Cody Townsend’s The Fifty, line 43/50, Mt Columbia, Alberta, Canada
Mountainwatch | Video
In this episode of The Fifty, Cody Townsend’s project to climb and ski all of the lines named in the book The 50 Great Ski Descents of North America and Cody and filmer Bjarne Salen are in Alberta Canada. The line they are hitting is Mt Columbia, located in the Canadian Rockies and at 3747m, is the highest mountain in Alberta.
Cody and Bjarne are joined by Taylor Sullivan for the pretty straightforward climb, one without the technical steeps and exposure we have seen in other episodes of The Fifty. However, reaching the peak involves a marathon ski tour of 41ks covering 2438 vertical metres and after deciding to do it in one day the crux of this tour is the distance, the weather and endurance.
The trek is through spectacular glaciated environment, one that is an important water supply to three different rivers. However, once again the effects of climate change on this fragile environment are obvious, the glaciers retreating significantly over the past 15 years, the melt down accelerating to around five metres per year.
“I don’t want to be too depressing, but kinda what is on our minds these days,” says Cody. “But the world is changing and we’re going to have to adapt to it, change things for the better.”
We can only hope.
This is the final episode of the fourth year of The Fifty, leaving Cody with seven lines to complete the project. Whether that is done in one year, two years or more remains to be seen. It is a great series and we’re looking forward to seeing how it pans out in season five.
The Fifty documents Cody Townsend’s journeys, travels, challenges and each line and mountain listed in the book, The 50 Classic Ski Descents of North America. It’s a journey through the most majestic mountains and ski lines in North America along with a unique insight into how skiers make decisions in the backcountry, how they plan, navigate and safely move through the mountains and the people that dedicate their lives to the mountains. Stay up to date on Cody and filmmaker Bjarne Salen’s progress on The Fifty website Instagram page.
