Second through-patrol

First night at North Pangnirtung Fiord was spent bouldering. We managed to put up some highball problems and find the ultimate location for skipping rocks.



Bryan on patrol near Owl River.



The dreaded hummocky ground that makes hiking in the northern half of Akshayuk Pass less enjoyable than the southern portion.



Long-distance runners, Ray Zahab and Chuck Dale, during the first stage of their Canada Trails run. They were planning on running Akshayuk Pass, then the East Coast Trail in Nfld, and finishing on the West Coast Trail in BC, all in 10 days. When we saw them here, at June Valley, they were 34 km into the 97 km trail and Chuck was looking punched already. Ray simply stated that this was way harder than running across the Sahara Desert, which he did the previous year by running ~80km per day. Not sure how the other trails went, but Ray finished in 27 hours and Chuck in 31. They had originally told us that they were hoping for 12 hours. I know the hummocky and boggy north section slowed them considerably.



A stunning, 1200m face located across the Owl River from the June Valley Shelter.



Bryan, GPS'ing another notable point along the trail.



Hiking south along the Owl River.



Looking along the Owl River near June Valley.



At long last, we could see Asgard.



Asgard and company in the central portion of Akshayuk Pass.



Stoked to see the gorgeous peaks of Cumberland Peninsula.



The warden position isn't all glory...



Man, do I ever want to come back and climb that thing. The left skyline of Asgard is roughly where the Scott route goes. The dividing line of sun/shade on the NE portion is roughly the line of "Line of Credit", a route by Sean Easton et al.



Bryan hiking in the moraines between Glacier Lake and Summit Lake. The Highway Glacier is in the background.



The one time that sun hit my bare legs all summer...



Another river crossing, this time the Norman River.



Bryan GPS'ing an Inuit gravesite in the park.



The view of Thor Peak from a side trip up the Northumbria drainage. We came within 75m of the summit of an unnamed peak, but had to bail due to a rapidly approaching storm and the lateness of the day. We got hammered by nasty winds and rain halfway down. I had to be convinced by Bryan to head down near the top. At the point that the weather crapped out, I was thanking him for his good decision.