On August 31, two climbers near the summit of Mt. Robson (12,972 feet) requested a rescue. They reported that a third member (male, 25) had fallen off the mountain.

The party had ascended the Wishbone Arête route (IV 5.6) and was 350 meters from the summit. It had snowed the night before the accident, which may have been a contributing factor in the fall. The deceased climber had been unroped when he fell. The two survivors spent the night near the summit before being flown off by Parks Canada SAR.

ANALYSIS

The Wishbone Arête is an exceptionally long and serious climb on Mt. Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. Though featured in Fifty Classic Climbs of North America, it has been called “the worst route in Canada.” This moniker is derived from poor rock quality, meandering climbing, and the fact that much of the route involves 3rd- and 4th-class terrain, often tackled unroped. Terrain like this exposes climbers to serious fall potential and protection is poor to nonexistent. In a full report on this tragic attempt (linked to at the ANAC website), one of the surviving climbers wrote, “There is just no safe way to climb it [Wishbone Arête].... If you are considering climbing Mt. Robson, find another route.” (Sources: The climbers, Parks Canada, and CascadeClimbers.com.)