The Passionate Hiker: The Snows of Banff

Sat. 25 May: The Snows of Banff

The jagged ridge of Mt. Rundle (9,672 ft.)

So much for the end of the snowy season. It had rained non-stop for two days in Calgary. In the Rockies it fell as snow. As a result, my hike today ended up in a slog through wet snow drifts, with clumps of snow falling from the tall trees onto my head.

I selected a popular hiking trail in Banff today. I was scheduled to meet up with some friends in Banff later that afternoon, so decided to take advantage of being in the National Park to take a look around the Mount Norquay area. This ski hill sits directly north of Banff townsite. After much debate in the local newspapers, Norquay has just been granted permission to create a summer tourism business to complement its winter ski hill.

The switchback road soon led up to the snowline, and to a large parking area. There were just three cars parked, beside the trailhead for Stoney Squaw Trail. Footprints in the snow indicated a number of people were ahead of me on the trail. Stoney Squaw mountain is a rounded, forested hillside which overlooks Banff. It’s only a couple of kilometres and about 600 vertical feet to the summit, but the limited views down to Banff and the Bow Valley are worth the effort.

Halfway up the forest trail I met the other hikers – a family group of about ten people, consisting of parents, kids, and (I think) a baby. A brief “hello” was all they gave me. A little further along the trail, I realized that they were probably not feeling very happy, as they had taken a wrong turn and had started to head south down the mountain instead of continuing round a corner and up to the summit. When snow covers the trail, especially in the woods, beware! It is very easy to wander off course.

The final steeper section leading to the summit required me to step through wet snow drifts, making this popular hike a slightly more challenging affair today. I was not suprised to find that nobody had been up here since the recent snowfall. The mist hid the view of Cascade Mountain, but I did get some good glimpses of the Bow Valley and of the Vermilion Lakes with the peaks hidden in the cloud. There were occasional flying snowflakes up there, and it felt and looked more like winter than spring.

I was glad of my rain jacket which protected me from melting snow dripping and cascading off the trees. Soon enough I was back at the car park, happy to dry off in my warm car.

Back down in Banff townsite, the weather had magically jumped forward several months. The weather was improving, with sunny spells and dry streets. Here I met my friends. After a short visit to admire the Banff Springs Hotel, where we chatted to a young couple from Glasgow, we turned our backs on the snow-plastered mountains and headed out onto the prairie, hoping that we could now finally leave this long winter behind us.

Statistics:

Total Distance: 4.4 km (hike)

Height Gain: 600 ft.

Max. Elev.: 6,180 ft.

Time on Trail: 1 hr. 40 mins.

Start hike: 1.00 pm

Top: 1.58 pm

Ret. to car: 2.40 pm

Temp: +8 to close to zero at top

Weather: Cloudy, light showers, snow specks at top.