Hat Trick

Fri. - Sun. 16-18 September:  Hat Trick

Three challenging hikes in consecutive days, each with its own character, and in different areas of the Canadian Rockies.  My first challenge was a remote fire lookout in the far south-eastern corner of BC, in sight of the US border. Next I tackled a large, forested mountain above Cranbrook, whose summit sprouted a wide assortment of satellite dishes as well as a fire lookout.  On the third day I climbed up onto a high, wind-swept plateau in the beautiful Castle River area of southwest Alberta, where I was in danger of being picked up by the wind and hurled over an impressive cliff. 

Statistics Summary
Hat Trick: (Crevice L/O, Mt. Baker L/O, Table Mountain)
Fri.-Sun. 16-18 September
Total Dist.	38.2 km (hike)
Height Gain	7,085 ft.
Max. Elev.	7,316 ft.
Time	10 hrs. 55 mins.

Friday:  Hefty Hike

Mount Hefty sits right on the Canadian-US border, in the remote Flathead Valley. This should really be a National Park – on the American side of the border it is part of Glacier National Park.  Conservationists treasure this valley, and have worked hard to keep the resource developers out of there.  It is said to have a large concentration of grizzly bears living there.  While the hike itself proved to be fairly straight-forward, the challenge was simply getting there.  I had tried last June but ran into snowdrifts up Harvey Pass.  This time I was much more successful.  The gravel back-roads were firm and dry, and it was an exciting 80+ km drive from Highway 3 at Morrissey, over the mountain pass and then down the Flathead Valley to the trailhead.  The gravel roads were good enough for the first 61km, with the final 20 or so kilometres being narrower and bumpier, but easily driveable.  To reach the trailhead suggested in Mike Potter’s fire lookouts book, I had to navigate a remote narrow grassy track, overgrown with trees, and crossing over a creek on a sketchy wooden bridge.  There were absolutely no signs to the lookout, but I was confident that I was in the right place.

Abandoning the car, just before some deep but dry muddy ruts, I set out through the woods in a westerly direction.  After a couple of kilometres, I reached an orange gate at a turn in the road, and I knew that I was on track.  This old fire access road was in good shape all the way up, and not at all overgrown.  I suspect it is popular with the quad drivers and horse-back riders – although probably not very many people ever come this way.  The trail to the lookout consisted of one steep, long zig followed by a long but more gentle zag, up a narrow valley and then onto the open hillsides.  Once out of the trees, the views eastwards towards the spectacular mountains of Waterton National Park were breathtaking.  Below me the wide, flat, forested Flathead Valley ran from north to south.  And the amazing revelation for me was to see the 49th Parallel clearly etched across the valley floor far below me.  Straight as an arrow, this double cutting in the forest marked the Canadian-US border.  Later, I was to see it from close-up.

The fire lookout on Mount Hefty is called Crevice, and it sits on a rocky ridge, boarded up and abandoned.  The wires which would originally have been used to conduct lightning safely away from the building, had been used to wrap all the way around it so that nobody could possibly get inside.  The windows were boarded and the outside loo was a ruin.  A fire pit sat next to the building, suggesting this might be a popular picnic spot for quad drivers.  Views all round were of course spectacular.  The clouds had been slowly clearing away during the day, on the strong wind, and there was plenty of sunshine.

I made quick time back down the trail and was soon at the car.  Turning south onto the forestry service road, I followed the winding, narrow road down to the Flathead River, parking beside a small cabin.  A sign warned drivers not to go further due to erosion of the river bank.  So I unhitched my bike and rode a few hundred yards across a field, and right up to the US border.

Many years ago, one could have crossed over the border here.  The old customs buildings were still standing.  But now the crossing is closed, and anyone trying to sneak over might find themselves in a great deal of trouble.  A simple one-bar closed gate marked the border, with a shallow ditch indcating the 49th parallel.  It would have been the easiest thing in the world to have strolled round the gate into the USA.  But it was too easy.  On the American side were several vehicles parked close to the gate, and I could see at least one person walking up the road.  It all looked deceptively calm.  It didn’t take much imagination to picture all hell breaking loose were I to put one foot across the line.  So I stopped, took a few photos, and retired to the deserted Canadian side.   

