Entranced

Fri. 10 June:  Entrance Ridges, Sheep River Valley

Since these ridges are on the very eastern border of Kananaskis Country, Mike Potter, in his book “Ridgewalks in the Canadian Rockies”, has called them the “Entrance Ridges”.  They are certainly entrancing.

The Entrance Ridges are ideal for early season hikes.  They run in a SE to NW direction, from the Sheep River road, where it crosses over into Kananaskis Country.  In an 8 kilometre circuit, one can enjoy much of what makes K Country so perfect for hikers.  This was also a good route for J to check whether his ankle had healed or not – and it passed the test.

Our route took us up one ridge and then back along another one, running parallel and to the east.  They are quite different.  The first, higher ridge, after an initial open grassy hillside, is mostly forested, but with some superb views west to the Front Ranges.  The eastern ridge, however, was mostly open grassy hillside.  The two are joined at the northern end by a col, reached by a steep, muddy path down through the trees.

Once on the second ridge, we first walked a few yards northwards, for a great view of the snowy line of Banded Peak, Mt. Cornwall, and Mt. Glasgow to the west.

About three-quarters of the way back along the second ridge, we reached the fence which marks the boundary between K Country and the Anchor D Ranch.  Here we followed the fence down off the ridge into a pretty valley – at least, until we reached the boggy section.  Here we detoured back into the trees and found a drier trail, leading back to the start.  

Lower down the fence-line we came upon a cowboy from Anchor D with his horse and two dogs, working his way up the fence, making sure it was secure.  A true Western scene. 

The day had started cloudless, but later, clouds started to form out of the blue sky.  For the first time it felt warm.  Spring had finally arrived, and the hillsides were full of colorful wildflowers.

Back at the car, we decided to drive up to the end of the Sheep Valley road.  We stopped at Tiger Jaw Falls, where the river was in full spate.  After rounding the tight corner at Indian Oils bridge, the river continued down a chute and round another tight bend into a wider pool.  

A family was enjoying a picnic by the falls, and a couple of horse riders ambled down to the river and across the bridge – giving lots of good opportunities for the amateur photographer.

Statistics
Entrance Ridges
Fri. 10 June
Total Dist.	8.5 km (hike)
Height Gain	640 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,180 ft.
Time	3 hrs. 24 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:       7.56 am Top 1st ridge:  9.21 am 2nd ridge:       9.44 am Ret. to car:    11.20 am	Temp:+10 to +18 deg.C Warm and sunny, clouds starting to form

Signs of Spring?

Fri. 6 May:  The Sheep Valley Road

Winter was still alive at the far end of the Sheep Valley road.   Luckily, further east down the valley, there were some early signs of Spring.  The most obvious sign was that the road was now bikeable beyond the winter gate.  This was good news, since the gate, closed since last December, is due to open in just over a week from today, and I really enjoy having the valley to myself before it is invaded by vehicles.

I set out up the road on my mountain bike, but carrying my snow-shoes, as I knew there would very likely be a lot more snow further west.  It was a leisurely journey up the Sheep Valley, on a cool morning.  The forecast was for showers in the afternoon, but some sunshine and cloud in the morning. 

It felt like a cold March day in the Scottish Highlands, with very little hint of Spring.  There were sections of road which were still partly snow covered, and the trees were still entirely bare.  Not far from the start, near the Foran Grade Ridge trail, I spotted a moose, lurking in the trees beside the road.  He was standing still and silent, trying to look invisible I suppose.  My photos came out blurry because of the trees and branches half hiding him.

Passing the foot of Windy Point Ridge, I negotiated several fallen rocks on the road.  Since the snow must have only just melted off the road surface, nobody had had a chance yet to come and clear the road.  Later, as I was biking back down the valley, a grader was making its way westwards most likely to take care of these rocks.  It is at this point where the Sheep River runs through a deep canyon.  There are some very dangerous slopes here which drop away steeply down to the river.

As one travels west along the valley, the views of the Front Ranges dominate the western horizon.  There are several good viewpoints along the road.  After about nine kilometers, I reached the abandoned ranger’s cabin and the two barns across the road.  It is sad that they are letting these buildings fall into disrepair.  In a few years they will be ruins. 

