The SE Face of Video Peak is a true Rogers Pass classic. From its summit at 2565m, the stunning, alpine face offers over 550m of powder skiing to the base of Hospital Bowl. From there, you’ve got another 700m of skiable terrain back to the Rogers Pass Discovery Center. The face is tantalizing from afar: it’s one of the few perfectly planar, 35-degree slopes in the vicinity – the perfect grade to rail down some heli-ski turns. And, for that very reason, it’s also consequential avalanche terrain, the perfect start zone for big slides. Carefully assess the snowpack before committing to this hazardous feature. Trust me: the 1280m ascent is worth it for the epic alpine line and the world-class scenery. Due to its legendary status in the community, the Video Peak SE Face can get heavily skied out. Get up early to get the fresh turns. It’s an ultra-popular ski tour!
Related: Ursus Minor SE Couloir: Bootpacks and Backtracks
Report from February 8, 2021
The crew consisting of Freddy, Rigel, and Steph, assembled at the Rogers Pass Discovery Center at a pretty comfortable 8 AM during a bout of high pressure. The goal: complete what Rigel comically calls the “Triple Crown”, shredding three classics in a day, all located within the Connaught Drainage: Video Peak SE, 8812 Bowl, Nicci’s Notch.
After a transceiver group check, we proceeded up Connaught Creek at a blazing pace, bolting past the dangerous Grizzly Slidepath. My thermometer was reading -22C, a painfully cold temperature for us coastal softies. We kept up the blazingly fast stride to stave off the cold weather until we reached the Hospital Bowl uptrack that veered left through the trees, winding up a mellow gully.
Early in the season, the frequently travelled Hospital Bowl uptrack is typically horrendous, requiring some alder acrobatics and a few tactical tree belays (TTBs). However, mid-winter, it’s an absolute dream to climb. It ascends a gentle gully and veers into sparse trees to the NE, circling the Hospital Knob, a forested hill. From there, it’s a beeline to the base of Video Peak or, heading NE to Ursus Trees.
After a brief duration, we were at the base of Hospital Bowl, still shrouded in the shadow of Cheops Mt. In the distance, we spotted a glimmer of light hitting the SE face of Video Peak. I’ve been feeling drowsy since the start but I was determined to climb higher. The thought of feeling the sun’s warmth, piercing through this dire cold, was my sole motivation.
The icy week-long drought, accompanied by strong SW and NE winds had thrashed the Hospital Bowl. The cold temps and harsh winds had formed slabs on the snow’s surface. Where it wasn’t slabby, it was wind-scoured. We navigated the terrain up to the base of Video Peak. The vast, planar face towered above us. What an imposing sight!
At the base of the SE face, we contoured from east to west under an imposing cliff band, now heated by the mid-winter sun. Here, I was mostly concerned by potential dry loose avalanches, triggered at the rocky features above. We consequently spaced out, minimizing our group’s exposure to the hazard. Having toured the valley for the past three years, I commonly see small avalanches starting from those cliffs.
We traversed under the cliff band without a hitch. Onto the Video Peak SE face, the real challenge. A couple of hand shear tests revealed that the face was most likely peppered with stiff wind slabs. After all, visual indications pointed toward that fact. We navigated the slab minefield, avoiding steep terrain and convex rolls as well as we could. It felt a little exposed.
We eventually bagged Video Peak under a partial cloud cover. It wasn’t as cold as we expected, partly due to a weak inversion lingering in the valley. We skied down the SE face, one by one, in boot-top, blower powder. The face must have been sheltered from the brunt of the S-SW winds as well as the reverse loading from the NE. The wind-swept bowl, however, wasn’t so great, offering a mix of crusty slabs and grabby snow.
After some half-decent skiing, we pressed on to the Bruins Ridge, towards the 8812 Bowl and, later, Nicci’s Notch. That’s the perfect link-up for those in search of a little more vertical… and a ton more powder. For the trip report, here’s how you get back to the Discovery Center after skiing the Video Peak SE Face.
I typically descend the skier’s right of the face, bolt through Hospital Bowl and connect with one of Hospital Gullies. I prefer the #2 gully, for it is narrower and steeper. The #1 gully is a mellower descent. As an alternative, you can ski the south face and link up with slightly more technical gullies. The possibilities are endless! From there, it’s a bobsleigh run along the Connaught Creek and back to the Discovery Center.
Note: The south face of Video Peak requires a short bootpack down from the summit to access. Early in the season, it can be quite exposed. The route offers more direct vertical and better fall-line skiing to Hospital Gullies #3 and #4.
Route Info
This information is based on the descent from the SE face of Video Peak through the Hospital Gully #2 – my favourite variant of the line. After skiing the SE face, we continued to ski 8812 Bowl and Nicci’s Notch. It’s an awesome link-up if you’ve got the legs for it (2100+ vertical meters and 22km round-trip).
For more beta on my adventures, check out the Route Map. This online map interface is a repository of Beyond Our Peak’s published ski touring and mountaineering routes. It’s the best way to browse through trip reports. Give it a shot!