• August 7, 2003
• Mountain height: Tyrwhitt: 2,874 m (9,477 feet)
• Pocaterra: 2,934 m (9,624 feet)
• Elevation gain: 650 m + approx. 400 m (losses and gains for Pocaterra)
• Ascent time: 1:50 from car to Tyrwhitt
•                    1:40 from Tyrwhitt to Pocaterra
• Descent time: 2:05 from Pocaterra to Tyrwhitt
•                      1:30 from Tyrwhitt to car

Solo scramble.

After having outstanding weather on 14 consecutive scrambles dating back to June 26 of this year, I knew my luck had to run out sooner or later and it just happened to be sooner!

Once again the trip started out under clear skies, and once again I was enthralled by the beauty of the Highwood Meadows - flowers out in full bloom, a clear pond, and the wonderful contrasting colours of the surrounding mountains. The somewhat exposed ridgewalk from Tyrwhitt to Pocaterra was quite exhilarating at times and just before the summit I left the ridge and made it to the summit from scree slopes on the west side. 

By the time I reached the Pocaterra summit, I was surrounded by black clouds and it was inevitable that I was going to get caught in some nasty weather. I was suddenly hit by high winds, hail, and rain and started making a bee-line for Elk Valley. Unfortunately, this would have entailed a 15-20 km hike around the west side of Mount Pocaterra to get back to the car. Fortunately, the storm was short-lived and I was able to re-ascend the mountain and get back to the Tyrwhitt summit. I spent the remainder of the trip under clear skies.

    
Beautiful contrasting colours along the Highwood Meadows Trail; Mount Pocaterra is in the background 

    
Mount Pocaterra, as seen from the summit of Mount Tyrwhitt; the Kananaskis Lakes are behind

    
A west-facing view of The Elk Lakes and the Petain Glacier; Mount Joffre is the highest point in the picture

    
A storm rolls in; looking back towards the summit of Mount Tyrwhitt from the slopes of Pocaterra

    
Heading back towards the Tyrwhitt summit after the storm had passed

    
Clear skies again on return! More great scenery in Highwood Meadows