Traveling Companions: A Study in Pictures

Traveling Companions:  A Study in Pictures

Bald Hills, Jasper National Park

Even when you are hiking alone, you are never actually all on your own.  If you look around, you will find that there are many traveling companions, and some of them unlikely ones.  Over the past six years, I have racked up thousands of kilometres on the trail, mostly in the Canadian Rockies, but more recently in Eastern Ontario.  Here are some pictures of the strange characters who I met along the way.  I have not cheated.   This is what I saw out there on the trail, except in a few obvious cases where, just for the fun of it, I added a face or an eye! 

Note:  if you single-click on the first photo you can scroll through the pictures separately.

Elusive Shadows:  Whether on foot, or racing down trails on a bike, it’s hard to shake off that faithful, yet elusive shadow, especially with all that sunshine I have enjoyed on my travels.

Couldn't shake this guy off.
Rideau Trail - Massassauga Road

Ready for a speedy descent.
The Hump Pass, south end of Kananaskis Country

This sinister figure is actually a bug jacket fashion statement!
Rideau Trail - north of Lally Homestead

Unseen Travelers:  How glad I was, on many occasions, NOT to meet the owners of those footprints, but we came close several times.

I was not far behind this bear and cub.
Cascade Valley, Banff National Park

Common sight on my hikes in the Rockies.
Remote trail above Bighorn River, Alberta

Just missed this gigantic Grizzly.
Little Whaleback, Southern Rockies

Bigfoot???
McPhail Creek west of the Highwood River

Frequent Flyers:  Even the clouds seemed to take on a character of their own, and always rapidly changing as they moved across the sky.

Floating camel.
Above Baseline Fire Lookout, Central Alberta

Happy cloud with suitcase, flying northwards at great speed
Cat Creek Hills, Kananaskis Country

Sinister dark figures attacking the sun - they won.
Highwood Junction, Kananaskis Country

Rock Faces:  Faces everywhere!  I could not believe the number of rock faces I saw.  Yet I hardly dared mention it to people in case they thought I was spending too long in the outdoors.

Toad's Mouth, North Derbyshire (I did not add an eye - it was already there)

High above Parker Ridge, north end of Banff National Park

Laughing Falls, Yoho National Park.  I just had to add the laugh.

On Green Mountain, Sheep River Valley

Upper Sparrowhawk Valley, Kananaskis Country

The famous Troll below Nakiska ski hill, Kananaskis Valley

Elbow Falls pre-June/13 floods:  a proud warrior (or a large scary mouth)

Elbow Falls post-June/13 floods:  a sad transformation

The Fortress, wrapping its arms around the valley

Scary ghost with a big mouth -
or a person with a bushy moustache and wry smile.
Nihahi Ridge from Powderface Ridge

Graffiti Artists:  So weird but there is a rock language up there in the Rockies that still remains a mystery.  Have a go at a translation yourself.

Someone has been writing on this mountain wall.
Looks like CT plus some faded letters below.
The Mitre, seen from Mt. Saint Piran, above Lake Louise

Who can read mountain graffiti?  Have a try.
C-Level Cirque, Banff  National Park

Growing Attraction:  The trees along the Rideau Trail have a personality of their own, sometimes helpful and sometime a little scary.  I made sure to greet them as I passed by.

Tree devouring a trail sign
Rideau Trail - between McAndrews and Centreville Roads

This tree does not seem happy about this sign stuck in his eye.
Rideau Trail - Between Duck Bay and Narrows Lock Road

Whereas this tree is bending over backwards to help guide the way.
Rideau Trail - same location as above

Ancient one-eyed giant, pointing to the left here
Rideau Trail - between McLaren and Ferrier Roads

Welcoming Committees:  I was never alone.  Here is a sample of characters I saw, ready to greet me (I hope) as I passed by.

I added the features on this perfect smiley face!
Taylor Lake Trail, Banff National Park

Inukshuk with a grand view
Missinglink Mountain, Sheep Valley, Kananaskis Country

The Crows Nest
Crowsnest Pass, Southern Alberta

Gigantic dinosaur reaching to the clouds
Drumheller, Alberta

Looks like a friendly dog to me.
Rideau Trail - Ottawa River

On YOUR next trip, take a second look around you, and you may be surprised too.

