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The Fortress (Alberta)
Encyclopedia
The Fortress is a mountain
located in the Kananaskis River
Valley of Kananaskis Park of the Canadian Rockies
. When viewed from Highway 40, the north face presents a fortress like appearance. The Fortress should not be confused with nearby Fortress Mountain
.
The mountain was originally named Tower Mountain but was changed in 1957 to its current name so as not to be confused with Tower Mountain
.
from either the Chester Lake
side or Headwall Lakes
side. Both routes join at the Chester
-Fortress col
. From the col, a steep path ascends the remaining 325 m (1,066 ft) to the summit. Only the final section of the summit block requires any real hands on scrambling. The Headwall Lakes approach takes longer but the scree slopes leading to the col are not as loose as the Chester Lake side, which serves as a better descent route.
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
located in the Kananaskis River
Kananaskis River
The Kananaskis River is a mountain river in western Alberta, Canada. It is a tributary of the Bow River, crossing the length of Kananaskis Country.The river was named by John Palliser in 1858 after a Cree.-Course:...
Valley of Kananaskis Park of the Canadian Rockies
Canadian Rockies
The Canadian Rockies comprise the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains range. They are the eastern part of the Canadian Cordillera, extending from the Interior Plains of Alberta to the Rocky Mountain Trench of British Columbia. The southern end borders Idaho and Montana of the USA...
. When viewed from Highway 40, the north face presents a fortress like appearance. The Fortress should not be confused with nearby Fortress Mountain
Fortress Mountain
Fortress Mountain is a ski resort in Kananaskis Country, Alberta, Canada.Located on the face of The Fortress, the resort spans over 3.8 km² from a top elevation of 2369 m to the base at 2040 m , and is serviced by 3 chairlifts and 2 T-bars...
.
The mountain was originally named Tower Mountain but was changed in 1957 to its current name so as not to be confused with Tower Mountain
Tower Mountain
Tower Mountain, , is a prominent peak in the Taconic Mountains of western Massachusetts. The mountain is located in Pittsfield State Forest and is traversed by the Taconic Crest hiking trail and the multi-use Taconic Skyline Trail...
.
Climbing routes
The southwestern slopes can be scrambledScrambling
Scrambling is a method of ascending rocky faces and ridges. It is an ambiguous term that lies somewhere between hillwalking and rock climbing. It is often distinguished from hillwalking by defining a scramble as a route where hands must be used in the ascent...
from either the Chester Lake
Chester Lake (Alberta)
Chester Lake is a small lake in the Alberta side of the Canadian Rockies.It is located in the valley north west of Mount Chester in Spray Valley Provincial Park, Kananaskis Country in Alberta, Canada....
side or Headwall Lakes
Headwall Lakes
The Headwall Lakes are in a valley south-east of Mount Chester in Kananaskis Country in Alberta, Canada. They can be accessed from the Smith-Dorrien / Spray Trail road. Their waters flow down Headwall Creek into Smith-Dorrien Creek then south east into Lower Kananaskis Lake...
side. Both routes join at the Chester
Mount Chester
Mount Chester is a mountain located in the Smith-Dorrien Creek Valley of Kananaskis in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain was named in 1917 after HMS Chester, which was severely damaged in the Battle of Jutland.-External links:* - route beta, photos...
-Fortress col
Mountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
. From the col, a steep path ascends the remaining 325 m (1,066 ft) to the summit. Only the final section of the summit block requires any real hands on scrambling. The Headwall Lakes approach takes longer but the scree slopes leading to the col are not as loose as the Chester Lake side, which serves as a better descent route.