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Goat Haunt Mountain (8,641 ft.) - July 18-19, 2010
Ralph Thornton, Coordinator
Copyright Notice
This peak sits 4,400 feet above Waterton Lake and the Goat Haunt Ranger Station.
We traveled from the Waterton townsite to Goat Haunt by boat, camped overnight at Goat
Haunt and climbed the peak the following day. We were a little rushed on the return so as
not to miss our connection back to Waterton. Photos by Ralph Thornton and Jen
Gruber.
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The
weather looked ominous as we departed Waterton. The dark look proved to be a common
one that afternoon as well as on the day of our climb.
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| The International makes four runs daily between Waterton and Goat Haunt. It's a
handy way to quickly reach the head of Waterton Lake.
In this
view the International is arriving at Goat Haunt. The ranger station and customs office is on
the left. Photo by Jen Gruber.
After a
stormy evening the night sky was filled with stars. Unfortunately dawn brought more rain.
We started our climb by hiking up to the Goat Haunt Overlook on a trail lined with wet
brush. The rain became a drizzle that ever so slowly began to let up.
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| At the end of the trail we took off our rain gear. Heck we were soaked to the skin
with sweat anyway and the rain seemed to be letting up. Photo by Jen
Gruber. |
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| Then it was off into the bushes where we were treated to numerous showers from
the wet brush.
Climbing higher the vegetation thinned and the weather improved. Photo by Jen
Gruber.
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| About halfway up the mountain we reached a broad saddle and enjoyed some
brilliant sunshine. The views were pretty nice too. The background is highlighted by the
porcupine Ridge and the Guardhouse, two fairly remote and seldom reached
summits. |
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| Looking east we could see our objective, still about 2,200 feet
higher. |
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| A nifty traverse slope got us around some cliffy sections of the ridge.
Unfortunately we climbed too high too soon and wasted quite a bit of time searching for
easy passage. |
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| The cliffy stuff was eventually passed and a gentle scree slope lead to the summit
ridge. |
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| With only a thousand feet to go and easy climbing ahead we spread out on the
ridge each hiking at their own pace. |
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| The views kept getting better and better. Waterton Lake was spread out below us
and the townsite at the other end was clearly visible. |
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| From near the summit we were treated to a look at Goat Haunt Mountains vertical
north face (above left).
And
from the summit we could see Miche Wabun Glacier (above right).
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| Summit views were more spectacular than any of us had anticipated. Here
sapphire blue Miche Wabun Lake lies far below. |
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| The daunting North Face of Mount Cleveland was quite impressive as
well. |
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| Looking southwest we could see a sea of peaks with the Kootenai Lakes in the
valley. Vulture Peak is the highest summit near the center of the photo. |
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| On the summit of Goat Haunt Mountain are (left to right) Ralph Thornton, Ron
Gruber, Frank Weslovski, Patrick Blake, Brian Kennedy, Ricard Thomas and Susan
Schwartz. |
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| Following a much easier route on the descent brought us to the broad saddle
were we were first treated to sunshine. A storm was approaching from the west that
brought lightning, hail and heavy rain. That lasted all the way to Goat Haunt.
We
reached the lake in plenty of time to catch the 5:25 boat and even had time to dry some of
our gear.
The sky
cleared at Goat Haunt but Waterton was a cold and windy place. Everyone hastened to head
for cover as soon as we could get off the boat.
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