TOP TEN (7)
More than three
decades ago, between 1983 and 1987 the Passionate Hiker was busy setting the
foundations for his career, and his family, in Alberta, but it didn't stop him
from going on a number of exciting adventures in the Canadian Rockies.
Here is the seventh
of his selected "Top Ten" trips during that time frame. The narrative comes from his diaries, written
at the time. There were no photographs
taken on this trip, so the author has accessed the internet to find pictures
which best reflect the scenery and the weather on that amazing weekend in the
deep snow of the Canadian Rockies.
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| The Skoki Trail |
FRI./SAT.
25TH/26TH JANUARY 1985:
SKOKI
LODGE
Background to
this Story:
Skoki is a remote and historic lodge in the Canadian
Rockies, hidden away in the mountains near Lake Louise. It is accessed during winter by a challenging
cross-country ski trip. This was an
adventure I had looked forward to for some while. On a glorious winter’s weekend in 1985, along
with some of my outdoor friends, I made it to Skoki, and beyond, and was not
disappointed.
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| Our two-day adventure to Skoki Lodge and back |
My Diary:
This remote ski lodge in Banff National Park was
originally a major back-country ski centre back in the 1930’s. The lodge was built in 1930 as only the
second ski hut in the Canadian Rockies, and apparently there’s a lot of history
and legend connected with it.
Our team consists of the ‘English Mafia’ at Fluor,
namely Nigel H, Roger H, Simon H, Mike S and myself. We check in at the Lake Louise ski
lodge. Along with a handful of others we
climb aboard a dirty old ski bus for the long climb up the Temple fire road
through the forests. This is quite steep
and our student driver shows off the extra low gear.
Just below Temple Lodge our [11 km] journey on skis
begins. Snow conditions down here are
excellent. After crossing the ski slopes
above Temple Lodge, we head into the trees and follow a track-set trail up the
valley. A lot of snow has fallen, so on each
side of our trail there’s 2 to 3 ft. of soft snow.
Two kilometres later we break out of the forest and up
the open alpine valley towards Boulder Pass.
On our left is the Half-way Hut, full of history and ghost stories! Now we’re climbing steeply up to Ptarmigan Lake
up a little ravine. Suddenly we’re up
and over Boulder Pass, and Ptarmigan Lake stretches out ahead of us. A series of poles marks the route right
across the middle of the lake.
Now we start to climb towards Deception Pass. Wax up for the steep open hillside. It’s not too hard and before too long we’re
on the top of the Pass, at 8,200 ft. [a height gain of about 1540 ft. from
Temple Lodge]. From here it’s all
downhill. Open, gently rolling hillsides
lead down into Skoki Valley.
Halfway down we are passed by a girl, her long dress
flapping in the wind – “I’m your cook”,
she exclaims as she whizzes by.
Once down in the valley it’s a pleasant ski through
the trees to Skoki Lodge – a winter back-country paradise. This rustic lodge sits on the valley floor,
surrounded by the forest, with some scattered cabins nearby. A log-cutting shed sits behind and a little
swing out front. Timber, the enormous guard
dog, sits outside in the snow.
Inside, the lodge seems large. A warm stove and hot drinks are welcome. This lodge is run by a guy and his red-headed
young wife, from Revelstoke, and a couple of other girls. There’s no electricity here and only a
radio-link to Lake Louise. In emergency
only, one can get out of here by skidoo.
Roger and I make an afternoon trip down through the
forest to the wide valley floor, on a fast trail with little room to slow down. A rather long uphill return to the
lodge. The lower valley is surrounded by
magnificent peaks, behind which the sun soon dips.
An evening of fun and entertainment at the lodge. About 20 of us share the 2 tables for a good
candlelight meal – two of us packed-in bottles of wine. Alongside the dining area is a comfy lounge
with large fireplace. We enjoy a very
lively game of Trivial Pursuits!
Upstairs are some cosy bedrooms. However, our team of 5 sleeps in one of the
nearby cabins, warmed by a standing log stove which we get going in time to
warm the cold night air. It’s a clear
evening and it dips down to around minus 20°C, which is cold, especially as the
stove went out around midnight.
After a good breakfast, we set out eastwards up the
valley and then gradually downhill towards the Red Deer Lakes, then turn south
through a gap in the mountains.
This next section leads up through a narrow gulley
through the forest, in deep snow, widening out into a pretty valley, leading to
a much larger wide-bottomed valley. The
valley floor makes superb skiing. We
then swing right, on a steep climb up the valley side. A pretty trail in and out of the trees then
down a little chute to a lunch spot just below Baker Lake. Deep snow and bright sunshine.
Baker Lake is over a kilometre long and we ski right
along the middle of the lake at top speed!
At the far end of the lake is a steep open slope leading to Boulder Pass
and Ptarmigan Lake. Here, a keen cold
wind forces us to put on anoraks and balaclavas.
The steep descent back down into Temple Valley is
great fun. Pass several folk on their
way up. Before long we are back at the
Temple Lodge, where we sit out on the sun deck and enjoy a coke and a sunbathe. Very few people here, considering it’s a Saturday.
The last part of our trip is the ski-out to Whisky-Jack
Lodge which I whizz down like a maniac!
Join the throng of skiers in the lodge.
[Our return trip from Skoki to Whiskey-Jack was roughly 20 km.]
On our way back we stop for a pint of English beer at
the pub in Canmore. An excellent two-day
ski adventure in superb mountain country – and surprisingly good weather for
January.
STATISTICS:
Summit Elev. = 8,200 ft. (Deception Pass)
Height Gain =
1,600 ft. (on way in)
Ski Distance = 11 km (Day 1) + 20 km (Day 2)
= about 31 km total over the 2 days
Time on Trail = best part of 2 full days
(o/night at Skoki Lodge) NOTE: I took no photos on this trip so these are all from the internet, showing what I recall as the best examples of the route, the Lodge, and the snowy conditions we enjoyed.
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| Skoki Trail |
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| Somewhere near Deception Pass |
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| Flying down the hillsides |
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| Skoki Trail |
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| Skoki Lodge.... |
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| ....set in the heart of the Canadian Rockies |
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| A side trip down to Merlin Meadows |
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| Low winter sun |
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| Inside the lodge |
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| Our sleeping cabin looked more like this |
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| Day Two route |
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| Snowy landscape |
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| We ski'd at great speed right across the middle of two large lakes: Baker Lake and Ptarmigan Lake (the latter twice - inward trip & outbound) |
