Mount Siyeh

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July 27, 2024. Scrambling to the summit of a “10,000-er” along Glacier National Park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road.

  • Region: Glacier National Park, Montana. Traditional Territory of the Kootenai, Blackfeet, Salish and Pend D’Oreille peoples
  • Distance: 14.27 km round-trip
  • Total Ascent: 1225 m
  • Elevation of Objective: 3054 m
  • Total Time: 8h 6m
  • Safety and Disclaimer

The last outing of my late July trip to Glacier was to bag the peak of Mount Siyeh. This mountain sits alongside the Siyeh Bend section of Going-to-the-Sun Road. It is apparently the easiest 10,000-er to climb in the park. We found it to be straightforward aside from the crux, which involved a somewhat tricky ascent through an upper cliff-band. The weather was favourable and the smoke was much thinner that it had been in previous days. Overall, it was an enjoyable day of scrambling.

Access is via the Siyeh Pass trailhead, at the Siyeh Bend area of Going-to-the-Sun road. Depending on the season and the direction you approach from you may or may not require a vehicle pass – check the official website for the most up-to-date information. Keep in mind that these need to be purchased in advance. In 2024 a portion of the passes are made available 120 days in advance and the rest at 7pm for next-day entry. No pass was required if accessing GttS Road from the St. Mary side, which is what we used. It’s possible that this changes in future years.

The route follows the Siyeh Pass trail for roughly 4.9 km. At this point, about 600 m beyond the fork in the trail that leads to Piegan Pass, the trail makes a right-angle turn from north to east. Departing into the trees at this point is an obvious path heading north. We actually saw 2 of these – one was more or less at the turn in the path, the other was a short distance further along the trail. We took the 2nd one and it led us towards the foot of the mountain alongside a dry creek bed. We ascended a rubble pile at the bottom of a drainage then got onto scrambling terrain. This ascent was fairly straightforward. Along the line we were following we encountered the occasional cairn. We eventually reached the Purcell Sill – the white/black/white stack of metamorphic and igneous rock that is visible like a racing strip on many of Glacier and Waterton’s mountains.

After ascending through the black rocks we were stopped by a low cliff band. We traversed to the right under the cliffs until we found a weakness – a narrow cleft with step-like blocks of white rock. Climbing through this crux required a bit of tentative scrambling, mostly because there were piles of loose but heavy rocks sitting at the top of the cleft which could easily have been pulled down as a climber made their way up. This was also where we had a hair-raising moment: rocks came tumbling down at us from higher up the slope. The terrain funnelled them directly at one of our party members. Luckily she wasn’t injured. It turned out that there was another party some distance above us making their descent after bagging the peak earlier in the day.

Above the crux we hiked up steep slopes, trending left a bit until we reached the ridge. From there we turned right and walked up the ridge to the summit. The summit views were excellent, particularly the view down to Cracker Lake to the north and Grinnell Glacier to the northwest. There was a bit of a cold wind at the top, but we were able to take some time to enjoy the views before heading down.

Our descent followed a slightly different path – we backtracked until we were above the crux. From there we traversed skier’s right following a visible path and series of cairns. Both of these petered out after a while (or we lost the route) but they got us below the cliff bands and from there we picked our way back down to the valley bottom.

An early morning view of Mount Siyeh from Siyeh Bend on Going-to-the-Sun Road.
Checking out the Siyeh Bend Trailhead. This sign is set back from the road a bit. The sign right on the road is a small brown hiking sign that says “Piegan Pass”.
The first 2 km or so the trail heads through the forest, first it goes south then does a lazy bend back to the north.
Eventually the forest thins and there are small clearings filled with wildflowers.
Getting closer. Two snow patches are barely visible among the cliffs, right of centre. The route we used goes to that general location.
Our approximate route through the area near the snow patches, including the crux step.
At the fork where the Piegan Pass trail splits off to the left. We continued right towards Siyeh Pass.
The path to Mount Siyeh, splitting off from the official trail roughly 600 m beyond the fork to Piegan Pass and immediately after a sharp right angle turn.
Though less distinct as it continues onward, the path is easy to follow and leads to an area where the grass extends up a scree pile for a short distance at the base of the mountain.
The fairly straightforward scrambling terrain below the cliffs.
Looking southwest along the valley we hiked through on our approach.
The nature of the rock changed as we got higher. Cairns were visible here and there. On the lower part of the mountain I’m sure there are multiple viable routes.
Taking a look down. Two drainages are visible, and we more or less climbed up alongside/in the one on the right. A rocky creek bed with a thin adjacent path are visible in the grass. That is the path we came in on.
Taking a break to check out the view. Piegan Glacier is at the top right.
Now at the upper cliff band and traversing right, looking for a weakness. We identified the crux easily enough, but actually ascending it safely with all members of the party was quite time consuming and occupied everyone’s attention so completely that nobody took a picture of it. In 2009, Sonny Bou descended through the crux with Bob Spirko. Sonny took a picture that you can find in his report. Scroll to “Bob descends the crux.” In 2024 it looks more or less the same. The main difficulty was dealing with all the loose rock piled at the top.
Above the crux, now on the scree slopes beneath the summit. We didn’t go directly to the summit but trended to the left to gain the ridge.
The view upon gaining the ridge.
Marching the last few hundred meters up towards the summit.
Almost to the summit. Looking back at everyone climbing up.
The summit of Mount Siyeh.
Panorama to the north, looking over Cracker Lake.
Panorama to the east.
Panorama to the south.
Panorama to the west.
Bhaskar getting some pictures. The lake in the background is the one below Grinnell and Salamander Glaciers. The notch in the ridge above it is where we were standing the day before when we hiked the Highline Trail and Grinnell Overlook.
A closer look at the lake and the notch.
Another look at Cracker Lake.
Heading down.

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