Just past the junction of the Gorge Creek Trail, the road drops steeply down to Gorge Creek, and then just as steeply up the other side.  I was surprised to see a white van parked below the University of Calgary buildings.  Just up the hill I came upon two warmly dressed women sitting in a meadow on two high wooden seats, facing each other, recording the habits of the ground squirrels!    A little further up the road was another van with a man scouting other ground squirrel sites.  The vans were from the University of Sherbrooke, Quebec.  These researchers have keys to the winter gate.

Continuing westwards along the valley, I found more snow on the road, with one set of vehicle tracks through the snow.  Later, around Indian Oils, the tracks stopped and the snow completely covered the surface.  Here I left my bike behind and continued up the road on my snow-shoes.

For the next couple of kilometers I was taking off and then putting on my ’shoes as the surface was alternately snow covered then bare.  Nobody had been along here for several months, I guessed, and I was alert to the presence of bears.  It was here last year, just up the Indian Oils trail, that I came upon a mother black bear with cubs.  But apart from some white-tailed deer I saw no signs of other animals.  

But I enjoyed the antics of a woodpecker with a very bright red plumage.  He was sitting on a post which carried a diamond shaped metal road sign, and was bashing away with his beak on the sign, making quite a racket.  It seemed he was communicating with a distant woodpecker, and given the volume, he deserved to find a good mate this year!

Finally as the spectacular peaks of Gibraltar Mountain (8,743 ft.) and Mt. Burns (9,633 ft.) came into view, just past the Bluerock campsite, I turned around.  The road ended a few hundred metres ahead, but this seemed a good place to stop.  To my left, the waters of the Sheep River were flowing freely between snowy banks.  I stopped at the gate to the campsite.  The snow still lay deep around here, and it would be several weeks yet until anyone could camp up here, even though the camping season officially opens next weekend.

The final three kilometers had been accomplished with a mixture of MICROspikes and snow-shoes, or just hiking boots on the bare sections.  There will need to be a couple more weeks of warm sunshine to allow anyone to drive to the end of the road.

By now, some clouds were starting to build up, and I kept an eye on the weather, knowing that showers were forecast for the afternoon.  The return journey was, not surprisingly, quicker, as I headed back down the valley in an easterly direction.  This road gives one a good workout as there are uphill and downhill stretches in both directions.  By the time that I had returned to the viewpoint below Windy Point Ridge, high above the river, showers were sweeping across the mountains and heading up the valley.  But I stayed dry, whizzing down the final straight stretch to the winter gate.

There is still a lot of construction activity at the Sandy McNabb campsite although it is meant to open next week.  Whatever they have been doing in there must have been spectacular, as they have been working on it for the past year.

As I drove back into the city, the rain showers were rapidly obscuring the mountains.  I had made a good decision to make an early start.  But would this be my very last snow-shoe trip of the long winter?

Statistics
Sheep Valley Road
Fri. 6 May
Total Dist.	30 km (bike)   +   4 km (hike)   +   2 km (‘shoe)  = 36 km
Height Gain	560 ft.
Max. Elev.	5,250 ft.
Time	4 hrs. 55 mins.

Other Stats.
Start bike:       7.14 am Gorge Ck Jn:   8.29 am Park bike:       9.24 am End of road:  10.02 am Back at bike: 10.32 am Gorge Ck Jn: 11.10 am Ret. to car:    12.09 pm Up:       2 hrs. 48 mins. Back:     2 hrs. 7 mins.	Temp. 0 to + 9 deg. C Cloudy, plenty of sunshine => clouds building up (showers looked certain for later in afternoon).  Cool start to trip.

The Weather Window

Fri. 11 March: Sandy McNabb Ski Trails
Now the warmer temperatures are here, but I’m not ready for them yet! I really wanted one more good outing on my cross-country skis. And temperatures below about 10 degrees C are ideal for waxing and snow conditions.

But the forecast for the next week was for above zero – apart from early on Friday when it would still be around minus 11 degrees! That was enough for me. I was up early and on the road before dawn, anxious to grab what might be the last really good burst of a long, cold winter.

