Fri. 11 June: Raspberry Ridge LookoutA tradition is springing up around my birthday, where I head for the hills and enjoy a day outdoors. It almost didn’t happen this year, as I was not able to get away from the office until late morning. But I did escape – arriving at Cataract Creek campsite wearing my office clothes!
One hour later, having changed into my hiking gear and pitched my tent, I was on the trail up to Raspberry Ridge fire lookout. The lower slopes are through pleasant forest, with early views up to the ridge high above, on the northern end of which the lookout building was visible. It was overcast today, but I was sure that the clouds would start to clear away, as the forecast for the weekend was for clear skies. Sure enough, there were some sunny spells, but it was not until much later in the evening that it would clear.
I reached the junction where one has a choice, head directly up the steep slopes to the ridge, or swing left onto the reclaimed fire road. I last came up here back in May 1992, over 18 years ago. At that time I somehow missed this junction and ended up slogging up the steep direct route. Today I chose the longer, but easier, route.
Being in no particular hurry, I enjoyed a relaxed stroll up the long switchbacks, on a perfectly good, if narrow trail, finally up to the southern end of the ridge. The scars from the reclaimed road will last for centuries, but already the ground has largely returned to its original grassy slope, apart from the narrow trail. It was a pleasant stroll with unobstructed views to south and east. Once up on the narrow ridge, I turned north and slogged up the long steep slopes to the high section of the ridge top.
It was quite spectacular standing on the very top of the ridge, whose eastern escarpment was an unbroken sweep of cliff. Soon I came over a rise and there ahead of me was the lookout building, surrounded by various other structures including a solar panel, a strange tank, and an aeriel.
It is sad to have to record that things have completely changed from just a few years ago. One would always be greeted by a friendly lookout person and often invited to share a cup of tea, as was the case on my last visit here with RH in 1992. Now, entirely due to the awful disappearance of the lookout lady from the Athabasca lookout, everything has changed. A fence rings every lookout, with signs telling hikers not to cross the line. And it appears that very often the lookout person – often a lone girl - will not come out to greet you, even when it is a quiet weekday afternoon. It makes sense of course, but it is still a sad reflection of the times we now live in.
Such was the case today. I waited a while, taking a good look all around the mountain world, with my binoculars, and having a snack to eat. I then walked around the fence, to the other side of the lookout, admiring the new loo which had been recently completed. But after a while, when nobody came out to say hello, and the clouds seemed to be building up again to the west, I sadly turned around and started back down the ridge.
This time, however, I came to a break in the cliff, where the direct route heads steeply down the ridge. I made fast work of the return journey down to the little cairn which marked the completion of my ridge circuit. The rest of the hike was a pleasant stroll back down the long forest slopes back to the car. I had seen one deer and no people - and no bears of course. Looking back up the ridge, I could hardly believe that I had just been right up there in the sky.
Returning to the campsite, I settled in for a relaxing evening by a warm fire, as a small handful of campers made themselves at home, nobody particularly close. A family with several kids all under five, was enjoying the excitement of perhaps the first camping trip for some of the younger ones. I strolled down to the river’s edge, a peaceful place to sit for a while. There were a few light showers but I stayed dry thanks to a tarp I had erected over the picnic table. Then around 9pm the skies suddenly cleared, and the temperatures started to drop rapidly.
By 10 pm I was ready to crawl into my tent and I was soon asleep. This had been an enjoyable hike – even if I wasn’t served tea at the top!
Statistics
Raspberry Ridge Lookout
Fri. 11 June
Total Dist. 11.8 km (hike)
Height Gain 2116 ft.
Max. Elev. 7730 ft.
Time on trail 3 hrs. 29 mins.
It is sad to have to record that things have completely changed from just a few years ago. One would always be greeted by a friendly lookout person and often invited to share a cup of tea, as was the case on my last visit here with RH in 1992. Now, entirely due to the awful disappearance of the lookout lady from the Athabasca lookout, everything has changed. A fence rings every lookout, with signs telling hikers not to cross the line. And it appears that very often the lookout person – often a lone girl - will not come out to greet you, even when it is a quiet weekday afternoon. It makes sense of course, but it is still a sad reflection of the times we now live in.
Such was the case today. I waited a while, taking a good look all around the mountain world, with my binoculars, and having a snack to eat. I then walked around the fence, to the other side of the lookout, admiring the new loo which had been recently completed. But after a while, when nobody came out to say hello, and the clouds seemed to be building up again to the west, I sadly turned around and started back down the ridge.
