In Hindsight
“Mt. Currie (Tśzil) looms above the village of Pemberton, BC, like a sentinel, though its true summit remains hidden until you gain elevation or distance yourself from town—seen here in the top-right quarter of the frame while on a backcountry camping trip.” Photo: Matthew Bruhns
Words: Alastair Spriggs
“Made it to safety, on the homestretch. Best run of my life. Holy fuck.”
I texted this to my partner Jess at 5 p.m. on January 5, 2025. That morning, Will Kovacic and I had cinched on our skins at 4 a.m. to climb all 7,740 vertical feet of Mt. Currie, the jewel of Pemberton, BC, and descend its north-facing Y Couloir.
The insulated, breakable crust had us above treeline sooner than expected. But as we climbed out of shadows and toward the east face, the afternoon solar rays sank in and initiated a slow, damp, one-foot-in-front-of-the-other bootpack toward the summit.
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