Entranced

Fri. 10 June:  Entrance Ridges, Sheep River Valley

Since these ridges are on the very eastern border of Kananaskis Country, Mike Potter, in his book “Ridgewalks in the Canadian Rockies”, has called them the “Entrance Ridges”.  They are certainly entrancing.

The Entrance Ridges are ideal for early season hikes.  They run in a SE to NW direction, from the Sheep River road, where it crosses over into Kananaskis Country.  In an 8 kilometre circuit, one can enjoy much of what makes K Country so perfect for hikers.  This was also a good route for J to check whether his ankle had healed or not – and it passed the test.

Our route took us up one ridge and then back along another one, running parallel and to the east.  They are quite different.  The first, higher ridge, after an initial open grassy hillside, is mostly forested, but with some superb views west to the Front Ranges.  The eastern ridge, however, was mostly open grassy hillside.  The two are joined at the northern end by a col, reached by a steep, muddy path down through the trees.

Once on the second ridge, we first walked a few yards northwards, for a great view of the snowy line of Banded Peak, Mt. Cornwall, and Mt. Glasgow to the west.

About three-quarters of the way back along the second ridge, we reached the fence which marks the boundary between K Country and the Anchor D Ranch.  Here we followed the fence down off the ridge into a pretty valley – at least, until we reached the boggy section.  Here we detoured back into the trees and found a drier trail, leading back to the start.  

Lower down the fence-line we came upon a cowboy from Anchor D with his horse and two dogs, working his way up the fence, making sure it was secure.  A true Western scene. 

The day had started cloudless, but later, clouds started to form out of the blue sky.  For the first time it felt warm.  Spring had finally arrived, and the hillsides were full of colorful wildflowers.

Back at the car, we decided to drive up to the end of the Sheep Valley road.  We stopped at Tiger Jaw Falls, where the river was in full spate.  After rounding the tight corner at Indian Oils bridge, the river continued down a chute and round another tight bend into a wider pool.  

A family was enjoying a picnic by the falls, and a couple of horse riders ambled down to the river and across the bridge – giving lots of good opportunities for the amateur photographer.

Statistics
Entrance Ridges
Fri. 10 June
Total Dist.	8.5 km (hike)
Height Gain	640 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,180 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 24 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:       7.56 am Top 1st ridge:  9.21 am 2nd ridge:       9.44 am Ret. to car:    11.20 am	Temp:+10 to +18 deg.C Warm and sunny, clouds starting to form