Hanging Glacier direct

Hanging Glacier drops off the north side of Mount Bonney above the Loop Brook drainage in Rogers Pass, Glacier National Park, BC. The line sits on heavily crevassed glaciated terrain with a complex lower face, including an icefall, a bergschrund, and open crevasses on the lower glacier. The west rib forms the boundary between this route and the rest of Bonney’s north face, with large cliff bands between the main Hanging Glacier options.

Access is via the Bonney Glacier zone above Loop Brook, starting from the Rogers Pass winter parking and permit system. Once you’ve gained the upper glacier and the west rib, you’re in full alpine terrain with no easy outs; parties typically build a solid anchor on the ridge and manage the overhanging cornice before committing. Expect to deal with some of the largest cornices in Rogers Pass and plan for a short rappel to get onto the face after cornice control.

The entrance is extremely steep, with sections approaching true ski-mountaineering angles depending on the season. From the top, you follow a natural trough down the main gut, then choose either a right-hand continuation down the central face or a left-hand exit through steep gullies. The lower face funnels into the icefall and then the bergschrund at the toe of the glacier, so routefinding and timing are critical to avoid overhead hazard and exposure to seracs.

This is serious glaciated ski terrain requiring advanced ski-mountaineering skills, glacier travel and crevasse rescue competence, and full avalanche and cornice management. A deep, well-settled snowpack is essential to cover glacier ice and features on the lower face.