One of the main reasons I use Strava is so I can see what everyone is up to and to get some cool ideas for peaks or trails.
Annie’s photos of these massive rock pinnacles recently caught my eye, making me pause my scrolling instantly. I abandoned my plans for the next day to follow in her steps. (Most of you will know how much I love the Mount Allan rock garden.)
The rock pinnacles are on a trail close to the East Peak of Wendell Mountain. I am not even sure if they have a proper name so I am going to call them Wendell Pinnacles.
I set out relatively early on a Sunday and parked at the Yamnuska Mountain trailhead, north of Exshaw on Hwy 1A. I didn’t have a lot of time to research the route since I was out on Saturday and it was a last minute decision. I downloaded the AllTrails map to the East Peak of Mount Wendell, knowing I would have to keep a close eye on the map because the pinnacle trail is not an official trail.
But the route is very easy to follow. I simply followed the Yamnuska trail for about three kilometres until I reached the CMC Valley sign. Most of the climbing is along the Yamnuska trail.
At the CMC Valley sign, it was down to the valley for about 1.5 kilometres – mostly rooty but generally a good trail. At the bottom, I crossed the creek (and I kept my feet dry) and followed the trail for about 500 metres until I began some light bushwhacking up to the pinnacles.
Surprisingly there were some flags in the trees so I generally stayed in their direction. It wasn’t long before the views opened up of the massive mountain bowl and rock pinnacles. It felt like you could just reach out and touch Wendell.
We followed an animal trail on the scree slope up, and around into the rock garden.
I have to say this was one of the most beautiful places I have been this year. And I didn’t even summit East Wendell.
Word on the street? Not a well-known offshoot. Let’s keep it hush-hush, okay? Seriously, if you’re short on time and craving something spectacular, this outing is a must.
Bonus clip (Most of my videos are on Instagram and TikTok)