One of most common questions we get is “how to choose mountaineering boots” and this is also one of the most challenging questions to give a simple answer to. Footwear is one of the most important pieces of gear that you will need on any mountaineering trip, and the wrong boots can ruin an otherwise great […]
Win an AST course!
Win an AST-1 course! Join us at MEC Snow Fest on Saturday, November 18! We’re looking forward to a fun day at the MEC store on Broadway in Vancouver. Visit us at our booth and enter to win an AST-1 course! Even if you already have taken this course, you can still “gift” the prize […]
Rope Rescue Systems for Skiers and Climbers
A common question from our students is “how many times have you had to perform a technical rope rescue?” Though technical rope rescue systems are rarely used by most recreational climbers, if you do find yourself faced with the task of assisting someone who is having challenges or is injured, knowing basic rescue systems will […]
First Aid in the backcountry
I have been having a lot of discussions about Wilderness First Aid lately. Many folks wonder what distinguishes Wilderness First aid courses and training from other traditional First Aid courses. First, we need to to look at the level of support that we can expect to have when we respond to an accident or medical […]
Argentina 2014
On January 14th, 17 Canadian Army Cadets from across the country converged on the small mountain town of Bariloche in the Patagonia region of Argentina. Their goal? To complete a 10 day expedition through the lakes and mountains of the wild and spectacular Patagonian Nahuel Huapi National Park. Canada West Mountain School organized and lead […]
Winter 2014 Guides and Instructors pre-season training session
Changing seasons is always great. I look forward to the winter snow season because I get to head out again with all the Guides and Instructors I haven’t seen during the summer! On Thursday, December 4, 18 Canada West mountain School Guides and Instructors showed up in the backcountry of Whistler to shake out the […]
Getting ready for winter
Here we are at the beginning of November, winter is just around the corner! Time to check out the weather forecasts and get the skis and ice climbing gear out of storage in anticipation of another great winter! At the beginning of every season we at Canada West are doing everything we can to get […]
Kluane: A tribute to Canada’s National Parks
Canada West Mountain School owner and IFMGA mountain guide Brian Jones has joined Canadian landscape artist and documentary filmmaker Cory Trépanier on his quest to paint Kluane National Park. Brian will lead Cory on a two-week expedition into the Kluane Icefield Ranges as part of the artist’s latest project to document Canada’s National Parks through painting […]
Wilderness First Aid course updates
Our Summer and Fall Wilderness First Aid courses are now scheduled and listed on the website – http://www.themountainschool.com/info/first-aid-wilderness.html. The next 20-hour intro WFA course will be in Squamish on July 6-7, taught by our lead WFA Instructor Corey Brealey.
Alpine Skills courses starting soon
Our first Alpine Skills course of the summer season is starting up this Monday, June 17 and there are still a couple of spaces available on this program. We are looking forward to a great week in the alpine, conditions are shaping up fine and (hopefully) the weather will continue to cooperate! Check out the […]
Success on Mt Barbeau, Nunavut
A successful climb of Mount Barbeau on Ellesmere Island, Nunavut! While we have all been soaking up the sun and enjoying great spring weather, John Furneaux, Darrel Ainscough and Mike Cormack have been heading up Mount Barbeau on Ellesmere Island in full winter conditions. On June 4 the three stood on top of the 2,616 […]
Summer 2013 Update
Mountaineering courses starting soon! Weather has been great lately in Squamish and we are starting to see summer condition in the mountains as well! We have been running some fine early season Mountain Skills Training refreshers on the local hills and the snowpack is really starting to get into good shape. Our first Complete Mountaineering […]
Down safe in Everest Base Camp
Most of our Everest 2011 Expedition Team members have arrived safely in Base Camp after a successful journey to the top of Mount Everest, Nepal. Congratulations again to Bill Borger of Calgary, Alberta for gaining the south Summit of Mount Everest in deteriorating weather. Bill, along with Then Dorjee Sherpa, Phurbha Bote Sherpa and Dawa […]
CWMS gets Team to the summit of Everest
At 6:44 am, local Nepal time on May 12, Canada West Mountain School Team Climber Bill Borger stood on the South Summit of Mt Everest, along with Then Dorjee Sherpa, Dawa Lama and Phurba Bote Sherpa. Congratulations all! The winds between the South Summit and the Main Summit were increasing in speed to approximately 80+ […]
CWMS Team heads to the summit of Mt. Everest!
Our team has arrived safely to the South Col (Camp 4) after a 6 hour climb up the Lhotse Face from C3. Then Dorjee Sherpa, Dawa Finjo Lama, Phurbha Bhote Sherpa and Bill Borger all rested well in Camp 4 during the afternoon of May 11 (local Nepal time). The team will leave C4 at […]
Moving to Camp 4
Bill and Then Dorjee Sherpa are heading up from C3 to C4 today. This is the highest camp on the Southeast Ridge route of Mt Everest at 7,950 meters. After this, the summit push will consist of 1 long day up and back from C4 in the south col. Bill and Then Dorjee are doing […]
Summit bid underway!
The Team is moving up the mountain today on their summit bid! John and Bill have left Base Camp and are heading up to Camp 2 for today, May 8. Their schedule is: May 9 they plan to climb to Camp 3 on the Lhotse Face After a night in C3, they will move up […]
Camp 3
April 30 saw John and Bill back up to Camp 2 for a 2nd round of acclimatization. They spent 4 days there, with one day a climb up to C3 and back. This acclimatization is a critical part of preparing for the demands they will face on the summit bid. Now they have descended back […]
Climb to Camp 2
John and Bill have had a chance to get up to Camp 2, now that their Puja ceremony has been completed on April 17. On April 22 they managed to move very quickly up to Camp 2 and settled in for a few days to acclimatise to that altitude, 6,450 meters (21,000′). Both Bill and […]
Training climb on Lobuche
John and Bill had a great time on the approach into Base Camp, no issues with health or safety.They arrived on April 8th. After a couple of days they headed back down the valley a ways and up onto a local training peak, Lobuche East. This is a wonderful mountain of 6,050 meters, providing a […]
Mount Everest 2011 Expedition underway!
Our Mt Everest team for 2011: Bill Borger, team Climber; Bill is from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Bill has climbed extensively in North and South America, as well as Europe. This is Bill’s 1st Himalayan expedition. John Furneaux, Team Leader and Mountain Guide. John is from Squamish, British Columbia, Canada.This is John’s 3rd Expedition to Everest, […]
About Mt Logan – 2010
Join us on this journey to Canada’s highest peak, Mt. Logan at 5,959 meters. Canada West Mountain School has been leading mountaineering expeditions up the Kings Trench for over 15 years, one of the classic routes of North Americas high mountain ranges. This moderate route up Mt. Logan is an excellent choice for mountaineers looking […]
Team summits on Mt Logan, May 26th, 2010
The CWMS team has climbed to the summit of Mount Logan on May 26th. Weather cooperated enough, though it was very cold and there was some wind. Everyone is back off the mountain now, enjoying the return to warmth and civilization. Rich Prohaska will be sending along photos soon and they will be loaded up […]
Logan Expedition starts – May 8th, 2010
Our Mount Logan – Kings Trench expedition met in Whitehorse on May 8th and were met with clear skies and a great weather forecast. Team Members: Rich Prohaska – Lead Guide Erika Flavelle – Assistant Guide Norm Dowad, Canada – Team Climber Gus Greer, Canada – team Climber Arnaud De Laveleye, Belgium – Team Climber […]