It had snowed overnight in the Sheep Valley, and I was lucky that the snow-plough was somewhere ahead of me clearing and gritting the road. A few minutes later, there he was, hurtling down the road towards me on his way back out to Turner Valley, leaving a well-ploughed road behind him.

I was on the trail soon after 7 a.m., the sun having just risen. Today I would explore some of the Sandy McNabb ski trails which I had not ski’d last time I was here in December. There were about 2 to 3 inches of new snow on the trail, covering a crusty surface, caused by well above zero temperatures the day before. Luckily all these trails had been track-set just a week ago, so there was almost a tramline of crusted snow-covered ski trail to follow most of the way round. The tricky thing was controlling one’s speed on the downhill sections.

My route took me westwards along Long Prairie Loop, which made its way up a pretty valley, then northeast on Balsam Link, before heading up to the viewpoints on Pine Ridge Trail and so back down Macabee Creek, perhaps 9 km in total. These gentle, forested foothills make the perfect cross-country skiing terrain, and scenery. When the snow is good, such as now, it makes for a very enjoyable adventure.

Balsam Link starts off easily enough as it threads through the forest, but then it starts to climb a long hill, finally reaching the top of a forested ridge. Although the air temperature was around minus 13 degrees C at the start, the snow temperature measured only minus 5 degrees. I picked the right wax. It allowed me to climb these long hills quite easily, only herring-boning up the steepest parts.

Turning left onto Pine Ridge, I followed the crest of the hillside until I came up to the two viewpoints. Here were two clearings in the trees, the first with a low bench and the second with a picnic table. It was cloudy and so the views were not extensive. On a clear day apparently one looks across to Calgary over the rolling hills to the northeast. Today it was a magical combination of low forested ridges, with open snow-covered meadows, merging into the sky.

I was not brave enough to try skiing down the precipitously steep and narrow trail down off the ridge. Instead I plodded down the hill in my boots until the slope seemed more manageable. I made good time down the valleys, with just a couple of small upsets, and plenty of slightly out of control sections through the trees on a hard packed trail.

Finally with one long, fast descent I came down into the valley and was soon back at the car, with no bones broken, but a newly bent ski pole!

There was nobody else on these trails today, and already the temperatures were rising and the snow changing its consistency. It might have been the last opportunity for a good winter’s outing, and I had made the best of it.

But would I have enough energy left for tomorrow’s expedition?


StatisticsSandy McNabb Ski Trails
Fri. 11 March

Total Dist. 9 km (X-C ski)
Height Gain 705 ft.
Max. Elev. 5,380 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 27 mins.

Skiing in the Foothills

Sat. 11 December: Sandy McNabb Ski Trails

“’Tis the Season” - for driving out into the foothills and cutting yourself a nice Christmas tree for free. But at least in the Sheep River valley, there were plenty of signs warning you not to do that, and the Provincial Parks “police”, known as Conservation Officers, were keeping a close eye on things.

Not that I was out to steal a tree. We had already bought ours in town at a large and unromantic parking lot. But I did want to get out into the foothills to try out the Sandy McNabb ski trails, and today the snow conditions might just be good enough to do so.

Very often, the Sheep River and West Bragg Creek cross-country ski trails are not great. The Chinook winds blow the snow off the hillsides and the wild temperature swings leave crusty and icy snow. But when it’s right, these trails are as much fun as any in the mountains, and ideal for a half-day adventure.

The Sheep River valley is a perfect place to take anyone on their first trip to the Alberta Foothills. You come around a corner, and there ahead of you the mountain panorama unfolds, the entire western horizon lined with the peaks of the Front Ranges. Today it was made even more spectacular by a morning sun shining on the snow-covered mountains.

The one slightly mystifying thing is that the Sandy McNabb trails are not well signposted, until you are ON them. The best start is actually right beside the visitor information centre, just a few kilometers before you get to the winter gate. Both the visitor centre and the winter gate are closed at this time of year.

