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Ski touring Mount Elma
The sun reflected off the snow and made it difficult to see without sunglasses as we drove into the parking lot at Mount Washington Raven Lodge. The Raven Lodge is usually home base for cross-country skiers and snowshoers looking to make their rounds on the groomed trails in Paradise Meadows.
But we weren't there to snowshoe or cross-country ski.
Our target for the day was Mount Elma. We were ready to scale her snowy slopes with our backcountry ski touring gear. Backcountry skis are a bit like cross-country skis in that they prevent you from sliding backwards when travelling uphill. The skis have sticky hair strips on the bottom to grip the snow, allowing you to walk up a hill with your heel free before removing the strips or skins, clipping in your heel and skiing down. These skis are the perfect mode of transportation for summiting and descending Mount Elma.
You've probably never heard of Mount Elma but if you've been to Mount Washington to ski, chances are you've seen it. Looking south across Paradise Meadows from the ski runs or the lodges you'll see the steep peak of Mount Albert Edward. Closer and to the left of Albert Edward are to nondescript lumps in the meadows. The 1,500-metre tall lump on the right is Mount Allan Brooks, the 1,420-metre lump on the right is Mount Elma. You probably didn't even know they had names. Now you can look over your shoulder as you ride the chairlifts at Mount Washington and tell your friends about the two closest mountains, Elma and Brooks.
The snow was hard and icy as we set out on our skis toward Mount Elma. We planned to tour through the meadows around Lake Helen McKenzie and then up to the saddle, or low ridge, between Mount Elma and Brooks. From there, we'd head up the ridge to the summit of Elma, eat some lunch, snap some pics then look for powder for the ski down.
The cross-country trails zigzag through Paradise Meadows but we headed off the trails to break our own path over to Lake Helen McKenzie. We reached its frozen shores and decided to skirt the shores because there wasn't enough ice to support our weight. I was looking for a great ski tour on a sunny day, not an icy dip in a lake a few kilometres from help. From the opposite shore of the lake, we skinned up to the ridge and made the 90-degree turn left to face Mount Elma. Up, up and a bit more up and then the summit plateau came into view. Success!
The summit of Mount Elma?
We were hoping to summit the mountain, which requires standing on its tallest point. But where was the summit? We weren't really sure. The top is so flat there looked to be three or four possible points. We stood on what we thought was our summit and then hunkered down behind a conveniently placed stand of trees. The wind had picked up a bit and being the frostbite-averse people we are, the shield provided a warmer place to have lunch.
Whenever I'm hiking up mountains like this my thoughts are always dominated with positive self talk, coaxing myself up the hill instead of giving up and turning around. Mount Elma isn't especially steep but moving at the speed we were, anything can be made into hard work. Once we threw on our jackets and relaxed into our snow lawn chairs for lunch, I had the luxury of letting my mind wander. I'm always curious of the origins of our current target's name.
Mount Elma apparently got its name from the mayor and alderman of Courtney in the 1920s and 30s. Theed Pearse spent a considerable amount of time in the area after retiring on a large ornithological study and named the mountain after his wife, Elma.
The ski down was quick and exciting. What took us an hour to climb took a few minutes to descend. We tried to shred the last remaining patches of powder and then head back into the trees for the rest of the icy clatter down the hill. When everyone was accounted for, we stuck our skins to our skins and started the hour hike on the flats back towards hot coffee at the Raven Lodge.
Even though the snow was icy and tough for most of the ski, I prefer not to dwell on the bad parts of the trip. Any time spent outside on a sunny day is infinitely better than being bored inside and, with that reasoning, the trip was a roaring success. There may not have been much powder but there's nothing wrong with a scenic hike on a sunny day with a few good friends.
Text & Photos by Ross Collicutt ©
