Mount Ward is a hidden gem in Alberta’s Crowsnest Pass that boasts an impressive viewpoint near the end of a straight-forward and rewarding scramble. Just prior to reaching the summit, you’ll find a close up view of Window Mountain along with views of Crowsnest Mountain and Seven Sisters Mountain, all viewable in one camera frame. The first 3.8 kilometres of the hike approaching the base of the mountain follow an unmaintained and rocky logging road. This road is impassable for anyone that doesn’t have an all-terrain vehicle, or a high clearance vehicle with all-wheel drive. 

At the end of the road, we reached a serene subalpine lake – Window Mountain Lake. The beautiful lake is the final destination for most hikers in the area. My hiking buddy and I stopped and spent some time on the lakeshore to take in the tranquility and to watch trout jumping out of the water. We circled the lake counter-clockwise for about a kilometre from the east side down to a gully on the southwest side and started our scramble up.

The scree wasn’t much of a challenge, though it had very little give to it. There are several different paths left by hikers and you can see the summit for the most of the scramble portion of the climb up. The steep climb plateaus at a couple of different points on the way up, with patches of vegetation and some trees standing in contrast to the rocky terrain. Though our climb was during the first week of September in 2021, these patches were already transitioning into their Autumn colours.

Past the first plateau, we reached a boulder field and made our way west through it toward a large rock wall for some shade from the sun. We followed the rock wall all the way up to the mountain's false summit where we were rewarded with the aforementioned views of Crowsnest's three most iconic peaks. The true summit was just a little further past the col. My buddy was not interested in reaching the top, so I pressed on a little further to complete the summit alone.

The summit was narrow and had a good amount of exposure, definitely a lot more dizzying than the rest of the scramble up. This portion appeared much more lightly trafficked and didn't have an discernable trail. The views at the top are not very different than those at the col, but it's rewarding to complete the full summit. I proceeded back down to the false summit and we spent a long period of time there taking in the views and checking out the area through binoculars. We took a more direct route down the mountain finding the trails left by others were not necessary to follow. We rejoined the normal route once back at Window Mountain Lake. 

I would recommend hiking poles, though I would say they are not absolutely necessary for the climb. Falling rocks are a concern as well. Ultimately, this is not a very technically challenging scramble, but the viewpoint near the top, the lake at the bottom and the inconspicuous nature of this mountain make for an excellent summit that can be completed in just a handful of hours.