Once on the trail system, the signposting is good, and you can make any number of route choices on trails which measure over 37 km in total. They wind up onto tree-lined ridges, open to the winds, and further into the rolling, forested countryside, generally keeping at a manageable angle. On the west side of the Long Prairie Loop are stunning views west across to the Front Ranges, snow-covered and remote.

Most of the rest of the trails are through the trees, across meadows with enticing junctions with signposts pointing into the forest. It’s not flat, and so you are either climbing usually gentle slopes or gliding effortlessly along winding trails. Occasionally there are steeper sections where I would point my skis downhill and hope for the best.

Today, I had to bail out just before a narrow bridge, as the trail took a sharp dip just before the bridge and I was worried the skis would go down a hole and snap in two. On the next hill, I found myself heading for a tree and stopped myself just in time, with my skis each side of a sturdy tree trunk. Apart from these adventures, it was a pleasant trip.

The snow conditions were reasonable except on the eastern slopes, where there were obstacles sticking up out of the snow, and I needed my metal edges to steer me across crusty and slippery surfaces. This had been a test of my new boots and bindings, which were a great success. I had good control of the skis, although the sharp rise in temperature during the morning, from minus 16 to close to zero, made the waxing a bit tricky.

It was only as I came down through the final meadow that I met my first people, a couple heading up the trail. Returning to the Winter Gate, I could see that the construction fence was still up, and there seemed to be activity in the Sandy McNabb campsite. They have been working on it all year, apparently a major renovation of the popular camping spot.

I drove slowly east on the snow-packed road, enjoying the scenery, with a very light fresh snowfall from the previous day resting on the trees. It had been yet another perfect outing into Alberta’s magical foothills.


Statistics
Sandy McNabb Ski Trails
Sat. 11 December

Total Dist. 10 km (XC Ski)
Height Gain 450 ft.
Max. Elev. 5150 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 52 mins.
Temperature Minus 16 degrees C at start

Travels with Joe

Fri. 22 - Wed. 27 October: Travels with Joe

This week my godson Joe, 16, has been visiting from England. This gave me the perfect chance to show him some of my favorite corners of the Alberta foothills and mountains. We wasted no time getting out there, despite the often wintry weather.

Friday 22nd: Elbow River Valley

Starting close to home, we explored the Elbow River valley, along with his mom (and my “oldest” friend) S. We enjoyed the reflections of Forgetmenot Pond, the swirling waters of Elbow Falls, and then a short stroll part way up the Fullerton Loop Trail to the first viewpoint.

It was mostly overcast but not particularly cold. There were some skiffs of snow in places, and more on the mountainsides, but no heavy snowfall warnings in the forecast – yet. On the way back we enjoyed an unseasonal ice cream in the village of Bragg Creek.

Statistics
Fullerton Loop
Fri. 22 October

Total Dist. 4.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 300 ft.
Max. Elev. 4900 ft.
Time on trail 1 hr. 10 mins.

Saturday 23rd: Banff and Lake Louise

Next day Joe and I headed west to Banff National Park. Here we took the gondola to the top of Sulphur Mountain and then strolled up the boardwalks to the observatory on Sanson Peak. Being a partly sunny Saturday, it was quite busy with tourists. After a burger at Bruno’s in Banff we turned westwards to Lake Louise. We drove up to the Lake Louise ski hill, and stood on the balcony of the Lodge, looking across to the front slopes. There were just a few patches of man-made snow. Yet the season will probably be in full swing by mid-November.

At Lake Louise itself, the lakeside was of course busy with sightseers, even a wedding party. The lake seemed to be colorless today, but as we climbed the switchback path, looking down we could see that wonderful duck-egg blue color of the water from above. It looked unreal, almost as if it was filled with blue PowerAid, we thought.

There was a steady procession of people coming back down the path: people of all ages, in assorted clothing, some more suitable for a high street, but everyone happy to exchange a cheery “hello” as we passed.

Mirror Lake was frozen over, but the path up to Lake Agnes only had a trace of snow on it. So Joe was not able yet to try out his new MicroSpikes, care of Mountain Equipment Co-op in Calgary.

