Travels with Joe

Fri. 22 - Wed. 27 October: Travels with Joe

This week my godson Joe, 16, has been visiting from England. This gave me the perfect chance to show him some of my favorite corners of the Alberta foothills and mountains. We wasted no time getting out there, despite the often wintry weather.

Friday 22nd: Elbow River Valley

Starting close to home, we explored the Elbow River valley, along with his mom (and my “oldest” friend) S. We enjoyed the reflections of Forgetmenot Pond, the swirling waters of Elbow Falls, and then a short stroll part way up the Fullerton Loop Trail to the first viewpoint.

It was mostly overcast but not particularly cold. There were some skiffs of snow in places, and more on the mountainsides, but no heavy snowfall warnings in the forecast – yet. On the way back we enjoyed an unseasonal ice cream in the village of Bragg Creek.

Statistics
Fullerton Loop
Fri. 22 October

Total Dist. 4.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 300 ft.
Max. Elev. 4900 ft.
Time on trail 1 hr. 10 mins.

Saturday 23rd: Banff and Lake Louise

Next day Joe and I headed west to Banff National Park. Here we took the gondola to the top of Sulphur Mountain and then strolled up the boardwalks to the observatory on Sanson Peak. Being a partly sunny Saturday, it was quite busy with tourists. After a burger at Bruno’s in Banff we turned westwards to Lake Louise. We drove up to the Lake Louise ski hill, and stood on the balcony of the Lodge, looking across to the front slopes. There were just a few patches of man-made snow. Yet the season will probably be in full swing by mid-November.

At Lake Louise itself, the lakeside was of course busy with sightseers, even a wedding party. The lake seemed to be colorless today, but as we climbed the switchback path, looking down we could see that wonderful duck-egg blue color of the water from above. It looked unreal, almost as if it was filled with blue PowerAid, we thought.

There was a steady procession of people coming back down the path: people of all ages, in assorted clothing, some more suitable for a high street, but everyone happy to exchange a cheery “hello” as we passed.

Mirror Lake was frozen over, but the path up to Lake Agnes only had a trace of snow on it. So Joe was not able yet to try out his new MicroSpikes, care of Mountain Equipment Co-op in Calgary.

Lake Agnes was also frozen over, and people were wandering about on the ice, some with skates on and hockey sticks. The ice looked a little thin to me, but nobody fell through so it must have been safe enough. We returned down the steps and along the pretty trail to Mirror Lake and then down to Lake Louise, detouring through the lobby of the Chateau to warm up a bit. It was dark by the time we reached Canmore. It had been a full day.

Statistics
Sulphur Mtn. Summit
Sat. 23 October

Total Dist. 1.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 184 ft.
Max. Elev. 7667 ft.
Time on trail 0 hrs. 38 mins.


Statistics
Lake Agnes
Sat. 23 October

Total Dist. 8.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 1300 ft.
Max. Elev. 7000 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 28 mins.


Monday 25th: Upper Kananaskis Lake

Off to the Kananaskis Lakes – despite a wintry look to Calgary this morning. A thin cover of new snow had fallen and it was spitting snow. But we ignored this and happily jumped into the car for the journey west along the Trans-Canada Highway and then south down the Kananaskis Valley. Clouds hung around the mountains, and there was new snow on the front ranges.

We stopped at Canoe Meadows and the Widow-maker to see if anyone was on the river – there was nobody there. Today was a colder day, with a promise of snow showers. Arriving at the Interlakes parking area between the Lower and Upper Kanananskis Lakes, we bundled up well, before setting off along the north side of the Upper Lake. There were no other cars parked here, and we did not expect to find anyone on the trail – and there were none. Sadly there were no large moose or elk or bear to be seen either. A year ago I had seen a huge moose at close range, but not today.

We hiked along the upper trail before dropping down across the boulder field and down to the western edge of the lake. Soon we were within the sound of the Upper Kananaskis Falls, which tumble down into the Upper Lake, with the high cliffs of Mt. Lyautey half hidden in the mist above. Here we stopped for a picnic at a convenient bench, before returning down the trail.

I thought Joe might like to have a look around a typical Canadian backcountry campsite, so we wandered through the Point campsite. There were huge piles of newly chopped logs, and even a large axe left for the use of campers. We thought that the two new, circular green loos might have been time machines in disguise. But opening the door, one sniff told us that they certainly were not. Campsite #20 would be my choice for the perfect campsite award, and I will return one day soon to stay there for a night or two.

Joe is a strong hiker and so it didn’t take us long to stride back up the boulder field, and along the lower route through the forest by the lake, back to our car.

