Jasper

Mon. 3 to Fri. 7 September:                       JASPER NATIONAL PARK

An awesome few days in the mountains of Jasper National Park, and (with one exception) perfect late summer weather.  I visited lots of pretty lakes and waterfalls, and hiked up into breathtaking mountain scenery.  Two mountain fire lookout sites were reached within the National Park, one of which led up to a striking rock outcrop, and the other had an access road which was an adventure in itself. 

By contrast, there was plenty of time to relax in Jasper townsite in the warm sunshine.  My campsite was still busy with tourists, but fell completely silent at night, as temperatures dropped rapidly towards zero.

Then I added an extra adventure at the Bighorn River, as the next story will tell. 

Since the Jasper and Bighorn trips were part of the same holiday, I have included both statistics together here.

Overall Statistics
Jasper and Bighorn River
Mon. 3 to Sat. 8 September
Total Dist.	53.1 km (hike) + 43.2 km (bike) = 96.3 km
Height Gain	6,905 ft.
Max. Elev.	7,644 ft.
Time	23 hrs. 17 mins.

Mon. 3 September:  Valley of the Five Lakes

 Jasper National Park – and a strenuous bike ride to start off with.

I left the city just after 6 a.m. to stay ahead of the Labor Day traffic, and I succeeded.  My Jeep pulled the new trailer with ease, although it labored a bit up the steep sections of the Trans-Canada Highway.  And it was a crawl up the spectacular Sunwapta Pass, later in the trip.  However, it guzzled the gas, so I had to fill up at Lake Louise, as there aren’t too many choices along the roads through the mountains.  Rain showers were sweeping across the valley as I headed north along the Icefields Parkway. 

By the time I got to Jasper, it was brightening up, and it stayed dry.  It was just before noon, and traffic was heavier.  The weekend campers were heading back to the cities.  Wapiti campsite sits above the Athabasca River in the trees.  I timed my arrival perfectly, and was assigned a nice site in a quiet loop.  My reversing skills clearly needed some practice.  A kind fellow camper helped me maneuver into my space.

Having set up my campsite, I headed out on my mountain bike for an adventure.  There is a gravel bike trail leading down the long hillsides from the campsite into Jasper, beside the Athabasca River.  It was a steady cruise with minimal effort, down into the edge of town.  Here I turned right to follow the river, then crossed over the bright blue swirling waters on a handy road bridge.

Several numbered bike trails start from a parking area just across the bridge.  I chose trail #1, leading to trail #9.  I found out afterwards that this is graded as “moderate/intermediate”, so I did quite well.  The trail was challenging, passing through remote, forested country.  There were several steep hills, both up and down, muddy sections, roots and rocks, and the occasional hiker to avoid (luckily not too many of them).  Just as I was carefully navigating a steep, rocky section, I was overtaken by three speeding bikers, making the whole thing look far too easy.

The trail leads to a series of lakes, half hidden in the trees.  The wooded valley is called “The Valley of the Five Lakes”, and the trail passes above the left side of each lake in turn.  I only had a glimpse of dark blue and green waters of the first, and longest, lake, through the trees.  But the next, much smaller,  lakes were more open, giving wonderful vistas of distant mountains, framed by some large trees beside the trail.

The fifth and final lake was a gem.  There were some rowing boats tied up to a small dock on this remote lake. A young couple was clambering aboard one of them for a trip onto the translucent green waters.

By now the trail was narrow, twisting, and almost unsuitable for bikes.  But I made it through, back to the Icefields Parkway, several kilometres south of my campsite.  Luckily the road was downhill all the way, crossing back over the Athabasca River on a wide bridge.  I flew as fast as a heavy mountain bike can go, and soon I was racing back into the campsite, ready to put my feet up.  This was a great start to my Jasper adventures.

