up the hill to any of the upper
trailheads in the subdivision.

Red Tape
Squaws Tit is not in Banff National Park.   There are no permit requirements to
enter, climb and/or park in Kananaskis Provincial Park.   This is active grizzly country,
therefore, you should always have bear spray on your person.   We had a grizzly
fatality in Canmore in 2005 on the benchlands that you will be accessing via your
ascent.   I do advise checking with the park website link provided above for possible
trail closures.

When To Climb
As with most scrambles in the Canadian Rockies, the driest time is from June
through September.   I have climbed Squaws Tit twice, in April and May.   This early
in the season, you can expect some ice and snow on the north side of the summit
block which is your ascent route.   These early conditions will no doubt make this a
more difficult climb.    There are no published backcountry ski routes on Squaws Tit,
nor would it be conducive to ski to the summit.

Camping
The closest camp site would be back in Canmore at the town campsite at the
information center off of the same exit for Harvie Heights.

The Alpine Club of Canada national office is located in Canmore and also serves as
a hostel, a recently renovated one at that.   You cannot camp outside of the marked
specific camping areas in Kananaskis Provincial Park.   Refer to the Kananaskis
Provincial Park website for more information regarding backcountry camping.

Mountain Conditions
The Kananaskis Provincial Park website is a very thorough park website, including
trail conditions and/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.

Route
This is a 3800’+/- ascent day.   After you reach the upper trailheads in Harvey
Heights, there is no particular trail leading up to the northeast ridge.   I have scaled
this mountain twice and bushwhacked my way up to the ridge pretty much from
where I was parked.   Study Squaws Tit well from the road before you enter Harvie
Heights and take a compass reading.

Angle northeast through the trees via your compass reading (stay off the trails as
they lead nowhere you want to go). Once you break free of tree line at 7500’, look to
gain the left hand skyline (northeast ridge) as soon as you can to avoid unrelenting
scree.   This ridge is nice and slabby offering great views the entire distance. Once
up to the summit block, otherwise known as the "tit", traverse to the left (north side)
and climb the crux to the summit. The first portion of this crux is multiple slabs.   If
they are snow covered, your exposure is magnified considerably.   Once above
these slabs, you can climb straight up incurring several 5.7 moves or continue at an
angle to first gain the southwest ridge at a weakness (saddle) and continue up from
there. This second option of course makes for your best descent.   Return is the
same except, now you can descend some of that fast scree to the east of the ridge.

On my first ascent in May, I encountered tons of snow, so I went straight up on some
5.7 rock over serious exposure.   The next year in April (with less snow), however, I
could see the route was much more laid back via angling to a small saddle on the
southwest ridge that makes for an easier ascent to the summit.   I encountered no
other climbers on either outing. Squaws Tit is much less ascended than its
neighbors Lady MacDonald, Grotto, Ha Ling and Rundle.   The view exposes the
valley heading towards Banff to the south of Cascade Mountain, a full on frontal of
the Mt. Rundle Traverse and a solid look at Mt. Assiniboine to the south.

Essential Gear- Helmet, Gaiters, Alpine Ax if Snow, Bear Spray, Compass

Trip Report
I climbed Squaws Tit in May of 2003 and April of 2004. Very few people ascend this
local Canmore mountain, so it serves well for a solo trip if one seeks solitude.   The
May trip actually proved to be much more difficult due to the amount of snow on the
north side of the summit block.   I suggest you climb this dry unless you are an avid
mountaineer.   The route finding to above tree line could be your biggest challenge
however.   Cheers!