Calgary's Wilderness

Fri. 24 December: Glenmore Reservoir Circuit

New camera! And, as this trip today showed, better results.

L gave me a new Canon PowerShot SX130 IS for our anniversary, to replace the previous Canon which I wore out on my outdoor trips of the past two years.

It’s nice just occasionally to be able to start a hike right from one’s own front door. Living in the southwest corner of Calgary means that the wilderness is only a few city blocks away.

Heading north through the local neighborhood, I soon came to the edge of Glenmore Reservoir. A pathway runs all the way around the reservoir, passing through some remote woodland alongside the Tsuu T’ina Indian Reserve.

In wintertime, as now, when the lake is frozen over and snow covered, it is fun to drop down to the lake and follow the ski trails around the reservoir. You can’t do this in summertime, as it gets wet and boggy here, where the Elbow River runs into the top end of the reservoir. I discovered a new route closer to the southern edge of the river. A very straight, overgrown trail might once have been a pathway before the reservoir was built in the 1930’s, or the route of an early telegraph or power line. Crossing over the frozen Elbow River on the nice new footbridge, I continued to stay at reservoir level below the bluffs of North Glenmore Park. This route gave me a good chance to try out the new camera, pointing into the low sun with the trees as foreground.

Suddenly, not far ahead of me, a coyote ran slowly out onto the ice. Stopping a hundred yards or so out on the frozen surface, it started to howl in that eerily high pitched way. Perhaps he was calling to his coyote friends who were possibly hidden somewhere in the trees across the reservoir. He then started to amble up the middle of the reservoir in a westerly direction.

Passing below the Calgary Canoe Club, I was now making new tracks. It was easier to drop down onto the surface of the reservoir and walk beside the tracks of a lone skier. The cliffs closed in, and I stayed as close to the edge of the slippery surface as possible. But there was nothing to worry about as the ice was quite thick enough after a long period of cold sub-zero temperature. Nevertheless I stayed alert.

Crawling through a hole in the fence, I walked across the Glenmore Causeway, full of rushing traffic. The views west to the mountains were fine, and I could see a Chinook was forming. Already the temperatures had risen from about minus 11 degrees C at 8 a.m. to closer to minus 3 by the end of the hike.

Once across the causeway, I took a route I have never tried before. Staying low down by the reservoir, I skirted the edge of Heritage Park, walking across the ice past the “No Trespassing” sign, and past the paddle steamer which had been safely stored on dry land over the winter. Here I followed a good roadway leading to the boat dock for the steamer in summer.

Coming around a corner I passed a man who looked as if he might have spent a cold night out by the edge of the reservoir. He wore a cowboy hat and seemed to be preparing to head out for the day. He was perhaps in his 30’s and we exchanged a cheery “Merry Christmas”. He was right in pointing out to me that I could have made faster time on skis.

There were a few people out enjoying the pleasant, cold winter day, as I passed below the big “H” sign at Heritage Park. Turning off the reservoir trail, I walked through the Bayview neighborhood with its large family homes all decorated for Christmas. Soon I was back home, keen to check out the results from my new camera – and I was not disappointed.


Statistics
Glenmore Reservoir Circuit
Fri. 24 December

Total Dist. 15 km (hike)
Height Gain 0 ft.
Max. Elev. 3642 ft.
Time on trail 3 hrs. 20 mins.
Temperature: Rising from minus 11 to minus 3 degrees C