In September 2019, OnwardUP Campus hosted Mountain Equipment Co-op staff for a 3-day camp focusing on Snow & Ice skills, specifically glacier travel. We were joined by OnwardUP Ambassadors and mountain guides, Sarah Hueniken and Mike Stuart.

“From Sept 15-17, 2019, OnwardUP Campus hosted the winners of our MEC Snow & Ice Dealer Camp contest on the beautiful Icefields Parkway, North of Lake Louise. Our goal? Learn the dark arts of travelling on glaciers, including the equipment, rescue techniques and enjoying some camping time & team-building. 

The eight participants from the Alberta MEC stores met in Canmore, where we geared up, packed up a tonne of food and headed North to the Columbia Icefields. Being that is was the first time some of the crew had ever put on crampons, we also spent time going through our kits for the course. After getting setup at Wilcox campground, the crew huddled by the warmth of the wood burning stove in the cook shelter to enjoy a fine meal and get stoked for the day ahead.

Day one was spent on the toe of the Athabasca Glacier, learning crampon technique, roped travel methods and all the tools and tricks of crevasse rescue. Back at the campground, the rain cleared off, and we enjoyed some time outside talking about map reading and glaciology.

We had high-hopes of a summit day but the weather had other plans… Day two brought more rain! But this crew was stoked. We did rope ascending off of the rafters of the cook shelter, and when the weather let up, marched a ways out on the glacier again to find a deep crevasse to ice climb in! Despite some initial apprehension, everyone loved it. For one participant, it was their first pitch of outdoor climber ever – and she rocked it. 

The eagerness to learn wasn’t dampened by the weather, and our crew had a great couple of days of trying new things and learning valuable skills in an amazing setting.”

— Jason Billing, OnwardUP Sales Manager & IFMGA Mountain Guide

Our Guides

Our MEC Participants

This is what staff are saying about the experience and what they learned…

“Mountaineering is for me!”

“I am super stoked with all the skills we learnt and have been practicing since we got back. I think my personal favourite was learning how to build a v-thread.”

“… I had a one on one experience that makes me better for my job!”

“I am super grateful for the opportunity you gave me to get out there and try something new. I love the outdoors and want to pursue every facet of that and this was a super cool intro into something I’ve always wanted to try.”

We asked attendees what they thought of their gear kits…

“[Petzl] Sum’Tec – learning that a mountaineering axe could be so lightweight and still have T-rated handle/pick was pretty ballin’. Excited to share that with folks looking for a one stop shop for both mountaineering and (easy) technical ice.”

“The [Cosmo] Nemo sleeping pad was super comfortable!”

“Gotta love the [Petzl] Sum’tec! It’s a really neat piece that is super versatile for glacier travel and general mountaineering…”

“I was really impressed with the [Patagonia] Capilene Air baselayer! Super warm and comfortable, and really quick drying as well.”

“[Patagonia] Capilene Air base crew. If I could wear everyday, I would.”

“I liked the [Nemo Cosmo] sleeping mat for sure. Super cool to have a pillow baffle built in because I always forget my pillow.”

“Patagonia Houdini Air – it’s become a part of my kit for everything I like to do in the mountains. So small, doesn’t take up any space or weight and it’s a versatile little guy.”