Back-tracking northwards up the Flathead Valley, I found an ideal campsite above the Howell Creek, not far from the hidden Flathead River.  There was one huge picnic table and room under the trees for several camping parties.  It was unmarked, and felt completely random, but luxurious.  A few hundred yards down the road, on the other side of Howell Creek, was an “official” campsite, but it was being used by a large group of guys with quads.  Again, my imagination ran a little wild trying to figure out exactly what they were up to.  When I drove through their campsite in late afternoon, it looked deserted.  Then that evening a procession of trucks and quads headed north up the road past my campsite.  Early the following morning, soon after 6 a.m., they all came back down the road.  Maybe they were simply hunters.  But then perhaps they were Canadian special forces in disguise, patrolling the Canadian border at night.  For apart from this group, there were virtually no other people anywhere to be seen in the Flathead Valley.

The winds died down in the evening and the skies cleared.  A spectacular star-filled sky brought the temperatures down.  In the middle of the night some animal howled menacingly in the valley below. 

Statistics
Crevice Lookout (Mt. Hefty)
Fri. 16 September
Total Dist.	15.6 km (hike)
Height Gain	2,230 ft.
Max. Elev.	6,805 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 30 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:     12.49 pm Gate:               1.16 pm Arr. L/O:         2.45 pm Dep. L/O:       3.04 pm Gate:               3.56 pm Ret. to car:      4.19 pm	Slowly clearing, mix of sun and cloud.  Strong W wind.  Pleasant temperatures.

Saturday:  Mt. Baker – satellite city

Dawn took its time arriving the next morning, and it was cold.  As usual, a bowl of warm porridge was the solution.  My exit from this remote wilderness was successfully made.  Some of the deciduous trees were already turning yellow and gold, so that when the sun finally rose, it made a colorful scene along the empty gravel highway.

Back at Morrissey, I turned onto Highway 3 and raced south and then west through Elko, heading towards Cranbrook.  It was a sunny morning, but with plenty of cloud over the mountains.  My goal today was Mt. Baker, which looms over Cranbrook.  It is a massive, rounded mountain, forested right up to the summit.  From the highway below, it is over 4,500 feet to the top, but luckily there is a gravel forestry road which winds up the lower slopes, so that by the time you run out of courage, you have reduced the vertical climb to around 2,300 feet.

This was clearly a well-used dusty road, and looked to be in regular use.  I left the car about a kilometre short of the open gate, as it was getting very rough.  The main ascent of the forested slopes was made through nine zig-zags, all of which were nicely graded.   Above the final switchback, the road continued to rise up to a col, then further up onto the summit ridge.  Only here on the summit did the trail finally rise above the trees. 

The bare mountain-top was festooned with communications equipment:  aerials, antennae, satellite dishes, generator buildings.  Even the lookout building, sitting on its cinder-block base, had various aerials attached to it.  There was no lookout in residence, and the windows were boarded up.  Barbed wire wrapped around the lower stairwell prevented anyone from gaining access to the lookout building itself.  The wind was strong, and cold enough for some extra layers of clothing.  This was not the most attractive of mountain summits, but the views were widespread, despite cloud hiding many of the mountain ranges which surrounded this peak.  Far below, through the trees, I could glimpse the town of Cranbrook.

Another fast descent, counting down the nine zig-zags as I raced round each bend in the road.  

Tonight I returned to one of my favorite campgrounds, at Kikomun Creek Provincial Park.  This large campsite was almost deserted.  The late afternoon sun shone down across the lake, and a strong wind continued to blow.  I relaxed by the lake, and in the campsite, as the sun dropped below the trees.  No wild animals howled outside my tent tonight, although I could hear the distant sound of a barking dog.  The wind dropped, and complete calm descended on the valley.

