The Island 6,000: peak bagging Vancouver Island’s 6,000-foot peaks
Rich Priebe (top) and Eryn Tombu-Haigh climb Syd Watts Peak with Sid Williams Peak behind. Tracks can be seen on Sid Williams Peak up to the final 30m. Photo by Barry Hansen.
When surveyors began mapping mountains and recording their heights, I wonder if they had any idea where their work would lead. Today, climbers bring their personal GPS devices with them to summits to get their own, accurate readings. It’s not that we climbers don’t trust the surveyors’ data, it’s just that we’re curious and we sometimes have our own reasons for knowing if published measurements are accurate. Why do climbers do this? It’s because of a phenomenon known as “peak bagging.”
Lots of peaks, lots of bags
The origins of peak bagging go back to Scotland in 1891 when Sir Hugh Munro produced a list of Scottish mountains over 3,000 feet. To climb all the listed Munros is referred to today as “Munro bagging.” This pursuit of climbing a set of peaks that exceed a certain height has caught on around the world and today there are climbers (peak baggers) working their way through all of the 14 8,000 metre peaks in the Himalayas; the 53 14,000 foot peaks in Colorado; the 34 3,000 metre peaks of New Zealand’s Southern Alps; the 58 11,000 foot peaks of the Canadian Rockies, and many more.
No one is saying that these lists are comprised of the most difficult, significant or “best” summits, it’s just a fun game of collecting experiences. Each of these goals takes years, sometimes a lifetime, but it’s the process that is important – the highs of being outdoors with like-minded friends.
In an article first published in these pages of the ACC Gazette, Bill Corbett, the author of the guidebook The 11,000ers of the Canadian Rockies wrote: “The nice thing about pursuing a goal others have attained is you can do so at your own pace.” This is true, but for those pursuing the goal, there can be a pressure on them to get it finished, especially when there are just a couple left. It’s not pressure from others, but pressure imposed by the climber on themself. That last peak dangles in front of them like the proverbial carrot on a stick…
The Island 6,000ers – what’s in, what’s out
On the front page of the ACC Vancouver Island (ACCVI) Section’s November 2004 Island Bushwhacker newsletter, it was announced that Charles Turner had completed his quest to climb the “46 Island Peaks over 6,000 feet.” The list of peaks and the goal of climbing them wasn’t widely known at the time and the story sparked an interest among climbers over the next several years to examine the list and the precise heights of the peaks with personal GPS devices.
Eryn Tombu-Haigh nearing summit of Sid Williams Peak above Buttle Lake. The Golden Hinde, the tallest mountain on Vancouver Island, and other 6,000 foot peaks can be seen on the horizon. Photo by Barry Hansen.
The list was eventually revised to include 53 rather than the original 46 peaks. There is going to be discussions about what should or shouldn’t be included on any list and the Island 6,000 is no exception.
For example, the accepted Island 6,000 list does not include the five sub-peaks on Mount Colonel Foster, which are all over 6,000 feet, because they’re seen as all being a part of one mountain (only those who complete the summit traverse of Colonel Foster climb all six summits). The slightly lower west peak of Crown Mountain is another example, however, most people who climb Crown Mountain usually do climb both summits anyway.
Nine Peaks, which as its name suggests has nine summits (or bumps) on its summit ridge, is typically only climbed to its main summit and the other eight peaks are only climbed during a traverse of the mountain, which is very rare. Only the highest summit has been included in Island 6,000 because some of the bumps have a prominence of only a few feet.
Others have argued over the inclusion of Rambler Junior, a striking spire beside Rambler Peak that is not its own peak, but is included on the list. Since its first ascent in the 1970’s, climbers have hiked to the head of the Elk River specifically to climb this spire. Why? Because it’s a stunning natural feature and because it is a challenging climb in its own right. Rambler Junior could be compared to The Helmet on Mount Robson.
There are two other peaks that have been under scrutiny: the Comb and the Golden Hinde NW. The Comb is one kilometre away from the Golden Hinde, and the Golden Hinde NW is one kilometre away from The Comb. Some consider them both to be sub-peaks of the Golden Hinde; however, both have significant prominences, enough to be considered individual peaks.
Eryn Tombu-Haigh ascending Sid Williams Peak. Photo by Barry Hansen.
These are only a few examples of peaks under discussion. Of the 53 peaks, only 39 have official names, the others all having local names. So, after much discussion over the years, the current list of 53 peaks is generally accepted by the Island’s climbing community and by the Vancouver Island Section.
Successful ascents
Inspired by my completing the updated Island 6,000 at the end of the summer of 2014, my partner Valerie Wootton took a look at where she stood with the list. At the beginning of summer 2015, she had twelve peaks remaining and figured it would take another three years. She completed six of the peaks in 2015 and in the spring of 2016 she was determined to climb the rest of them. By the end of August 2016 the only peak remaining was Mount Filberg and being so close to finishing she didn’t want to leave one peak for another year.