This time, however, I came to a break in the cliff, where the direct route heads steeply down the ridge. I made fast work of the return journey down to the little cairn which marked the completion of my ridge circuit. The rest of the hike was a pleasant stroll back down the long forest slopes back to the car. I had seen one deer and no people - and no bears of course. Looking back up the ridge, I could hardly believe that I had just been right up there in the sky.
Returning to the campsite, I settled in for a relaxing evening by a warm fire, as a small handful of campers made themselves at home, nobody particularly close. A family with several kids all under five, was enjoying the excitement of perhaps the first camping trip for some of the younger ones. I strolled down to the river’s edge, a peaceful place to sit for a while. There were a few light showers but I stayed dry thanks to a tarp I had erected over the picnic table. Then around 9pm the skies suddenly cleared, and the temperatures started to drop rapidly.
By 10 pm I was ready to crawl into my tent and I was soon asleep. This had been an enjoyable hike – even if I wasn’t served tea at the top!
Statistics
Raspberry Ridge Lookout
Fri. 11 June
Total Dist. 11.8 km (hike)
Height Gain 2116 ft.
Max. Elev. 7730 ft.
Time on trail 3 hrs. 29 mins.
Sat. 12 June: Cat Creek Hills
My campsite had a nice view of the grassy meadows along Cataract Creek, and the ground was white with a heavy frost. The sun was lighting up the higher slopes of the hillside opposite, and soon dropped down to shine through the trees onto my tent. It was going to be a perfect day.
I was on my way by 7.30 am, the few other campsite residents still fast asleep. I exchanged a friendly wave with the guy who runs the campsite as I drove out towards the Forestry road. My objective today was the Cat Creek Hills. As the winter gate at Highwood Junction was still closed, I would bike beyond the gate to Cat Creek. In fact, this was the last weekend before the gate opens on June 15th, so I wanted to enjoy the peace of the Highwood for the last time this year.
Although there were a couple of other vehicles parked at the gate, I appeared to be the first biker up the road today. It was already a perfect morning, with clear blue sky, and temperatures starting to warm up. Nevertheless, as I reached the top of the hill and started to coast down the other side, I had to stop to put on my jacket as the wind was cold.
I was soon at Cat Creek where I hid my bike at the north end of the parking area in the trees. The grassy meadow here, by the edge of the Highwood River, with stunning views of the Elk Range peaks, is one of my favourite places. Here the Cataract Creek interpretive trail starts. I planned to explore that trail later today. I strolled up onto the deserted highway, and walked down to the Cat Creek bridge.
My plan was to do a clockwise circuit of the Cat Creek Hills, climbing to the highest point of these hills on my way round. I had with me a detailed map of the complex trails which start from the bridge, and I carefully followed this map all the way round. It turned out to be accurate, which was lucky as I might otherwise have become totally lost. The old Highway 40 looped around here, and I think the Cat Creek picnic area was once a campsite. The old bridge across Cat Creek, further upstream, has been removed, although the solid concrete walls still stand on each side of the fast-flowing stream.
Here I turned uphill, onto a series of coal mine haul roads connected by zig-zag trails. At one time this was a mining area, but of course it has long since reverted back to nature. Already there were stunning vistas of snow-capped peaks, framed by the forests and woods, with the bright green of the springtime leaves shining in the sun under a cloudless blue sky.
At a helpful small stone cairn, my trail turned right, away from Cat Creek, and climbed steadily up the heavily forested hillsides on an old mine access road. But the alders had been steadily taking over, leaving only a narrow trail. Luckily the leaves had not yet opened up on the bushes. In a couple of weeks, this trail will have largely disappeared from view. Higher up, the trail turns into a narrow creek, luckily not too wet, before widening out again, and zig-zagging high up onto the ridge top. It seemed quite a long and steep ascent and so I was glad to make it out onto the much drier and warmer ridge.
Although on the wide, forested ridge, I still had some way to go to reach the summit. Turning to my left at the trail junction, I made my way through the trees, first on level ground, then climbing to a higher level. To my left I came to the steep edge of the ridge, with superb views across to the snowy Highwood Ranges. To my right I could see the higher ridgeline that I would be following later. Finally I came out above the trees onto the open saddle, where I turned again to my left to reach a grassy top. But there was still a final hill ahead of me. Dropping down to a saddle, I then carefully made my way up the final ridge on loose rock, with a steep cliff on my left, so coming to the summit of the Cat Creek Hills.
