Crazy Winds

Sat. 10 December:  Grass Pass, Fir Creek Point

 

The further west that I drove along the Highwood Valley, the fiercer the winds.  As soon as I stepped out of the car at the closed gate at Sentinel parking area, I had doubts whether I would make my destination today.  Grass Pass is a popular summer hiking trail, leading to the Bull Creek Hills and over into the magical Flat Creek.  But in winter it is infrequently visited.

It was a beautiful cloudless day, with yet another spectacular orange sunrise.  Earlier in the morning I had enjoyed the sight of a total lunar eclipse, the moon turning red as it passed into the Earth’s shadow.  As for the wind, there was none in the city.  But out here in the foothills, it was roaring noisily over the treetops like an express train.

Grass Pass trail climbs steadily up through the trees before finally breaking out onto the open hillsides.  There was less than six inches of snow on the lower sections of the trail, so my MICROspikes were very handy in handling any ice under the snow.  Higher up, the snow had drifted across the trail, so I stopped to put on my snow shoes. 

Already I could feel the strength of the wind howling across the treetops.  As soon as I stepped out onto the open hillsides, a huge blast of wind almost knocked me flat.  Making it worse, the snow was being picked up and hurled in my face like sand in a desert storm.  For a minute I stopped, wondering how much further I could go.  Then the wind died down a little, changing into frequent gusts, with quieter intervals allowing forward progress. 

It was a gradual ascent, but I steadily made my way up to the Pass, on a surface consisting of mixed snow patches and grassland.  The snow was being picked up in the strong gusts and hurled across the hillsides in mini-whirlwinds.  As these blasts passed by I would have to turn my back to avoid having my face sand-blasted.

At the Pass, the views opened up spectacularly, with the Front Ranges to the west.  Here I stopped in the shelter of some trees for a quick snack before continuing up the bare hillside to the ridge above.  Once on the ridge, I had my first views of the Bull Creek Hills above me, a favorite hiking area for many people. 

The snow had drifted along the eastern side of the ridge, and the wind was doing its best to hurl me over the edge.  This was as far as I wanted to go today.  The views across to Holy Cross Mountain and Mt Head (9,126 ft.) were impressive, with the open slopes below, dotted with trees, looking like an ideal skiing area.

Along the east side of Grass Pass trail the high ridge leads south to Fir Creek Point.  Here, some large Limber pines stand out spectacularly on the hillsides, some with thick trunks bent sideways by a hundred years of wild winds such as today’s blast. 

Here on the ridge top I had a good view of the Highwood Valley far below me.  Not being familiar with the route down to the road, I was a bit concerned I would have to fight my way through the trees.  But as I gradually picked my way down the steep hillsides, I was able to keep out of trouble.  It was an enjoyable and meandering descent through a mix of trees and open hillsides, with a light snow cover.  I stopped for a picnic half way down the hillsides, behind a handy tree.  But already the wind was lighter here, and it felt a lot warmer in the sunshine.

I came back down on the road about 900 yards east of my starting point.  A horse trailer was parked beside the road, and the hoof prints headed up the route I had taken at the start of my hike.  Hopefully the two riders were not blown off their horses.

I strolled the few yards to the edge of the half-frozen Highwood River which was shining in the sun.  The wind was still blowing strongly, and I stopped at the Kananaskis Country boundary to take some photos of the flags being torn apart in the high wind.

Returning to the city on quiet roads, I had time to admire the mountain wall along the western horizon as I drove north from Longview.  In the city, there was no wind, which was fine with me - I had no cobwebs left to blow away!

Statistics
Grass Pass, Fir Creek Point
Sat. 10 December
Total Dist.	6.0 km (hike)   + 2.0 km (‘shoe) = 8.0 km
Height Gain	1,575 ft.
Max. Elev.	6,415 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 47 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:      9.15 am Pass:             10.50 am Ridge:           11.23 am Ret. to car:      1.02 pm	Temp: About minus 2 to plus 5 C Cloudless, huge wind gusts, blowing snow 106 km home to trailhead.