Hikers were surprised to find a new cross was resurrected on Morro Peak last weekend, after it had been missing from the summit since late last year.
A new marker, still shiny from a fresh coat of stain, appeared sometime between Thursday, April 14 and Saturday, April 16, however it remains a mystery who lugged it up to the summit.
The story of Morro’s missing summit marker, and the man who erected it 50 years ago, appeared in the April 14 issue of the Fitzhugh. Then, over the weekend a brand new cross appeared.
The news came as a surprise to Helen Schwarz, whose husband Hans, built the original cross shortly after becoming a certified mountain guide in the early 60s. Helen received the news with a laugh and then quickly asked the same question as everyone else: who did it?
Loni Klettl of the Jasper Trail Alliance said there’s been such a ruckus in town about the need for a new cross that it’s hard to say who’s responsible.
“I don’t know which group of people can claim responsibility,” she said. “Whoever it was, it looks beautiful. Obviously it’s just so weird because it happened so quick.”
Hans Schwarz erected the cross on Morro after he had already placed a marker on Mount Edith Cavell and another on Mount Colin.
Morro’s marker was by far the easiest to place. Rather than climbing the peak with a cross on his back—like he did on Cavell and Colin—Schwarz was able to build a cross just a few feet from its resting place, using dead trees he found in the gully at the back of the peak.
Schwarz built two that way, replacing his first cross with a sturdier version a number of years later.
For the last 50 years, that cross was an iconic Jasper landmark, standing the test of time—unlike the ones on Colin and Cavell, both of which were struck by lightning.
No one knows exactly what happened to Schwarz’s cross, but it’s believed to have gone missing around November.
Klettl approached Parks Canada to ask if the trail alliance could erect a new cross, but last week admitted she wasn’t optimistic that approval was forthcoming.
Although she doesn’t know who put the new marker up there, Klettl said she’s happy it’s there.
“Whoever got there first, got there first,” she said with a laugh. “I’m very happy.
“I hope it lives another 50, 60 or 100 years up there, proud to represent the man and the mountain.”
Nicole Veerman
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