Ha Ling Rock Climbing

This is a prominent, subsidiary peak at the N or NW end of Mt. Lawrence Grassi in Kananaskis Provincial Park. It is between Thre Sisters and Mt. Rundle. The prominent N and NE faces call out to you to be climbed.

The peak itself is 7900 feet (2408m) high, with a 2400 foot (740m) elevation gain. The rock is coarse limestone, definitely loose in places. The exposure is quite nice. It can be a great place during a warm summer.

For the history buffs, the names for this peak supposedly date back to the 1880s when a bet was placed. Supposedly, Ha Ling, a railroad worker won a bet by making a round trip from Bow Valley in 5 1/2 hours. Now, some controversy is that Lee Poon actually did the ascent and won the $10 bet. Weird, one website says $50, that would have been a lot in those days. The peak was renamed in perhaps a revisionistic PC sort of way. The peak was renamed officially in 1997 after local activism and government response.

For rock climbers, there are both traditional and sport climbs here on the 550m (1650ft) face. Once, the 21-pitch (all 1/2 rope or less), 5.10+ N face route, Sisyphus Summits, was quite controversial. This was once possibly the longest sport climb in North America. The low-end difficulty NE Ridge attracts many due to its pleasant exposure and apparent ease of ascent, but beware, the route has some hazards. Check out the Alpine Club Canada site for a few details on 4 injuries & 3 deaths.

Map of the area.

Photo of peak from approach. Photo closer to the face. Photo on NE face with nice exposure. My old shots are all print film.