Blakiston

Height: 9,580 ft
View-o-meter: 4/5
Scrambling Difficulty: Moderate
Total Trip Difficulty: Easy
Best Feature: Tallest peak in Waterton
Worst Part: Hope you like talus!



This is the most popular scramble in the park. A short section of scrambling keeps things honest. The views down into Lineham lakes add some much needed color to the long slog up the talus.

Hike up the Lineham lakes trail. When you first see the Lineham waterfalls at the end of the valley, take the next gully off to your right (east). Wander up the talus until you get to the black band of Purcell Lava. This guards the peak. It is fairly broken up, and doesn't present too much difficulty for competent scramblers. It is solid 3rd class terrain. Basic route finding skills are more advantageous than specific descriptions. If you pick a poor path, expect 5m or so of 4th class.


A decent view showing the black band of Purcell Lava that guards the summit of Blakiston - and many other peaks in this range

Many people run the ridge back to the West completing the popular Hawkins Horeshoe. Most people add Lineham peak onto the end of this. The standard finish is a shale slide down to lower Rowe Lake.


The ridge from Hawkins down to Blakiston


Other Route Descriptions

Dave's Scrambling Page - Excellent route description details. Nice images and photos. A good diagram showing the standard ascent route.

Trail Peak.com - Good route description, but better photos

Linda's Scrambling Pages - Journal type trip report with good detail. Good pictures of the short scrambling section.