Although not a technical climb, Filberg is remote and is typically a three-day trip. It is one of the least climbed of the high peaks because of its inaccessibility. All she needed was a few days of clear weather, which was not an unreasonable proposition in September, but the weather wasn’t being particularly agreeable that summer. By the middle of September, it looked like she wasn’t going to get the break. However, as chance would have it, there was a sudden shift in the weather and for the last few days of September the forecast looked promising. On September 28, she finally stood on the summit of Mount Filberg. She’d done it!
Over the next week Valerie received a steady stream of congratulatory emails from the local mountaineering community. As Bill Corbett stated after completing his last 11,000er, “It’s gratifying to be in the company of those who appreciate such a peak bagging quest.” Afterwards, Valerie chatted with Nancy Hansen as Nancy had had a similar experience with the 11,000ers of the Rockies. In 2003, with one peak to go and despite weekend after weekend of perfect weather, Nancy thought the project was going to head into another year due to a Parks Canada backcountry closure due to the risk of wildfire. However, two days before the September long weekend, Parks Canada announced they were reopening the backcountry. Nancy jumped at the opportunity and climbed Mount Forbes, completing the project.
Recognition
The Where and the How
All but seven of the peaks over 6,000 feet are in Strathcona Provincial Park, the first provincial park in BC, located in the centre of Vancouver Island. Most of the peaks can be climbed directly from highways and on a three-to-five-day trip, multiple summits can often be bagged. The remaining seven peaks are found in Tree Farm Licences in the north of the Island. Access to peaks in the southern and southeast portion of the Strathcona Park is through private land owned by logging companies. Although logging roads go to the park boundaries access can be problematic due to locked gates. The ACCVI is currently in negotiation with these logging companies to allow access for members to certain areas, especially the iconic Comox Glacier and its surrounding 6,000-foot peaks.
So how long does it take to complete the Island 6,000? Most people don’t start out with the goal in mind, but over time they take a look at the list and often see they have completed a large number of the peaks. This is when they decide to focus on the remaining peaks and plan on a couple more years.
In 2018, the ACCVI executive launched the Charles Turner Vancouver Island 6,000ers Award. The section presents the award and a plaque to members who have successfully climbed all of the 53 peaks. The award honours the memory of Charles Turner, a very well respected member who climbed the initial list of 46 peaks and brought the idea to our attention, and who tragically lost his life in a floatplane crash in August 2013. At the 2018 AGM, the award was presented retroactively to myself, Valerie and Tak Ogasawara who completed the Island 6,000 in 2017. Ken Wong and George Butcher completed the 53 peaks in 2019.
In Progress
We know that several climbers are closing in. In February of this year, Rich Priebe and Barry Hansen climbed Elkhorn South Mountain and then teamed up Eryn Tombu-Haigh in March to climb Syd Watts and Sid Williams Peaks. Bushwhacking from Karst Creek, they reached the snowline at 900 metres and found firm snow for cramponing, which turned to post-holing at 1,300 metres. From the saddle, several steep pitches brought them up to the final pitch on the northeast ridge of Sid Williams Peak, but the difficulties were harder than expected, and without mixed climbing gear they couldn’t get up the blue ice of the final thirty metres (see tracks on photo, opposite). The call to bail and return another day was made with Rich hanging upside down on the rope. The team down-climbed and rappelled to the saddle and successfully climbed Syd Watts Peak.
With 2022’s climbs mapped out, Rich has five peaks left to climb while Barry and Eryn have around fifteen. The three of hem plan to complete the last climb together in August. Another contender Matthew Lettington has eleven remaining and has his eye on 2023 for completion.
Is the Island 6,000 for you?
A challenge such as Island 6,000 can be daunting for some. Although they like the idea have having goals some of the peaks are intimidating. Mount Colonel Foster has a unique aura. Although the southeast summit is relatively easy to climb, the main summit requires technical skills and an innate ability to micro-navigate the complex terrain that often leads to unplanned bivouacs. Very few Island peaks are known for quality rock and in some cases being on the mountain with too many others can be dangerous. The Island’s highest peak the Golden Hinde (7,208 feet) has been day-tripped, but for most parties the return trip is anywhere from three days to one week. Other peaks such as Mount Albert Edward, the sixth highest peak, have seen babies in backpacks carried to the summit, someone with cerebral palsy pulled in a specially designed sled, and in 1995 an 88-year-old scrambled to the summit. In general, expect a wide variety of difficulties, Island weather, much bushwhacking and a many-years timeline.
Photo: Eryn Tombu-Haigh on the summit of Syd Watts Peak with Sid Williams Peak immediately behind. Other 6,000-ft peaks are visible in the background in the southern part of Strathcona Provincial Park. Photo by Barry Hansen.
*Portions of this article were published in the Spring 2017 Gazette. All of the photos were taken by Barry Hansen on a trip to Sid Williams and Syd Watts Peaks in central Strathcona Provincial Park in Central Vancouver Island on March 9, 2022.