Over the Hills......

 Sun. 27 April:  Sandy McNabb Hills

This perfect hiking hill appeared out of nowhere.  It was only in the latest edition of the Kananaskis Trail Guide that it gets a mention.  Gillean Daffern explains that the mapmakers forgot a few contour lines!  And to be fair, the open ridgeline is well hidden by the trees below. 

There are no orange trail markers on this route, so J and I had to use a little common sense as we left the Interpretive Trail and headed up through the trees on a surface of wet snow.

Thank heavens for the new snowfall.  It covered a muddy mess.  Very soon we were up on the ridge and enjoying extensive views of the wintry looking Front Ranges.  In the middle-ground, Windy Point Ridge stood out, above the Sheep Valley.

It was a cloudless day, except for a band of cloud above the mountains.  We followed the ridge in an easterly direction, over several rises to a high point.  Here a dangerous cliff plunged to the Sheep River below.  At this point we dropped down to a wooded gap before climbing through the trees onto an open slope to the gentle, rounded summit of Sandy McNabb Hill.  

After a brief lunch stop, we retraced our route to the gap where we turned onto the cross-country ski trails which followed the lower slopes on the north side of the hill.  These trails were rapidly deteriorating into a muddy quagmire.   At one point we skirted a wide, boggy meadow on the packed snow.

The new snowfall showed that we were first up there today.  Early on, along the interpretive trail, we had passed two girls and a dog.  These were the only people (or animals) we saw.

This was a perfect day for an outing in the Eastern Foothills.  In a few days time, with temperatures rising, our route would be much better suited to horse traffic!

Even after three decades of exploring the Alberta hills and mountains, there is always a new place to discover – in this case, one that didn’t exist until the latest edition of the guide book!

Statistics:

Total Distance:   8.1 km (hike) *

Height Gain:       1,256 ft. *

Max. Elev.:         4,973 ft. *

Time on Trail:    3 hrs. 26 mins.

Dep. car:            8.59 am

First top:          10.06 am

Summit:           10.53 am

Ret. to car:       12.25 pm

Temp:               -1 to +5 C

Weather:           Cloudless, light wind, clouds over mountains

* thanks to J's trusty GPS device

Morning mist on the prairie

Grand views from Sandy McNabb interpretive trailhead

New snowfall as we climb the hillside

Quickly reach the first open ridgetop

Unrestricted views of the Front Ranges

These hills have several enticing "summits"

Sheep River valley

Looking east along the range of hills to the highest point

A surprising cliff drops down to the Sheep River

The woods lead to the gentle summit

High point

The very best of the Alberta Foothills

Returning along the interpretive trail

Stretching the Legs

Wed. April 2nd:  Stretching the Legs

Finally winter is showing signs of retreating, although there is still plenty of snow on the ground.

My stroll around the Cross Conservation Area this afternoon might have been just as easy with snowshoes, although I had chosen MICROspikes to navigate the snow-packed trails.  It was a hazy day with clouds building from the west, so very little long-distance views - a perfect work-out for my new camera!  Here are some pics:

Sign of Spring

View from Cross Conservation Area parking lot:  clouds over the mountains

School party on the hillside

Snow-packed trail leads to the viewpoint on the hill-top

Through the woods onto Ranchers Trail

Looking East to the farmland and prairie

The deer blend right into the hillsides

Active skies

Calgary hidden in the haze

Statistics:  s. 1.41 pm; f. 2.57 pm =  76 mins.
Hazy, poor visibility, clouds to west.  Hardly any breeze.
Around zero degrees C

Elbow Valley Update

Tues. April 1, 2014:  Elbow Valley Update

Today I drove up the Elbow Valley for the first time since late last year.  The repaired Elbow River bridge is now open to one-way traffic, and the temporary bridge has been completely removed.  Further up the valley at the Elbow Falls, the rock which guards the Falls had taken on a new appearance with its white snow-cap!
Here are some pics:

Elbow River Bridge deck remains to be completed

New section of bridge where floods had washed the banks away

Elbow River directly upstream of bridge

Telephoto of previous shot

West end of bridge

Usual shot of the Elbow Falls guardian (changed by the floods)

Close-up of the face

Wearing his white-cap!

Completely different profile as seen from upstream of the Falls

Fangs!!