Statistics
Mt. Baker
Sat. 17 September
Total Dist.	14.0 km (hike)
Height Gain	2,345 ft.
Max. Elev.	7,250 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 22 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:     11.00 am Gate:             11.12 am Arr. L/O:       12.42 pm Dep. L/O:       1.08 pm Gate:               2.11 pm Ret. to car:      2.22 pm	Mix of cloud and sun, strong wind, quite cold on summit

Sunday:  Table Mountain tornado

So I am exaggerating.  But if you had stood on top of Table Mountain today, you might have had reasonable concerns for your safety.  Someone smaller and lighter than me might have been blown over the edge of the cliffs.

Leaving Kikomun Creek under overcast skies, some light rain soon began to fall, as I headed east back into Alberta, over the Crowsnest Pass.  But I had faith that, given the usual weather patterns, it would be dry on the Alberta side of the Great Divide.  So it turned out. 

The Castle River area of Southern Alberta is a hidden gem.  Perhaps the best corner of this area is Beaver Mines Lake, and the huge cliffs of Table Mountain, which rise directly above the lake.  My plan was to camp here tonight, after climbing Table Mountain.  On my last trip to this area, last year, two unrelated people had both highly recommended this particular hike to me, so I was keen to try it out.  Today, however, a crazy wind was blowing across the mountains, and I knew that it would be wild up there on the summit.  The good thing about this route is that it was well sign-posted.  It is well known as a sacred Blackfoot native spiritual site.

The trail steadily climbs through the trees, above a creek which turns into the western side of the mountain.  The orange markers then lead you up steep rock and scree slopes to the first, lower part of the plateau.  Already the views across the Front Ranges were good, although to the west, the mountains were covered by boiling clouds.  The wind was already fierce here.  Climbing further, the trail comes up onto the “table”, with its line of shear cliffs falling to the campsite lake far below.  I was buffeted by the gale, and very carefully edged close enough to the cliff to get a good photo, side-stepping so that I was anchored against the blast.

From here it was an exhilarating walk along the edge of the cliffs, and then up to a rounded top, through the trees then up the gentle slopes to the summit.  This summit was in fact another cliff, dropping down to the valley below, and affording spectacular views of the foothills and prairie beyond.  The wind was literally breath-taking.  Cloud shadows raced across the hillsides, low clouds hurtled overhead, almost within my grasp, it seemed.  I was bundled up as for a winter’s day, walking haphazardly across the bare open hillsides as I moved from one strong gust of wind to another.

I returned down the steep scree slopes, very carefully picking my way down to the creek.  If there was a trail designed to twist an ankle, this was it.  But I made it safely down to the creek-bed and then back out on the same trail I had come up. 

Back at the lake, I was faced with a difficult task of selecting any one of a dozen perfect campsites.  Only the very best lakeside lots were already taken, by the few fishermen and boaters who remained after the weekend.  My campsite looked down through the trees to the lake, but gave me protection from  the winds.

All evening and through the night, the express train roared overhead.  Only in the morning did the winds finally die away, to be replaced by light rain showers.  But by then, I had packed away my tent and was on my way home.

I made a leisurely return to Calgary, stopping at some of my favorite places, such as Lundbreck Falls, the Maycroft bridge, and the Chain Lakes.  I added Bar U Ranch to my stopping places. They have some wonderful old photos of early ranching days, and an excellent selection of books in their gift store.  It rained all the way north, until I reached Longview.  Now, under clearing skies, I could see that the Rockies had received a good covering of fresh snow overnight.  Early signs of the winter to come.

Statistics
Table Mountain
Sun. 18 September
Total Dist.	8.6 km (hike)
Height Gain	2,510 ft.
Max. Elev.	7,316 ft.
Time	4 hrs. 3 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:     10.56 am 1st Ridge:      12.18 pm Table top:      12.39 pm Summit:         1.20 pm Ret. to car:      2.59 pm	Howling winds all day, strong gusts.  Mostly cloudy, sunny breaks under racing clouds