Statistics
Valley of the Five Lakes
Mon. 3 September
Total Dist.	20.0 km (bike)
Height Gain	350 ft.
Max. Elev.	3,724 ft.
Time	2 hrs. 53 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. camp:    1.41 pm Cross river:    2.08 pm Icefields rd:    4.08 pm Ret. to camp: 4.38 pm	Temp: + 15 C Overcast, sunny breaks, breezy

Tues. 4 September:  The Bald Hills

At the top of these hills I saw a bald head, with a spike sticking out of it.  People think it’s a bit strange that I see rock faces out there on my hikes.  But who would argue this one?  This person stares out to the west from his perch high above Maligne Lake.  It’s a fairly easy trip up to this high ridge top. 

It’s over fifty kilometres from Jasper townsite to the trailhead, at the northern end of the spectacular Maligne Lake.  The clouds were swirling around the mountain tops, creating a magical reflection in the waters of the lake. The trailhead for the Bald Hills trail and the famous Skyline trail are just a few yards apart.  There is a good car park for the day-trippers and the adventurous backpackers, who come here in large numbers.

My initial destination was the site of an old fire lookout.  A good gravel road, rising up the forested hillsides at a comfortable grade, leads all the way there.  The buildings have all gone now, leaving an open area in the trees, and a sturdy horse-rail.  The views of Maligne Lake are limited, but it’s a fine place for a view of the mountain scenery.

An enticing ridge sits above the fire lookout site, and a good trail runs up to the top, zig-zagging the last hundred feet or so.  This ridge was rounded and bare, with great views down to Maligne Lake and the snow-covered mountain wall that surrounds it.  The clouds were starting to break up and move east, but they added grandeur to an already spectacular view.  An unusual cairn stood on this hill, comprising a thin tower of stones.  One push would send it toppling, but unlike some of the cairn-bashers in Kananaskis Country, people clearly respect these handy summit markers here in Jasper National Park.

An even more enticing ridge rose up from this high point, with a flat top leading to a rocky summit. The trail, marked by little yellow markers pinned to the ground, led across the bare hillside, and up onto the narrow ridge.  The edge of the ridge was lined by low sturdy bushes.  On two rocks sat two gophers, relaxing on their perches, enjoying the view.  They took little notice of me as I passed by.

On the other side of this high ridge, the ground dropped steeply down to a green valley far below, and ahead was a wall of rugged mountains.  This was a majestic place to stand. 

And at the far end of the ridge sat the face with his spike.  This was a rock outcrop, on which someone had built another of those tower cairns.  I have no idea why it would not get blown down in a storm, and perhaps it has to be rebuilt each springtime.  There was a biting wind up here, and a new light cover of snow on the higher slopes.  Far below, I could see the tour boats heading down the long length of Maligne Lake, making a neat bow wave in the grey-green water, the mountains reflecting on the surface.

I was tempted to continue down along the ridge to the next mountain.  Thirty years ago I would not have hesitated.  Today I had done enough and so I was happy enough to turn around and drop down off the ridge to the warmer country below.  I met a couple on the lower summit, and once I was down on the lower trails, there were twenty or more people struggling up the steep path to the viewpoint.  I took the steep shortcut down the hillsides, making a mental note never to attempt this route in an uphill direction.

Once back on the fire-road, it was a rapid stroll back to the car, in a now busy car park.  Who can not be moved by Maligne Lake?  It’s a gem, in its mountain setting.  I wandered along the shoreline, past the old boathouse, watched a tour boat head out down the lake, and mixed with the hundreds of tourists who were equally spellbound by this place.

Later I strolled around Jasper townsite in the warm sunshine, visited the tourist office, and watched the westbound cross-Canada passenger train arriving at the station.  This was the longest passenger train I have ever seen, over thirty carriages – and then they added five more plus another engine for the trip through the mountains to Vancouver.

Back at the campsite, the campers were enjoying the sight of several elk wandering happily around the tents and trailers, paying no attention to the groups of onlookers. 

