Soggy Elbow and Frozen Highwood

Sat./Sun. 28/29 May:  Soggy Elbow and Frozen Highwood

Two short trips in two days – but what a contrast.  On the first day I hiked through the snow up a ridge, on an overcast day threatening rain showers, while the very next day I was biking along a road under cloudless skies – but with temperatures only just above freezing.

The forecast for Saturday was not promising.  I was curious to see how much snow had fallen in the mountains over the past week, so decided to drive up the Elbow Valley road – opened two weeks ago.  There was some snow at the Rainy summit, and lots of new snow on Forgetmenot Ridge, hiding a little gloomily in the cloud.  

My first stop was at Elbow Falls.  I guessed that the water might be quite high, and I was right.  It was racing over the Falls with a thunderous roar.  M had told me she had kayaked over these falls recently, but today it would have been impossible.  It was a grand sight.  There was water everywhere, even running down the viewing trail which runs beside the river.  I noticed a very human rock face which looked to be guarding the falls.  It seems that the mountains are full of rocks and cliffs which have a human profile – unless it’s just a sign that I am spending too much time in the outdoors.

At the far end of the road, by the pedestrian footbridge, there was just one car from Saskatchewan which had been parked overnight.  The campsite looked to be deserted – not surprising given the rain and snow and cold temperatures.  Just as I was returning across the suspension bridge, three cars carrying a Japanese family party pulled into the parking area, one guy clutching a brand new map, and several of them wearing shorts.  Good luck, I thought.

Returning back down the valley, I decided to stop at Allen Bill Pond and hike up Fullerton Ridge – a route which C and I last did in 1993.  A large picnic party had assembled by the small lake, the families braving the threat of rain (it stayed dry).  

Passing under the road bridge by the rushing Elbow River, I soon came to a very soggy part of the trail.  In fact it looked very much like a stream-bed, and I only just managed to stay dry crossing the muddy and wet sections.  On Fullerton Loop I soon encountered snow on the trail.  A friendly hiking party of bikers (or quad drivers) came striding down the trail.  

The path climbs up a valley at a gentle angle, before crossing over the stream and climbing a little more steeply to the ridge top.  There are good views across the Elbow Valley to the Front Ranges – except that today the visibility was poor. But I did get a few sunny breaks.  The trail completes the loop by following a pretty tree-lined ridge as it drops back down to the valley floor.  Somewhere along that section I met the only other person on the trail, a girl with her two black Labradors.  This ridge gives a good bird’s eye view back down to the Elbow River and Allen Bill Pond.  There seems to be a small village hidden in the trees, where the park maintenance people probably live.

Safely back across the quagmire, I returned to the car, having remained dry – apart from my boots.  This was a soggy, snowy walk.

Statistics
Fullerton Loop
Sat. 28 May
Total Dist.	6.7 km (hike)
Height Gain	700 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,249 ft.
Time	1 hr. 51 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:     10.25 am Top:              11.34 am Ret. to car:    12.16 pm	Temp:  +8 to +11 deg.C Overcast, sunny spells.  Poor visibility.  Some snow on trail.

The next morning, Sunday, I was up very early, and was able to enjoy the 5.30 a.m. sunrise over the prairies as I drove south out of town.  I always enjoy the drive down to Longview, taking the short-cut through Turner Valley to bypass the road through Black Diamond.  It was a cloudless morning and there was a lot of new snow on the mountains and the foothills.  Entering Kananaskis Country, I could see that the Bull Creek Hills had a fresh snow cover right down to the road.  They had been almost snow-free a couple of weeks earlier.  The grass was bright green after all the recent rain.

Not surprisingly there were no other cars at the winter gate, it not being 7 a.m. yet.  There was, however, a large oil or gas truck parked by the road, for some reason or other.  Perhaps the driver had spent the night there before heading down the forestry road.

It was freezing cold, and I wore gloves and my wooly hat as I biked up the road beyond the winter gate.  The valley was full of elk and white tailed deer, very sensitive to my presence and disappearing rapidly over the hillsides as I approached.  One huge herd stood above me on the mountainside.  It must have been close to freezing here, as the sunlight had not found its way down onto the road until I had biked further up the valley.

Given the late snow cover, it was not practical to be trying to hike the mountain trails. This road was one way of getting into the magic wilderness without very much effort.  Two weeks previously, I had biked along this road and had been able to make it about 15 km up the Pass.  So I had hoped to go further today.  I was disappointed.  The recent snow and cold temperatures soon put a stop to my plans after only about nine km.  There was ice and snow on the road and further progress was simply impossible. 

I was in no hurry to leave this mountain wilderness and enjoyed snapping away with my camera at all the snowy mountain peaks which lined this magnificent valley.  The Highwood River was running high, and I would not have wanted to try a crossing today.  Returning to the winter gate I saw just one other vehicle, and its occupant readying for a bike ride up the valley.  He did not stop to ask me how far he might get, so he would have found out for himself soon enough. 

It was still a cold, but sunny morning, not yet 9 a.m.  How funny it might seem to many people that anyone would get up so early on a Sunday morning to bike in the freezing cold up a lonely valley, and 18 kilometres later, be completed so early in the day.  But why not?  The sun rises early at this time of year, and the morning is the best time to enjoy the wildlife, and you are guaranteed tranquility even on a cloudless weekend day.  I simply felt very fortunate to be there.

Statistics
Highway 40 from winter gate
Sun. 29 May
Total Dist.	18 km (bike)
Height Gain	600 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,560 ft.
Time	1 hr. 39 mins.

Other Stats.
Start bike:       6.52 am To snow:         7.47 am Ret. to car:      8.31 am	Temp:  +1 to +4 deg.C Cloudless, cold