There was no cairn and the trees came up to the ridge top. But the views were superb. South was the pointed summit of Junction Mountain – my destination twice in two weeks in March. Westwards the Cat Creek Hills were spread out below me, and behind them the snow-covered Front Ranges. Far below was the Highwood Valley.
My campsite had a nice view of the grassy meadows along Cataract Creek, and the ground was white with a heavy frost. The sun was lighting up the higher slopes of the hillside opposite, and soon dropped down to shine through the trees onto my tent. It was going to be a perfect day.I was on my way by 7.30 am, the few other campsite residents still fast asleep. I exchanged a friendly wave with the guy who runs the campsite as I drove out towards the Forestry road. My objective today was the Cat Creek Hills. As the winter gate at Highwood Junction was still closed, I would bike beyond the gate to Cat Creek. In fact, this was the last weekend before the gate opens on June 15th, so I wanted to enjoy the peace of the Highwood for the last time this year.
Although there were a couple of other vehicles parked at the gate, I appeared to be the first biker up the road today. It was already a perfect morning, with clear blue sky, and temperatures starting to warm up. Nevertheless, as I reached the top of the hill and started to coast down the other side, I had to stop to put on my jacket as the wind was cold.
I was soon at Cat Creek where I hid my bike at the north end of the parking area in the trees. The grassy meadow here, by the edge of the Highwood River, with stunning views of the Elk Range peaks, is one of my favourite places. Here the Cataract Creek interpretive trail starts. I planned to explore that trail later today. I strolled up onto the deserted highway, and walked down to the Cat Creek bridge.
My plan was to do a clockwise circuit of the Cat Creek Hills, climbing to the highest point of these hills on my way round. I had with me a detailed map of the complex trails which start from the bridge, and I carefully followed this map all the way round. It turned out to be accurate, which was lucky as I might otherwise have become totally lost. The old Highway 40 looped around here, and I think the Cat Creek picnic area was once a campsite. The old bridge across Cat Creek, further upstream, has been removed, although the solid concrete walls still stand on each side of the fast-flowing stream.
Here I turned uphill, onto a series of coal mine haul roads connected by zig-zag trails. At one time this was a mining area, but of course it has long since reverted back to nature. Already there were stunning vistas of snow-capped peaks, framed by the forests and woods, with the bright green of the springtime leaves shining in the sun under a cloudless blue sky.
At a helpful small stone cairn, my trail turned right, away from Cat Creek, and climbed steadily up the heavily forested hillsides on an old mine access road. But the alders had been steadily taking over, leaving only a narrow trail. Luckily the leaves had not yet opened up on the bushes. In a couple of weeks, this trail will have largely disappeared from view. Higher up, the trail turns into a narrow creek, luckily not too wet, before widening out again, and zig-zagging high up onto the ridge top. It seemed quite a long and steep ascent and so I was glad to make it out onto the much drier and warmer ridge.
Although on the wide, forested ridge, I still had some way to go to reach the summit. Turning to my left at the trail junction, I made my way through the trees, first on level ground, then climbing to a higher level. To my left I came to the steep edge of the ridge, with superb views across to the snowy Highwood Ranges. To my right I could see the higher ridgeline that I would be following later. Finally I came out above the trees onto the open saddle, where I turned again to my left to reach a grassy top. But there was still a final hill ahead of me. Dropping down to a saddle, I then carefully made my way up the final ridge on loose rock, with a steep cliff on my left, so coming to the summit of the Cat Creek Hills.
There was no cairn and the trees came up to the ridge top. But the views were superb. South was the pointed summit of Junction Mountain – my destination twice in two weeks in March. Westwards the Cat Creek Hills were spread out below me, and behind them the snow-covered Front Ranges. Far below was the Highwood Valley.
I followed the high ridge line of the Cat Creek Hills westwards, contouring just to the left of the prominent “knob” of rock, which from below looks like the summit of these hills – but is quite a bit lower than the real summit. Steep grassy hillsides led to a col, then another contour to the left of the next rounded summit. From there it was a long steep descent on grass right down to the valley floor where the old highway once ran.
This section, although steep, was a delight, with sturdy trees - some now dead, but still standing - framing the mountains, red lichen-covered rocks, and photogenic ridges and hillsides spread out below me. There were early signs of spring wildflowers in the grass, and this would be a colourful place to walk in a week or two from now.
