The Overlook Bowl

Almost hidden below the southwest ridge of Eagle Peak is a narrow feature called The Overlook Bowl. We had never been there before. A little research showed that there was a route into the top of the bowl from the vicinity of the Sir Donald-Uto col. Alternatively it seemed possible to sneak into the bottom of the bowl by climbing up the Avalanche Crest trail and then cutting across the lower part of the ridge on Eagle.



We chose the Avalanche Crest option for the novelty factor. There hadn't been much new snow since the January melt down. Or maybe there had been and this was just the latest big melt down? Can't remember. That probably says a lot about this weird winter. Either way the Avalanche Crest trail was an icy gong show.

Using the map and GPS we navigated through the trees and popped out in just the right place giving us a first view into the bowl.



It was so hot it felt more like April than February.



We got high enough to scope out the entrance from the other side before calling it a day.







Back at treeline we took a leap of faith and went hard skiers left in an effort to traverse across into the Practise Slopes above the Illecillewaet. It wasn't pretty but it worked. Definitely worth another visit.

From 15.02.22.overlook