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Home»Rockies 2017»"North Castle" II, May 27, 2017

Visitors 43
Modified 27-Feb-25
Created 28-May-17
14 photos
The new Moose crossing signs have a stylized animal which reminds me of a cartoon character.I found this bizarre Western Conifer Seed Bug sitting motionless on top of the snow.This is just west of the true summit and the spot I turned around in 2009. Castle Peak is the closest mountain with Windsor tucked in behind to its left.These unnamed peaks will probably be part of a future trip into the Castle Wilderness. I found the sudden transition from charcoal-colored slopes to orange and mauve quite fascinating.I liked the way this small opening in one of the cliffbands looked. Mount Gladstone is on the left.The view from the summit wasn't too bad even with all the trees. I think it helped to be standing on over one metre of hard snow.All of the Larches on top of North Castle were covered in bright green lichen.This is as far as I went beyond the true summit. Some day it would be nice to continue on to Mount Gladstone (even though I have already been up there).I couldn't believe the crazy coloration of mount Gladstone from this angle. Everything was covered in snow when I climbed it back in 2015.I couldn't have asked for a better day or better lighting on these gorgeous peaks! Windsor Mountain looks much shorter than Castle Peak from this angle, but they are almost the same height.Left of center is Longknife Peak in Montana with BC's Starvation Peak to the right of it.This is my favorite view of the day. Castle Peak dominates with Victoria Ridge and Windsor Mountain to its left. It doesn't get much better than this!This is one of the healthiest Calypso Orchids I have ever seen. They are so pretty and always a privilege to find.This was the most tame of the five creek crossings I had to tackle on the way to the base of the mountain. The others would have been too risky to stop and get out to take photos.
© Calvin Damen
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