Once back down in the valley, I turned north for the final leg of the circuit, past the dilapidated elk corral. The old mining camp road branched off to the left, up the forested slopes. This final stage along the camp road was a highlight of the trip, maintaining a superb vantage point above the valley. And so back to the old road bridge at Cat Creek.
As a final much-anticipated leg of this hike, I decided to cross the creek and visit Cat Creek Falls, returning to my bike along the so-called “interpretive trail”. My feet were quite hot, but as soon as I stepped into the water, they quickly cooled down. In fact the water was almost unbearably cold. Luckily it was less than a foot deep in the middle. The trail soon reached two tiny footbridges, and then ahead was a small, but pretty waterfall.
There had been a small rockfall across the trail, but this was easily navigated. The setting, in a tall, cool, canyon, was very peaceful. Many years ago there had been a large coal mining camp here, and one could imagine that hot and dusty miners would have found the pool below the falls an irresistible place to clean themselves off.
The interpretive trail back to the start of my hike rose up onto a hillside with superb views down the valley and then up towards the Highwood Pass. As I sat on a convenient bench, I could see that the road was busy with bikers heading in both directions, enjoying the last car-free weekend of the year. I stopped by the edge of the Highwood River where the swirling waters would have made a very dangerous crossing.
Looking up to the Cat Creek Hills from the bridge, it hardly seemed possible that I had stood ABOVE that prominent knob, looking down on it. My return journey to the winter gate took no time at all. At the gate I was perhaps not surprised to find cars parked along each side of the road for hundreds of metres, and bikers returning from, or preparing to set off on, their journeys up the Highwood Pass. The weather was so perfect that just about everyone, it seemed, was outside enjoying the day. One could hardly imagine more perfect weather, or a more perfect place to be on a day like this.
Statistics
Cat Creek Hills
Sat. 12 June
This section, although steep, was a delight, with sturdy trees - some now dead, but still standing - framing the mountains, red lichen-covered rocks, and photogenic ridges and hillsides spread out below me. There were early signs of spring wildflowers in the grass, and this would be a colourful place to walk in a week or two from now.
Once back down in the valley, I turned north for the final leg of the circuit, past the dilapidated elk corral. The old mining camp road branched off to the left, up the forested slopes. This final stage along the camp road was a highlight of the trip, maintaining a superb vantage point above the valley. And so back to the old road bridge at Cat Creek.
As a final much-anticipated leg of this hike, I decided to cross the creek and visit Cat Creek Falls, returning to my bike along the so-called “interpretive trail”. My feet were quite hot, but as soon as I stepped into the water, they quickly cooled down. In fact the water was almost unbearably cold. Luckily it was less than a foot deep in the middle. The trail soon reached two tiny footbridges, and then ahead was a small, but pretty waterfall.
There had been a small rockfall across the trail, but this was easily navigated. The setting, in a tall, cool, canyon, was very peaceful. Many years ago there had been a large coal mining camp here, and one could imagine that hot and dusty miners would have found the pool below the falls an irresistible place to clean themselves off.
The interpretive trail back to the start of my hike rose up onto a hillside with superb views down the valley and then up towards the Highwood Pass. As I sat on a convenient bench, I could see that the road was busy with bikers heading in both directions, enjoying the last car-free weekend of the year. I stopped by the edge of the Highwood River where the swirling waters would have made a very dangerous crossing.
Looking up to the Cat Creek Hills from the bridge, it hardly seemed possible that I had stood ABOVE that prominent knob, looking down on it. My return journey to the winter gate took no time at all. At the gate I was perhaps not surprised to find cars parked along each side of the road for hundreds of metres, and bikers returning from, or preparing to set off on, their journeys up the Highwood Pass. The weather was so perfect that just about everyone, it seemed, was outside enjoying the day. One could hardly imagine more perfect weather, or a more perfect place to be on a day like this.
Statistics
Cat Creek Hills
Sat. 12 June
Total Dist. 10 km (hike) +12 km (bike) = 22 km
Height Gain 1820 ft.
Max. Elev. 7020 ft.
Time on trail 6 hrs. 26 mins.
Height Gain 1820 ft.
Max. Elev. 7020 ft.
Time on trail 6 hrs. 26 mins.
Statistics (Total 2 days)
Total Dist. 33.8 km
Height Gain 3936 ft.
Max. Elev. 7730 ft.
Time on trail 9 hrs. 55 mins.
Height Gain 3936 ft.
Max. Elev. 7730 ft.
Time on trail 9 hrs. 55 mins.
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