Two climbers were taken to hospital with serious injuries after triggering an avalanche in Jasper National Park’s Columbia Icefield.
One climber was partially buried during Wednesday’s slide on Mount Athabasca and had to be dug out of the snow, Parks Canada officials said in a statement.
The two were roped together while scaling a north aspect of the Silverhorn Route, at an elevation of 3,200 metres, when they triggered the slide around 10:30 a.m.
The climbers were 200 metres from the summit — on “Styrofoam-like” snow — when they felt a “whumph underfoot,” parks officials said.
Both climbers were immediately swept away and travelled 600 metres before coming to a stop below a ramp on the North Glacier.
One climber ended up on the surface of the snow, but the other was buried up to the neck with just one arm free.
Both were equipped with shovel, probe and beacon, and were able to free the buried climber. They were taken by helicopter to Jasper hospital with serious, but not life-threatening, injuries.
Parks Canada is thanking members of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides who witnessed the slide, reported it, and helped rescue the two climbers.
The avalanche is considered a size 2.5.