We were not finished yet. I was curious to see the new footbridge that had just been installed at Sarrail Creek. So we drove to the eastern end of the Upper Lake, and strolled the 1.2 km around the edge of the lake to the creek. It was a nice bridge, but when I was here a year ago, the old one looked strong enough. Perhaps it had been damaged by a falling tree? Anyway, we stopped to admire the tumbling waterfall before returning back along the trail. There had been some isolated sunny breaks, but it had generally been overcast and quite cold, with a westerly breeze. So we were glad to climb back into a warm car.

Our return journey took us over the Highwood Pass, where the wind was blowing snow across the road, and then down the Highwood Valley. There were a few cars parked here and there – horse riders, hunters, and a few hikers – perhaps surprising for a Monday in late October. In the Cat Creek picnic area was a covered wagon – I had heard that you may come across these on the trails west of the Highwood, but had never seen one before. There were a few trailers parked in the Strawberry winter campsite – probably hunters. As we drove east we left the patches of sunshine behind us and entered a cloudy, overcast landscape. We were soon back in Calgary.


Statistics
Upper Kananaskis Falls
Mon. 25 October

Total Dist. 9.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 160 ft.
Max. Elev. 5800 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 57 mins.

Statistics
Mt. Sarrail Creek Bridge
Mon. 25 October

Total Dist. 2.4 km (hike)
Height Gain 0 ft.
Max. Elev. 5700 ft.
Time on trail 0 hrs. 36 mins.

Wednesday 27th: Sheep River Valley

A cold, foggy morning in Calgary didn’t deter us from confidently heading out on our next adventure – which turned out to be a very good decision.

Driving south out of Calgary I tried to point out my office, half enveloped in fog. After finding a way across the blocked railway line in Okotoks, we turned west towards Big Rock. Here it was several degrees below freezing, there was a fog, and the snow and ice covered the interpretive sign. But we walked around the glacial “erratic” and had fun imagining how this huge rock made its way down from the distant mountains – was it carried by the glacier, or did it chase a Blackfoot Indian across the prairie, or perhaps was it carried by The Flood? All options I have heard!

Continuing west, we passed through Turner Valley and up onto the Sheep River road.

We were in for a big surprise. Suddenly the fog dissipated, and we entered a sunny mountain world. If we had been in an aircraft, the prairie would have appeared as a sea of fog. Up here it was perhaps around freezing or a degree or two above, but the atmosphere was clear and the mountains stood out sharply along the western skyline.

Driving to the far western end of the Sheep Valley, we saw a group of horses being readied for a back-country expedition, and a guy preparing to offload a quad vehicle perhaps to go hunting up the Sheep River. We dropped our bikes off at the Indian Oils picnic area, then returned a little way east to Gorge Creek. My bear warning sign was still taped to the Indian Oils trail sign, over five weeks after I had put it there. I removed it.

Our first task was to cross an active Sheep River. Using our plastic bag technique we were mostly successful, except for a slightly wet sock which we quickly replaced. The Teskey Road trail is not marked on any maps but I knew where to find it. We picked up this old logging road by pushing our way to the back of the forested meadow on the other side of the river. After a straightforward ascent up a slightly clogged trail, we reached the Sheep River gorge and swung south through pleasant meadows into the forest. Joining the Sheep Valley trail, we continued along a wide, muddy trail, but it was frozen enough to allow us to stay dry. Dropping down to Dyson Falls, we sat by the Dyson Creek and enjoyed the sausage rolls which L had bought for us.

The next leg of the journey was familiar territory to me, as we strode along the Sheep Trail in a westerly direction. High above us to the left, on a distant ridge, we could see the Junction fire lookout – now closed up for the winter. The sun shone out of a mostly clear sky, although we could see some clouds bubbling up just over the mountain tops. In summer this might mean afternoon rain, but today they did not threaten.

The gradual descent through the forest brought us to the Indian Oils bridge and Tiger Jaw Falls. Back at our bikes, we relaxed in the sun, before speeding eastwards down the road. On the way, we stopped to walk across the meadow to the edge of the spectacular river gorge – a dangerous spot to stand. One final whiz down a steep hill and we were back at the car.

Reluctantly we returned to the foggy, cold world of the prairies, as the perfect Fall day was swallowed up in an icy mist.

Statistics
Teskey Road to Indian Oils
Wed. 27 October

Total Dist. 8.5 km (hike) + 4.7 km (bike) = 13.2 km
Height Gain 600 ft.
Max. Elev. 5410 ft.
Time on trail 3 hrs. 10 mins.