Looking Back

January 10, 2011:

The Passionate Hiker is taking this first part of January to finish off his outdoor diary for 2010. It runs to 394 pages and will go to the printers this week. In the meantime he is making a list of outdoor adventures for 2011 and will soon be out there again - so stand by!









For anyone interested, here is an extract from the summary of my 2010 diary:

2010 Statistics

Distance: 1,099 km, broken down as follows:

• 626 km (hike) +
  
• 321 km (bike) +


• 75 km (cross-country ski) +


• 77 km (snow shoe)
  

Height Gain: 94,428 ft. (28,782 m)

Highest Point: 8,415 ft. (2,565 m)

Time on the Trail: 300 hours

Nights camped: 19

The Year of the Fire Lookout

In 2010, I decided to make my main focus the fire lookouts of the Canadian Rockies. This was inspired by my finding, in 2009, a guide book on this subject. As I started to read it, I became intrigued by the challenge of how to reach some of these remote places. It seemed a perfect combination: a well-graded trail leading to a hilltop with a good view, and often someone to chat to when you got there.

In past years, I had already travelled to some of these lookouts, but this past year I explored a lot more of them. Not that all my hikes involved fire lookouts. Far from it. I enjoyed many other adventures this year, into some well-known and much lesser known corners of the Canadian Rockies.

My goals for the year were to try and get out every weekend of the hiking season either to hike or to mountain bike (or a combination of both) somewhere in the Rocky Mountains and Foothills, or occasionally within Calgary itself. In the winter I would cross-country ski or snowshoe somewhere.

At the start of the year I developed a listing of the places I wanted to visit, and the details of how to get there, trail length, elevation gain, and so on. By the end of the year I had accomplished a large portion of the list.

Although, as in 2009, I did most of these trips alone, I did have some company this year on a few of my journeys, which added to the enjoyment. It was not my plan always to travel alone, but that’s the way things generally worked out, and I enjoyed every minute of it all.


Areas Explored

My adventures this past year spanned a wider field than in 2009. Many of the fire lookouts are in remote corners of the Rocky Mountain foothills and in the various mountain ranges. As a result, I traveled south almost to the US border, north to the foothills beyond Nordegg on the David Thompson Highway, and west into the Columbia Valley of B.C.

I made full use of my National Parks pass with several trips to Banff Park in Alberta, and to Yoho and Kootenay Parks in B.C. Of course I was a frequent visitor to most corners of Kananaskis Country west of Calgary. And when I wanted a change, I made good use of the pathways of the City of Calgary.

2010 Statistical Highlights

Here are some of the statistical “peaks” for the year:

Highest Point: The highest point reached all year was the rocky 8,415 ft. Paget Peak, in Yoho National Park, B.C. on September 10th.

Greatest Height Gain: The greatest height gain in one hike was 3720 ft. on my exciting trip up to Tocher Ridge fire lookout, also in Yoho National Park, on August 14th.

Longest Single Day Trip: The greatest distance achieved in one single day was on September 25th, when I traveled 61.5 km in making the circuit of first Mt. Rundle by bike and then Sulphur Mountain on foot.

Other Memorable Statistics:
On one sunny day in late June, I traveled 41.6 km by bike and on foot up Flat Creek and onto High Rock Ridge, climbing 2841 vertical feet.
My August trip up to Tocher Ridge fire lookout involved 36.6 km and gain of 3720 ft. in one busy day by bike and on foot.
And my three day epic adventure to Forgetmenot Mountain involved a combined bike/hike of 58.8 km and a gain of 2490 ft.


Comparing 2010 with 2009

However impossible it seemed at the end of 2009 that I might ever have another year like it, in 2010 I have exceeded most of the 2009 statistics.

And now, in two years, I have traveled over 2,000 km, with a height gain of an equivalent five and a half Mount Everests (from sea level), and have camped out for 41 nights.


Highlights of 2010 Adventures

It is always hard to pick out just a few highlights from such a crowded year, but here are some which stand out in my mind:

- Discovering the challenges and the enjoyment of exploring fire lookout trails
- Finally running into a bear, on Indian Oils Trail in the Sheep River area, and having to retreat as gracefully as possible given that the bear was coming down the trail towards me.
- Adding MICROspikes and snow shoes to my hiking arsenal, and as a result, opening up the winter months to some serious adventures on steep and icy trails.
- Having the comfort of the SPOT emergency GPS system, and not having to use it except to let L know I was safely off the hill.
- Showing my godson Joe, from England, some of my favorite corners of the Rocky Mountains.
- Hiking up the Windy Peak Hills with my 70+ year old cousin PT from Leeds, into a sea of wildflowers and butterflies.
- Successfully figuring out the way to the summit of Forgetmenot Mountain, and surviving an August snow storm at lonely Wildhorse campsite.
- Seeing the wild horses which gave their name to this remote valley
- Finding new corners of familiar foothill country to explore.
- Losing, then finding two weeks later, at the second attempt, my snow shoes on the steep slopes of Junction Hill in the Highwood.
- Discovering the wide, open ridges of the Whaleback region of Southern Alberta, and a huge bear paw print in the mud.
- Crossing fast-flowing rivers safely.
- Whizzing at great speed down the new Legacy bike trail from Banff to Canmore alongside the busy Trans-Canada Highway.
- The silence of the Highwood valley beyond the winter gate, before the road opened in June.
- And many more wonderful memories


Looking Ahead

I wrote last year that I do all these trips for two reasons: because I enjoy doing it (what better reason?), and because it might make a good read for someone in the future.

Next year I will be sixty, whatever that may mean to my current pace of adventures. When I was a teenager hiking in Scotland, someone told me about the old Glaswegian, whom you might see on the hill any weekend of the year. He might be going at a slower pace that you would choose to go with your young legs, but you can be sure that he will pass you later in the day as your energy level starts to drop – and he won’t look tired at all. When I heard this, I remember thinking how much I wanted to be able to hike the hills when I was as old as sixty. Now, with less than six months to go to that once distant milestone, I too am still hiking the hills – and I have never enjoyed the outdoors more than I do today.

By the way, for bloggers out there, I recommend the SharedBook system of getting a nice bound copy of your blogs. I received my 2010 Blog book today - only took a week from ordering it.

The Passionate Hiker