Glenbow Ranch

Sat. 2 February:  Glenbow Ranch

This was the most perfect Calgary day imaginable, and in mid-winter.  It was cloudless, around the freezing point, but hardly a breath of wind.  The view west to the mountain wall was stunning.  Despite this, in almost three hours of wandering this popular city-edge provincial park, I met only two people on the trails, until the very end.

The feature of this walk was the frozen Bow River, with a narrow fast-flowing stream racing through a haphazard ocean of jagged ice.  The distant mountain peaks gave my camera a work-out, but I found it difficult to get them into focus.  A couple of trains passed by along the historical CP railway line to Vancouver, pulling cattle cars and containers piled two high. 

The main trail was almost snow and ice free, with the exception of a couple of flooded areas.  My MICROspikes were handy as soon as I left the main trail, where the thin snow cover hid a layer of ice.

The 2013 season is finally off to a pleasant start.  The Passionate Hiker is in no hurry to try to break any records this year.

  

Statistics:

Total Distance: 10.1 km (hike)

Height Gain:        200 ft.

Max. Elev.:       3,970 ft.

Time on Trail:    2 hrs. 44 mins.

Start hike:         11.11 am

W. end:             12.48 pm

Ret. to car:          1.55 pm

Start Temp:          0 deg.C

Finish Temp:     +3 deg.C

Weather:           Cloudless, v. light breeze