Welcoming committee on Surveyor's Ridge, Alberta

Frontenac Park – Tetsmine Lake Loop

Sat. 15 November:  Frontenac Provincial Park – Tetsmine Lake Loop

First light snowfall last night

The low sun shone through the bare trees as we set off from the car park, the lightest skiff of snow at our feet.  This was an ideal day to explore the northern part of Frontenac Provincial Park.

Our journey today took us around the Tetsmine Lake Loop, in an anticlockwise direction, from our trailhead at the Kingsford Lake dam.   

This is the “back door” into the park, but a popular access point.  We saw several people on the trail, and a family group heading out to a nearby campsite.

Frontenac Park is only about eight kilometres across by ten from north to south.  But in that space is an amazing wilderness of lakes and ridges.  There are eleven loops, totaling 160 kilometres of trail.  Each Fall, hikers are invited to travel all these trails, in the “Frontenac Challenge”.  I have this on my list for next year.

Our small team of six hikers was well matched.  We made good progress over the first exciting ridge, down to a well-maintained boardwalk across a beaver pond, and past small lakes which were rapidly freezing over.  This is part of the Canadian Shield, so we expected a rugged landscape.  At this time of year, with the trees now bare, we had a good view of the land:  some steep-sided gorges, and rocky outcrops grazed by passing glaciers.

Little blue trail signs kept us on track – although every one of the eleven loops uses the same sign!  There were good signposts at the junctions.  We crossed over a small bridge below a broken beaver dam.  There was once a large lake here, but it is now an open meadow.  Here we met a couple of dogs following the scent of a wild animal.  They seemed to be all alone.  For some time afterwards, we could hear the barking as they crossed a far ridge.

Our lunch stop above Lynch Lake allowed us to enjoy the sunlight glinting on the water, which was turning to ice as we watched.  The cloudless morning sky had partially clouded over, and the cold westerly wind threatened more snow later on.  Luckily the contours of the land sheltered us for most of our journey.

After crossing the end of Tetsmine Lake, we soon came to the mica mine. The pit was filled with water.  Nearby were the remains of a bunkhouse, complete with bedstead and rusty bedsprings.  On the ground glittered tiny pieces of mica.

We decided to explore the short portage route up to Moulton Lake, and quickly agreed that we would not want to be carrying a canoe up that slippery trail.  The reward was a beautiful, yet lonely, lake, surrounded by low forested hillsides.  There must be a reason why this isolated lake has a portage access, and we enjoyed some idle speculation without coming to any good conclusion.

In the silent woods we could hear the sound of a woodpecker.  He was quickly identified as a male hairy woodpecker, by the red patch on the back of his head.

We were soon back at the trailhead, after what we agreed was just about the perfect hike.  The only disappointment was the discovery, on the way home,  that both Westport bakeries were closed for the season! 

Statistics:

Total Distance:       13.0 km (hike)

Height Gain:           Say 500 ft.

Time on Trail:         4 hrs. 45 mins.

Start hike  (Dam):   10.50 am

Birch Lake Jn:         11.52 am

Tetsmine L (lunch):   1.02 pm

Mine site:                   2.19 pm

Moulton Lake:            2.44 pm

Ret. to cars:               3.35 pm

Temp:           Around Zero C

Weather:       Cloudless, then variable cloud, brisk W. breeze

The trailhead:  Low sun and dusting of snow

Kingsford Lake at the dam:  starting to freeze over

Trail enters Frontenac Park

Low sunlight filters through the trees

Crossing the first beaver pond

Signs of past glaciers

Broken beaver dam and drained lake

Beavers still busily chewing down trees

Exciting trail the whole way round the loop

Snow angel on the rapidly freezing swamp?

An icy Lynch Lake:  perfect place to stop for lunch

An enticing trail

Testing the strength of the bridge at Tetsmine Lake

Ridge scramble

A surprise around every corner

Land countours clear now the trees are bare

Avoiding a challenging "bridge"

The mica mine:  complete with broken bedstead!

Good signs 

Lonely Moulton Lake:  at the end of a tricky portage

Navigating a boggy section