Statistics
The Bald Hills
Tues. 4 September
Total Dist.	12.5 km (hike)
Height Gain	2,100 ft.
Max. Elev.	7,644 ft.
Time	4 hrs. 00 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. car:        8.40 am Lookout:        9.58 am 1st summit: 10.32 am 2nd summit:10.55 am Ret. to car:   12.40 pm	Temp: Close to freezing at top, warming to around  10+ C by lake Clouds breaking up, plenty of sun, biting wind at top.

Wed. 5 September:  Miserable Morning

I’m not sure that in my long hiking career, I have ever used the word “miserable” in my accounts.  But today, it was just one of those times.  I knew that the forecast for today was for 60% chance of showers, amounting to less than 1 mm precipitation.  It seemed like a fair bet I might just have to put up with a shower or two. 

One of my handy guidebooks highlighted the valley leading to Jacques Lake as a perfect outing for a rainy day, and that the trail was flat and “it’s possible to push a stroller” along it.  Seemed like this should be an ideal easy morning cruise by bike up a nice valley pathway.  It wasn’t.

The trail starts from the far end of Medicine Lake, so I retraced my route from yesterday up the Maligne Lake road.  It was overcast, giving a different look to this grand valley.  Already on this trip I had been having unexpected flash-backs to my hiking adventures in Scotland.  Today it was the view of the lake, with the mountainsides disappearing up into the clouds which brought back memories of trips to places such as Glen Affric and Loch Rannoch.

By the time I had pulled the bike out of the back of the car and put on my boots, it had started to drizzle slightly.  A good test of my rain gear, I thought.  The trail started flat enough, as I passed a closed-up rangers cabin.  Almost immediately the surface became a bed of rocks, caused by floodwaters.  Whole sections were like a dried riverbed, and it was hard enough pushing a bike through it, let alone a stroller. 

I soon came to a pretty lake, Beaver Lake, where some rental rowboats and canoes were tied up to a primitive dock.  Now the rain started to pick up a little.  The trail continued to rise gently up the valley, but alternated between a reasonable surface and a converted stream bed.  There were long muddy sections, and so I was soon getting both wet and muddy.  There were only vague glimpses of the towering mountainsides which hemmed in this valley. 

After a little less than an hour slogging up this obstacle course, I reached the First Summit Lake.  And to be fair, it was a pretty spot.  The lake was surrounded by forest, except for this bottom end, where a grassy meadow would have made a nice picnic spot on a sunny day.   No doubt the mountains would tower above it, if they could be seen.  But for me, I was cold and wet, and the rain was gaining momentum.  I did think for a brief moment of continuing the journey for another eight kilometres to Jacques Lake, and eight back to this point.  It was only a brief thought.

I turned around and rode and bumped my way back down the trail.  By the time I reached the car, I was cold and soaking wet, despite my rain gear.  Thinking ahead, I had packed a spare set of clothes, and so I used the handy, primitive privy in the deserted car park to exchange wet for dry. 

This had been a mini-ordeal, and I wondered why I hadn’t simply sat in my comfortable trailer and waited for it to stop raining.  In fact, just as I got into the car, the heavens opened, and a drenching rain obliterated the last of the views.

Statistics
First Summit Lake
Wed. 5 September
Total Dist.	9.6 km (bike)
Height Gain	253 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,010 ft.
Time	1 hr. 32 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. car:        8.34 am Lake:              9.25 am Ret. to car:   10.06 am	Temp: Around 8 C Drizzle, rain.  Much heavier as I drove back to camp.

Wed. 5 September:  Mina and Riley Lakes

Thank heavens it started to clear up in mid-afternoon, so I was quickly off on another adventure.  This one started in the middle of Jasper townsite, just behind the aquatic centre. The Mina Lakes/Riley Lake circuit is one of those popular strolls which anyone can do without much difficulty.  After an initial gentle climb from the car park, past the back of a row of duplex homes, the path swings away from the town and into the rolling forests.  From here on, it seemed that the rest of the nine kilometre trail was either flat, or continuously dropped downhill, somehow miraculously ending up at the starting point with no steep uphill sections.

