2469m (8101ft.)
Located in the Kananaskis River Valley: northeast buttress of Skogan Pass. Kananaskis Park, Alberta
Latitude 50; 59; 15 Longitude 115; 08; 00, Topo map 82J/14
Can be seen from Highway 40S
Named in 1922. (Lorette Spur was a ridge to the north of Vimy Ridge. It was the scene of very heavy fighting during WW I. Official name.
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| Looking west to Mount Lorette from Wastooch Ridge More photos |
Other Information
Photo: Looking northwest to Mount Lorette from Highway #40Lorette Spur, a high point just to the north of Vimy Ridge and separated from it by the Souchez River, was captured from the Germans by the French Army which suffered extremely high casualties in the battle. Pierre Berton, in his book "Vimy," relates a Canadian soldier’s description of the carnage on Lorette Spur, "It made his flesh crawl: he had never before seen so many grinning skulls. Here was a maze of old trenches and ditches littered with the garbage of war – broken rifles, frayed equipment, rusting bayonets, hundreds of bombs, tangles of barbed wire, puddles of filth, and everywhere rotting uniforms, some French blue, others German grey, tattered sacks now, holding their own consignments of bones."
The capture of Lorette Spur was a significant event in French military history but why a prominent mountain in the Canadian Rockies was named in its honour is not known.
The lower highpoint on the southeastern end of the mountain rises picturesquely above the Kananaskis Valley and it is this peak that is commonly referred to as Mount Lorette although a much higher point lies to the northwest.
| South Ridge II 5.6 An excellent choice for a first rock route in the mountains. The ridge is quite narrow in many places and has quite an airy feel for such a small peak. The climbing is mostly scrambling up, over and around gendarmes of reasonable rock. The grade may seem quite high for such a route. Rest assured, the crux section is very short though a few medium-sized Friends and a few wires would come in handy. Don't take a lot of gear - there is quite a bit fixed along the route. Dougherty, Selected Alpine Climbs page 36 |