Sir Donald Col

The trail up to the col between Mount Uto and Sir Donald is very steep, but the views are spectacular. Sir Donald stands high above Rogers Pass, a pyramid of quartzite 3297m high. It is a classic climb and indeed there is a small campsite at the last bit of meadow below the col, used by climbers as a high basecamp.

From the Illecillewaet Campground, follow the main trail, but go left at the trestle. The trail traverses over to the Great Glacier Valley on the north side of the stream that comes down from Vaux Glacier. Follow the trail as it climbs steeply up the slopes below Sir Donald. A junction is met part way up with the right fork going over to Perley Rock, a viewpoint over the Illecilliwaet Neve. Continue straight up to the moraines above. Most hikers stop at the tarns and moraines below Vaux Glacier, but the route to the col goes north, up the moraine crest to a traverse across moraines, rock slide talus slopes, a small meadow, then across a ledge on a headwall to the col. This flat spot sits between two towers with a view east down the Sir Donald-Uto Glacier and beyond to the Beaverfoot Range. From this high vantage we can see the nearby peaks – Eagle, Uto, Abbott Ridge, Mt. Bonney, the Dome, and many glaciers. The climbers’ route up Sir Donald starts right there, a series of ledges along the edge of the pyramid.

Late in the season is the best time to do this route. All early season trips risk avalanche danger and on one early August hike, the traverses across very steep avalanche slopes were quite precarious. One fall would be a long slick ride to the rocks below. We ventured onto Vaux Glacier one time and were alarmed by an ice fall under our feet. The whole glacier shook and I fell, sliding down the snout, but managed to arrest myself with an ice axe. Also, the traverse under the sheer cliffs of Sir Donald is a danger zone from falling rock. This is a route for a late season venture in dry conditions. For climbers, this hike is tame stuff, but for most hikers, it is an adventure. On my last time to the col, the rest of the group would not go past the moraine, so I hoofed it up and over the slides to the col and back alone as quick as I could in a rapid scramble. Seeing the photos and map is a call back for another visit.