The two Mina Lakes are set amongst low forested hills, and were reflecting the afternoon sun as it broke through the clouds.  From now on, the weather was rapidly improving.  The path now swung to the right and around the western end of a hillside, dropping quite a long way towards Riley Lake.  There were not many views, just a hint of mountains all around, behind the trees. The path was by now a little “rooty” and muddy, and perhaps due to the morning rains, I had only met one other hiker so far.

Riley Lake was larger and was set in a forest bowl, but with some views of higher mountains behind.

The trail now started to swing back towards Jasper, dropping again to a couple of shallow lakes in a grassland setting.  Here the trail became horribly muddy.  An elderly couple was making their way into the wilderness I had just been passing through – hope they made it out!

Reaching a car park, the trail finally turned right to make the final leg through pleasant open forest.  It was now a warm, sunny afternoon, and the smell of the trees and the dry trail under foot were signs that summer had made a welcome return.  It stayed this way for the rest of the week. 

Miraculously the last section of trail drops down again, into the car park where my circuit had started.  This might be the only trail which is downhill almost the whole way, yet starts and ends at the same point!  I wasn’t complaining.  After a miserable morning in the rain, this pleasant afternoon stroll had been a welcome contrast.

Statistics
Mina and Riley Lakes
Wed. 5 September
Total Dist.	9 km (hike)
Height Gain	755 ft.
Max. Elev.	4,232 ft.
Time	1 hr. 56 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. car:        3.33 pm Mina L:          4.10 pm Riley L:          4.38 pm Ret. to car:     5.29 pm	Temp: 14 C Clearing up.  One tiny shower then lots of sunshine.

Thurs. 6 September:  Devona Lookout

A slightly more challenging test today.  And perhaps the most exciting bit was actually getting to the trailhead.

Devona Lookout was one of several fire lookouts in Jasper National Park.  Sadly they have now all been removed.  But the access roads and vantage points are still there for the hiker to enjoy.  Devona sits above the Yellowhead Highway and the CN railway a few kilometres to the northeast of Jasper townsite. 

About six kilometers beyond the Jasper Park Lodge turnoff, a small road turns left off the main highway, leading to the pretty Snaring River campsite.  Beyond this campsite, across a metal bridge, starts a narrow, unpaved road called the Celestine Lake Road.  It’s about 23 kilometres long, and is accessed on a one-way basis, with the timings posted on a large sign.  There are a couple of places along the way where you just have to hope that some daredevil has not ignored the sign.  I met no vehicles on either my inbound or outbound journey.

This narrow dusty road climbs above the Athabasca River valley, giving great views down to the highway and railway running each side of Jasper Lake, and of the mountains behind.  There is one crazy corner where the road skirts around a cliff then drops steeply down the other side.  And there is another section which switchbacks steeply up a slope.  The road ends just above the Snake Indian River gorge.

Until 1993, the road continued for another five kilometres, but the bridge spanning the river gorge was decommissioned.  It is an impressive place to stand, high above the Snake Indian River.  After a steep pull up the other side of the gorge, the road settles into a very easy gradient, as it winds up into the forests.  I had my bike with me, which turned out to be a good decision, as it allowed for an effortless whizz back down the road later on.

I reached an overgrown car park, where a sign proclaimed the start of the North Boundary Trail, and 180 kilometres to Mount Robson.  Here I turned right onto a forest trail, which passed above hidden Princess Lake.  At the next trail junction, I continued up the old fire road.  On the left, just out of sight, was Celestine Lake. 

The guide books had warned that the fire road might be overgrown.  But someone had done a good job of removing fallen trees, so it was an easy gentle hike up a narrowing ridge, through the trees.  The road had reverted to a pleasant hiking trail.  After two and a half kilometers, I reached the top of the ridge. The views were open to the west, but I had to drop down a little to get the best views eastwards to the Athabasca River Valley and the majestic Roche Miette cliffs (7,576 ft.) opposite.  It was a cloudless day, and here was a very good place to look across to the remote ridges and valleys of Jasper National Park.  Far below me the Yellowhead Highway and the railway line wound through the valley.

