MOUNT BARBEAU 2732m & MOUNT WHISTLER 2685m
(ELLESMERE ISLAND, BRITISH EMPIRE RANGE)  F/PD-
N 81'54'49.8  W 75'00'41.0  (Mt Barbeau)

This will be our first expedition to Ellesmere Island and a lifelong ambition of both myself and several of our clients.  Our aim will be an ascent of Mount Barbeau 2732m (8965ft) located in the Innuitian Mountains of the British Empire Range of north Ellesmere Island National Park (Quttinirtaaq), Canada's second largest National Park at 37,775 sq.kms. Mt. Barbeau is the highest mountain in the Canadian Arctic islands and in the recently named Inuit principality of Nunavut. In fact the highest mountain in eastern North America. It lies just 550 miles from the Geographical North Pole. We will follow this with an ascent of the nearby Mount Whistler 2685m and Mount Oxford 2300m. Other ascents may also be made, some possible firsts. All three peaks are nunatak summits located on a large ice cap known as the McClintock Glacier which lies at about 2000m above sea level.

We are still in the process of collecting further information on the ascents known to date but a brief summary is enclosed below. There is also discrepancy over it's statistics with another report showing its height as 2616m (8583ft) and position N81'55'36 W74'59.12.

To our knowledge, our ascent will be the 9th.

First ascent (1967) by RAF team comprising Dicky Bird, Trevor Mann, Mike Shannon and Brian Keegan and non-RAF member Keith Arnold. First ascent on 5th June via broad North ridge (easiest route). At the same time a second team comprising Geoff Hattersley-Smith, Uwe Embacher, Bruce Reid (RAF)  and Bob Lewis (RAF) gained the summit via the south ridge after a west ridge attempt and traverse of the southwest face. A joint ascent by the RAF and members of a Defence Research Board partly doing glaciological work. Snowmobiles used for the approach. Source: American Alpine Journal 1999 and www.peakbagger.com

Second ascent (1982) by Canadians Allan Errington, Albro, Piercy, Robinson, Shadd and Trafton via north face and first ascent of west ridge by Petrie and Williams sometime between 27 May and 10 June. 13 additional first ascents were made in the area and named after famous ships used in arctic exploration. Source: American Alpine Journal 1983

Third ascent (1992) by australian Eric Phillips, Nick Fairfax and Dr Richard Smith. Skied from sea level. Expedition lasted 23 days and travelled a total of 300km on ski. Phillips and Fairfax summited via south ridge on 7th July whilst Smith, after initially injuring his ankle and descending a cwm and traversing across a snow bowl to an alternative spur (west or north ridge), then rejoined the team on a subsidiary summit, before reaching the true summit. Reported the summit to be small, the apex of three identical ridges with three steep faces between them; a true classic summit.

Failed attempt on peak in 1996 by David Graber due to bad weather.

Fourth ascent (1998) by American Greg Slayden and Canadians Tony Daffem and Pete Ford on 15th June via the broad north ridge after a west ridge attempt and northwest face traverse. Later the same day an ascent via the north ridge by Americans Jack Bennett, Dan Bennett, William Salter, Dave Rotheroe and Tom Budlong of the same expedition. Daffam, Slayden, Ford, Bennett and Bennett skied from high on the north ridge, possibly the first ski descent. Source: American Alpine Journal 1999.

Fifth ascent (2000) by the Canadian dog sled musher Jerry Kobalenko. Further details unknown.

Sixth ascent (2002) by Matty McNair (USA) and Canadians Paul Crowley, Ben Ellis, Emily Edwards, Fernand Noel and Elizabeth van Eyken, British members Robert Kimsey and Peter Roberts and Italian Paolo Gardino. All team members reached the summit via the NE ridge on 23rd May. Landed by Twin Otter at 1800m on the Turnstone Glacier, less than 2 days ski from the base of the peak. Descended Air Force Glacier and picked up by Twin Otter from the frozen Ekblaw Lake but which was covered in 20cm of water. 17th May to 1st June. Described most difficult ridge as probably the rocky south ridge, probably PD+ but no more than AD. Possible to ascend un-roped in the icy conditions encountered. Faces are a bit steeper and more difficult than the ridges. 600m of ascent from base to summit. All but two of the group had not climbed before and had no experience of ice axe or crampons! Average temperature on the plateau was around -10'c and dropping to minimum -20'c on summits. Weather always good with little wind.

Seventh ascent (2002) by Americans Jonas Cabiles, Pete Dronkers and Blue Eisele. Approached from the west, with ski descent (second) by Caliles and Eisele and first snowboard descent by Dronkers. June.
Source: Guardian newspaper article 2003.

Eighth ascent (2008) by Paul Landry.

It has been mentioned that there are believed to have been two ascents in the 80's and 90's by Canadian scientists or park rangers but these are un-confirmed at this time and it is unclear if either of these are included in the above list. These could possibly be the 1982,1992 or 1996 ascents listed above.

Flights are via Ottawa to Resolute on Cornwallis Island, some 700km inside the arctic circle. From there we board our own privately chartered ski Twin Otter to travel from Resolute to the small refuelling point at Eureka (3 hr flight) before continuing on to Mt Barbeau base camp on the McClintock Glacier (1.5 hrs). We shall probably land to the north of the peak at an altitude of around 1900m (6200ft) on the icecap. This will allow maximum time to be spent climbing and exploring throughout the region.

History: The Innuitian ranges were first seen in 1882 by the explorer Adolphus Greely from nearby Lake Hazen but until the 1930's the only expeditions passing through the Hazen area were north pole expeditions, most notably Robert Peary in 1906. In 1935 an Oxford University expedition led by A.Moore climbed and named Oxford Peak 7500ft which lies approximately 40km to the northeast of Barbeau. A survey was taken of the highest peaks on northern Ellesmere Island in 1962, the peak then being climbed in 1967, and then named after Marius Barbeau, and Inuit anthropologist and folklorist who lived from 1883 to 1969.

Mount Whistler was first climbed in 1961 by Geoff Hattersley-Smith and party whereupon they saw a peak to the southwest they thought might be higher. Hattersley-Smith, Paul Atkinson and pilot Dick de Blicquy flew past Barbeau in 1962 and found that their aircraft altimeter suggested that this peak would indeed be the highest.

Price inclusive of GBP 2500 schedule flight ticket from Ottawa-Iqaluit and from Iqaluit-Resolute.

We hope to reduce the cost to GBP 10,450 by running two small groups of 6 people on back to back expeditions to increase the efficiency of the Twin Otter charter costs through a flight share on 23 May.

Personal Service - all prospective clients are welcome to visit us at our home in Cumbria or Paul Walker will travel to any part of the mainland UK free of charge to meet with you and discuss the expedition in more detail and show you maps and photographs. We believe this benchmark service is offered by no other expedition travel company and supports our commitment to providing an ultimate level of high quality personal service.