Mount Pool, Badshot, Selkirks. On August 18 my wife Gretchen and I drove from Argenta to Beaton and then along the Imcomappleux River to the abandoned mining town of Camborne at 1800 feet. We packed up a jeep road along Pool and Mohawk Creeks for five miles, camping at 5800 feet (4 hours). The next day we hiked to the abandoned mine at 6500 feet and scrambled up (triangulation) Peak 8593 in three hours. Here we had our first view of the Battle Range, Mount Pool, and the irregular line of peaks leading to it from the west. After crossing the large icefield east of Peak 8593, we decided to climb directly up to the ridge east of 9200-foot “Beak Peak,” the second peak west of Mount Pool. Several enjoyable leads up the south face to the left of a narrow, steep gash brought us to the gash itself. A short chimney followed by scrambling put us on the ridge. Ahead lay a glacial col and a steep, rotten-looking buttress leading to the next 9200-foot peak, which we christened “Goat Tower.” We inched our way up the lower steep scree slopes to better rock above. The upper portion of enjoyable face climbing on firm rock led abruptly to the summit of “Goat Tower” (2 hours from Peak 8593). Ahead lay a moderately crevassed glacier rising gently to the final summit rocks of Mount Pool, which we reached in 45 minutes. After building a cairn and leaving a first-ascent record, we returned to the glacial col, from which I climbed 9200-foot “Beak Peak” by its southeast ridge (15 minutes). I rejoined Gretchen at the col and we descended the south glacier to a bowl, exiting on the polished slabs west of the glacier’s snout. Another hour of mixed travel brought us back to the Peak 8593 and two hours later we were back in camp.

Curtis A Wagner