A speed hike back down the ridge brought me back to the Celestine Lake junction, where I had left my bike.  There is a nice back-country campsite beside the lonely lake, but it was deserted.

From here it was an exhilarating free-wheel all the way (or most of the way) back down the trail.   I sped around corners, temporarily blinded by a change from bright sun to forest canopy.  Luckily there were no bears coming in the opposite direction.  My loud bike horn got a good workout.  I stopped briefly to walk through the trees to see Princess Lake, a wide lake, surrounded by forest, with good reflections of the mountains and forests in its still waters.  As I was halfway down the road, I  met my first people, a couple hiking up the road.  Another couple was crossing the Snake Indian river bridge on their bikes.  At this time of year this trail would never be much busier than this.

Luckily, people were obeying the one-way timings, so I was able to stop along the road, usually on a dangerous corner, to take some photos of the spectacular views.  A train rumbled past, below me, at the cliff bend.  Further along the road, I stopped at a restored cabin of a nineteenth century Metis family, the Moberly homestead, in its idyllic setting beside the Athabasca River.

It was a perfect afternoon for wandering down the quiet streets of Jasper and relaxing in the warm sunshine on a handy bench beside the visitor centre, which was still surrounded by colorful flowers.  The eastbound train was just pulling out of the station on it way to Montreal.

Statistics
Devona Lookout
Thurs. 6 September
Total Dist.	5.6 km (hike) + 13.6 km (bike) = 19.2 km
Height Gain	1,082 ft.
Max. Elev.	4,625 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 34 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. car:        8.55 am L/O Jn:        10.11 am Arr. top:       10.42 am Dep. top:      11.17 am Celestine L:  11.48 am Ret. to car:   12.29 pm	Temp: + 2 C to + 12 C Cloudless, cool breeze

Fri. 7 September:  Lower Sunwapta Falls

This was an added bonus as I headed south out of Jasper National Park.  The main Sunwapta Falls on the Sunwapta River are one of the major tourist attractions along the Icefields Parkway, accessed by busloads of visitors every day.  But just a short stroll down through the forest are two more waterfalls, almost as large and definitely worth seeing.  It was a cool, sunny morning and apart from a couple of people ahead of me, I had the forest trail to myself.

The river cuts through a gorge, dropping down through these wonderful sets of falls, quite dramatic.  I continued on beyond the lower falls as I was curious to see what was round the next corner.  Here the river flattens out and runs, wide and fast, through the forests towards the confluence with the Athabasca River, only about a kilometre or so downstream.  The trail by now was clearly little used, and so I turned around and made my way back to the car.

My destination today was Crescent Falls, on the David Thompson Highway.  My journey back down the Icefields Parkway, past the Columbia Icefields, was relaxed.  There was a steady stream of traffic along this road, which was not surprising, given the perfect weather.  Many people choose this time of year to come visit the Canadian Rockies, as the summer crowds have gone, and yet the weather is still fairly reliable. 

I saw the construction work near Tangle Creek, where a controversial steel platform is being constructed, which I think they will call the “skywalk”, and will charge tourists to see the same scenery you can see for free.

I turned east at Saskatchewan River Crossing, the car park and gift store busy with busloads of Chinese tourists.  The David Thompson Highway is one of my favorite routes, passing through the flat, grassy Kootenay Plains, beside the North Saskatchewan River.  It is a wide, spectacular, and empty highway.  Just past the Bighorn Dam, at the far end of the duck-egg blue waters of Abraham Lake, I turned left to Crescent Falls, on the Bighorn River. 

Statistics
Lower Sunwapta Falls
Fri. 7 September
Total Dist.	4 km (hike)
Height Gain	150 ft.
Max. Elev.	4,625 ft.
Time	1 hr. 2 mins.

Other Stats.
Dep. car:        9.00 am River:             9.32 am Ret. to car:   10.02 am	Temp: + 6 C Cloudless