Hiking Mount Hartzell near Pemberton
Contents
Mount Hartzell Hike Information
Difficulty: Very Difficult
Distance: 17.20Km
Elevation Gain: 1,530m
Highest Elevation: 2,615m
Average Gradient: 17.80%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Very High / Very High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 10 – 12 Hours
– Moderate: 8 – 10 Hours
– Fast: 7 – 8 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: No
Season: ~January – May
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: Steep snow climb, glacier travel
Mount Hartzell Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 50°22’11.7″N 122°29’60.0″W
Disclaimer: Winter hiking (snowshoeing) involves significantly more risk than summer hiking. Hikers should be prepared with appropriate education, training and equipment for all possibilities, including but not limited to avalanches. A mistake such as going off trail, getting lost or injured can be far more dangerous in winter than summer. You are responsible for your own safety, and while I am happy to give my opinion on this website as to the avalanche risk of a specific hike, do not take this as fact and please do your own research. Everybody has different risk tolerances and mine might be different to yours.
Mount Hartzell Overview
Mount Hartzell is one of the lesser summited mountains in the Joffre group of peaks along Duffey Lake Road near Pemberton. It’s also one of the least technical peaks of the group, allowing for a straightforward (albeit steep) ascent from its eastern slope during the winter or spring, when a snowpack provides seamless travel. With that said, ascending Hartzell requires significant glacier travel on either Matier Glacier or Anniversary Glacier, depending on the route you take, so crevasse rescue knowledge and gear is a necessity either way, as well as the usual avalanche preparedness. With that said, Hartzell is arguably more of a mountaineering trip than a hike, and this generally gets left to more dedicated and experienced parties.
For those willing to put in the effort, Mount Hartzell offers incredible views from the summit, and indeed for much of the hike. Most hikers/snowshoers will approach Hartzell from Joffre Lakes, ascending to, and crossing, Matier Glacier to reach the summit climb. Skiers may prefer the Cerise Creek route via Anniversary Glacier due to the ability to ski from car to summit and back without interference, which the Joffre Lakes route doesn’t generally favor, but this is a longer and arguably less scenic trip than the Joffre side. Most hikers will go via Joffre Lakes, and that is what this post will cover.
Mount Hartzell is generally a winter or spring trip when the glacier is well filled in and a snowpack allows for seamless travel. Outside of these seasons, the crevasses will be open, and the seamless snow climb both to the start of the glacier and to the summit will be a more involved scramble. As such, Mount Hartzell likely sees more winter ascents than summer. That being said, Hartzell is not very popular with the ski touring community as it’s largely overshadowed by the nearby Mount Matier, Joffre Peak and Slalok Mountain, which all offer much better skiing than Hartzell.
Access to Mount Hartzell is from the Joffre Lakes parking lot, which is plowed in the winter and is thus accessible to all vehicles. Dogs are not welcome in the park so leave the pup at home.
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Is Mount Hartzell worthwhile?
Any hike in the Joffre group of peaks will generally offer incredible views, and Mount Hartzell could arguably offer the best of the bunch. The views of Mount Matier and Joffre Peak are unrivaled, and the travel across Matier Glacier has to be experienced to be appreciated. While I have not climbed many of the Joffre group of peaks due to their technical requirements, many people who have will say that Hartzell offers even better views than the likes of Matier and Joffre, and given it’s a much, much simpler ascent than these, Hartzell should be very high on your to-do list if you have the appropriate skills, knowledge and gear to safely climb it. If you are looking for something less technical but still rewarding, the nearby Mount Chief Pascall, Vantage Peak and Mount Taylor all offer worthwhile alternatives and don’t involve any glacier travel.
How difficult is the hike to Mount Hartzell?
Mount Hartzell offers a number of complexities that make this a very difficult outing. From a physical standpoint, the 17.20km / 1,530m gain stats is a big day on snowshoes, especially when carrying very heavy backpacks. There are also some very steep stretches, notably the section climbing up to Matier Glacier from Upper Joffre Lake, where you will ascend 600m in 1.5km (average gradient of 40%). You will also most likely be starting this hike before sunrise, with most parties beginning around 4am – 6am, and possibly earlier if they plan to also summit any of the other nearby peaks. Given most people have to drive 3.5 hours to reach the trailhead, some parties will complete this hike with little to no sleep, or alternatively sleeping at the trailhead in their vehicle.
Technically speaking this isn’t particularly easy either, it’s more of a mountaineering trip than a hike. You will need to time this one well for appropriate avalanche risk, while bringing avalanche gear, crevasse rescue gear, ice axe, crampons, snowshoes/skis, microspikes (for the icy approach to Joffre Lakes) and all the other gear you bring on a regular winter hike. You’ll of course be crossing Matier Glacier, and the climb to get there covers 35+ degree slopes, so avalanche risk is high for a sustained period. The final climb up to the summit is similarly steep as well. All in all, this is one of the most technical “hikes” on this blog, and it should only be attempted by parties with the appropriate knowledge and experience that this kind of objective requires.
Mount Hartzell Route Information
Parking for this route to Mount Hartzell is from Joffre Lakes, on the side of Duffey Lake Road, with a large main parking lot that is typically plowed in the winter. The overflow lot is usually only available in the summer. Usually in the winter it’s not as busy and parking is plentiful, especially if you begin at the time that this hike requires.
I won’t go into great detail around the hike to Upper Joffre Lake, if you want to read about it you can do so here. In the winter you will absolutely want to bring microspikes for the trail, as it’s still very popular in the winter and most of the trail becomes a luge track of ice. Some people make do with their snowshoes/crampons, but spikes are easier for this terrain. You may be able to hike straight over Lower Joffre Lake if it’s well frozen, otherwise it’s best to go around.
