August 9, 2024 -- Whistler
Stats: 15 km / 1050m gain / 2421m high / 2:50 hours to summit & 2:40 hours return = 5:30 hours MT
I'm not so sure this "hike" should be in the Destination Hikes book. The route on Decker Mt. did not show up on any of our 3 GPSs. But the author of the Destination Hikes book, Stephen Hui did state that it involved "off-trail route finding" + only for "experienced scramblers". When we left the touristy Overlord trail to climb 3 km of massive boulder fields to the summit, we found that the splashes of red paint and cairns were few and far between. So we ended up going too far to the left during the ascent. For the descent we aimed for the path of least resistance and ran into some occassional markers.
We did not linger in the morning, purchasing tickets at 9:00am and then getting the first 9:30am gondola for a 10:00am start. We had till 5:15pm to complete the hike. So Peter & I left Case at the start, and kept up a steady pace throughout the day, stopping only for photo ops and a half an hour lunch break on the summit.
We camped in the Riverside RV Resort in Whistler. The wheelbarrows helped transport our gear since we had to walk a bit to our campsite. Oh no! We forgot Case's overnight backpack! That meant no tent and no sleeping bag for Case. I did not want to sleep out in the open so as we were trying to figure out how to fit my airmattress into the lumpy FJ, a woman in the parking lot asked if we needed a tent? I told her that was music to my ears. She loaned us her spare tent for the night, since her sister wasn't arriving till the next day. Needless to say, I was very grateful.
Whistler Mt & the Black Tusk is the little pointed column to the left of it -- west.
Blackcomb Peak (2436m) and Disease Ridge -- southeast.
The Overlord Glacier -- south.
Decker Mt -- southeast.
Wandering Fleabane
4.3 km on the Overlord trail and then we turned left onto Decker Mt, onto this much less defined trail that soon petered out into the rocks.
Castle Towers Glacier -- southwest.
Overlord Glacier -- south.
A marmot.
Blackcomb Mt (2436m) + the Spearhead Range (2457m).
south
We veered away from the left high ridge because it looked too steep to climb up those boulders. So we aimed for the red rocks (mid center) which looked more doable.
west
When I crested this ridge, a whole new view opened up to the southeast.
Trorey Mt (2400m) -- east.
Fitzsimmons Glacier & ridge to the left of OverLord Mt -- southeast.
east
This photo was taken by Peter at the summit, marked by one worn wooden stake.
While sitting on the summit, these dark storm clouds approached. Signs back at the top of the gondola warned of a thunder storm. Sure enough, it hit just as we began heading down. When the rain started I worried that the rocks would become wet and therefore slippery. But it wasn't more than a brief shower. Blackcomb and Spearhead Peaks -- north.
To the right of Overlord Mt ((2550m) is Russet Lake by the Kees & Claire Hut -- south.
The Musical Bumps: Piccolo (2010m), Flute (2015m) + Obeo (1956m) -- west.
Trorey (2400m), Pattison (2430m), Tremor (2610m), Shudder (2610m) Peaks -- southeast.
We could see tents nestled at the base of Trorey.
We stayed more on the green ground while descending, angling to the right when coming to cliffs.
heather
northwest
Decker Tarn between Decker & Blackcomb Mtns.
Back on the Overlord trail. As we neared the lodge, we couldn't believe how much uphill we still had to do. From the lodge to the Decker Mt turn off, its 261m accumulative gain and return is 222m gain.
Decker Mt.
Horstman & Blackcomb Peaks.
Ski runs by Horstman Peak.
As we approached the Rendezvous Lodge at the top of the gondola with half an hour to spare before it closed for the day, I thought, "What's going on? Did we miss the gondola and now have to hike an additional 1175m down the steep Blackcomb Burn?" Other than three people standing there talking, it was devoid of activity. The gondola and restaurant were closed. The man promptly reassured me that we would get a ride down in his truck. They had closed everything due to the thunderstorm. It was a treat getting that 30ish-minute ride down, seeing Whistler from different angles.
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