After around 4km and 350m of gain you’ll reach Upper Joffre Lake, hopefully in around an hour or so. This is a good spot for a break, and most parties will switch to snowshoes here as the heavily trafficked trail to the lake is over.
Assuming the lake is well frozen, you can now cross it, generally aiming for the southwest corner of the lake. Your general direction will be towards the large seracs to the east (left) of Slalok Mountain. The slope will look impossibly steep from the lake, but it’s perfectly manageable (albeit steep).
On the other side of the lake you’ll begin working up the slopes in the general direction of the seracs. You have a choice of approach here, taking the moraine or avoiding it:
- Moraine – The moraine is the obvious mass of rocks that formed a ridge at the base of the glacier that once cascaded this far down. You’ll see it when you get there. The moraine offers easier ascending with less route finding around cliff bands, however getting off the moraine at the top involves some very steep side hilling.
- Climbers Right of the Moraine – The GPX linked takes this option, avoiding the moraine and instead working your way up just to the right of it. You’ll need to navigate around a few cliff bands and the route finding is slightly more involved, but you’ll avoid the heinous side hilling. We were pleased with this choice, but pick your poison.
Either route you take, make sure to avoid ascending beneath the seracs themselves as they can break off at any moment and cause an avalanche. Both the routes should easily avoid them. The ascent to the glacier will be very steep, climbing 600m in around 1.5km. There is significant avalanche risk throughout much of this ascent, and there’s a decent chance you’ll cross some avalanche debris on the ascent. Some parties will prefer this climb in crampons, depending on the conditions, while others will prefer snowshoes.
Eventually you will top out and reach the toe of Matier Glacier. Most parties will now prepare for crossing the glacier by roping up. Some parties, ourselves included, choose not to rope up if they are confident that the glacier is well filled in. We went in April when the snowpack is generally near its peak and glacier travel is safer, but if you’re going in early winter or late spring, you’ll definitely want to rope up and be prepared for encountering crevasses.
The next 2km of the hike will cross Matier Glacier, all the while basking in the incredible scenery. The majestic nearby peaks of Mount Matier, Joffre Peak, Slalok Mountain, Mount Hartzell and Mount Spetch will surround you, all the while the distant peaks of Mount Marriott and Cayoosh Mountain will offer a splendid backdrop.
Compared to the relentlessly steep ascent to the glacier, the glacier itself will feel relatively benign, ascending around 325m over the 2km stretch. If you’re lucky the sun will be out, the wind will be calm and this will be one of the most memorable sections of any hike you can recall. If you’re unlucky, the clouds will engulf you, the wind will nearly blow you off your feet and it will still be one of the most memorable sections of any hike you can recall.
Your general direction will be towards Mount Hartzell, the center of a trio of peaks (Matier, Hartzell, Spetch). It looks very underwhelming compared to all the nearby peaks, but don’t let it fool you. As you get nearer you might start to wonder how the heck you’re going to get up this thing, as the northern cliffs you’re seeing appear impenetrable. Fear not, your route is much simpler.
As you near, you’ll note a notch between Matier and Hartzell. Aim for that, and once you get there you’ll be at the base of the final climb up. The wind may be howling here as it seems to be a natural wind tunnel, and unfortunately you’ll likely now need to switch gears for crampons, and get your ice axe out too.
The climb up to the false summit is around 100 vertical meters of steep but not particularly exposed snow travel. Any fall would simply slide back down a bit, with largely inconsequential terrain below. Of course, avalanche risk is high, so you only want to do this in favorable conditions. The views as you climb will be staggering, particularly of the western buttress of Matier, but also Joffre Peak to the north.
In short order you’ll top out at the false summit, with an unbelievably scenic ridge plod over to the true summit. It might look a tad intimidating in photos, but the ridge is generally wide enough to feel comfortable, with minimal exposure, if any. If you are traveling in a group, you should take turns taking photos from the false summit of others on the true summit.
The views will now be panoramic and hard to rival. Mount Matier will steal the show, but Joffre Peak and Slalok Mountain will impress as well, no doubt. You’ll have a full and clear sightline of the Aussie Couloir up to Joffre Peak, so try and see if you can spot any parties going up. Hopefully the wind is calm so you can soak it in, as this is one of the finest views of any hike you’ll likely do.
Once finished on the summit you descend back down the way you came. It’s typically possible to descend facing out, making for a largely straightforward descent. Back on the glacier you’ll want to rope up again and head back to the toe of the glacier. The descent back to the lake should be easier than the climb since you can now easily pick your route through any cliff bands. We took a detour to the broken seracs, but obviously you should limit any time beneath these if you do go. Once back at the lake it’s merely a matter of plodding back to the car, likely with the masses visiting the lake.
When should I hike Mount Hartzell?
Mount Hartzell is best climbed between mid winter and early spring. The peak months will be February to April, but a month either side will generally work fine as well, depending on the snowpack of the season.
Top Tip
You’ll probably want to bring all 3 of microspikes, snowshoes and crampons for this, as there are a variety of conditions throughout the hike. I don’t recall ever changing gear as often as I have on Hartzell.
An early start is strongly recommended for safer avalanche conditions and glacier travel. Most parties will begin before sunrise, and aim for sunrise around the time they begin the climb from the lake up to the glacier. This could mean starting at 4am or even earlier. Some people choose to sleep at the trailhead to avoid having to drive for hours on zero sleep, then hike and drive home again.
Many parties will combine Hartzell with the nearby Spetch, and some will even tack on Matier. Hartzell is the easiest of the bunch, followed by Spetch and then Matier, which is significantly more challenging.