Lake Agnes was also frozen over, and people were wandering about on the ice, some with skates on and hockey sticks. The ice looked a little thin to me, but nobody fell through so it must have been safe enough. We returned down the steps and along the pretty trail to Mirror Lake and then down to Lake Louise, detouring through the lobby of the Chateau to warm up a bit. It was dark by the time we reached Canmore. It had been a full day.

Statistics
Sulphur Mtn. Summit
Sat. 23 October

Total Dist. 1.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 184 ft.
Max. Elev. 7667 ft.
Time on trail 0 hrs. 38 mins.


Statistics
Lake Agnes
Sat. 23 October

Total Dist. 8.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 1300 ft.
Max. Elev. 7000 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 28 mins.


Monday 25th: Upper Kananaskis Lake

Off to the Kananaskis Lakes – despite a wintry look to Calgary this morning. A thin cover of new snow had fallen and it was spitting snow. But we ignored this and happily jumped into the car for the journey west along the Trans-Canada Highway and then south down the Kananaskis Valley. Clouds hung around the mountains, and there was new snow on the front ranges.

We stopped at Canoe Meadows and the Widow-maker to see if anyone was on the river – there was nobody there. Today was a colder day, with a promise of snow showers. Arriving at the Interlakes parking area between the Lower and Upper Kanananskis Lakes, we bundled up well, before setting off along the north side of the Upper Lake. There were no other cars parked here, and we did not expect to find anyone on the trail – and there were none. Sadly there were no large moose or elk or bear to be seen either. A year ago I had seen a huge moose at close range, but not today.

We hiked along the upper trail before dropping down across the boulder field and down to the western edge of the lake. Soon we were within the sound of the Upper Kananaskis Falls, which tumble down into the Upper Lake, with the high cliffs of Mt. Lyautey half hidden in the mist above. Here we stopped for a picnic at a convenient bench, before returning down the trail.

I thought Joe might like to have a look around a typical Canadian backcountry campsite, so we wandered through the Point campsite. There were huge piles of newly chopped logs, and even a large axe left for the use of campers. We thought that the two new, circular green loos might have been time machines in disguise. But opening the door, one sniff told us that they certainly were not. Campsite #20 would be my choice for the perfect campsite award, and I will return one day soon to stay there for a night or two.

Joe is a strong hiker and so it didn’t take us long to stride back up the boulder field, and along the lower route through the forest by the lake, back to our car.

We were not finished yet. I was curious to see the new footbridge that had just been installed at Sarrail Creek. So we drove to the eastern end of the Upper Lake, and strolled the 1.2 km around the edge of the lake to the creek. It was a nice bridge, but when I was here a year ago, the old one looked strong enough. Perhaps it had been damaged by a falling tree? Anyway, we stopped to admire the tumbling waterfall before returning back along the trail. There had been some isolated sunny breaks, but it had generally been overcast and quite cold, with a westerly breeze. So we were glad to climb back into a warm car.

Our return journey took us over the Highwood Pass, where the wind was blowing snow across the road, and then down the Highwood Valley. There were a few cars parked here and there – horse riders, hunters, and a few hikers – perhaps surprising for a Monday in late October. In the Cat Creek picnic area was a covered wagon – I had heard that you may come across these on the trails west of the Highwood, but had never seen one before. There were a few trailers parked in the Strawberry winter campsite – probably hunters. As we drove east we left the patches of sunshine behind us and entered a cloudy, overcast landscape. We were soon back in Calgary.


Statistics
Upper Kananaskis Falls
Mon. 25 October

Total Dist. 9.0 km (hike)
Height Gain 160 ft.
Max. Elev. 5800 ft.
Time on trail 2 hrs. 57 mins.

Statistics
Mt. Sarrail Creek Bridge
Mon. 25 October

Total Dist. 2.4 km (hike)
Height Gain 0 ft.
Max. Elev. 5700 ft.
Time on trail 0 hrs. 36 mins.

Wednesday 27th: Sheep River Valley

A cold, foggy morning in Calgary didn’t deter us from confidently heading out on our next adventure – which turned out to be a very good decision.

Driving south out of Calgary I tried to point out my office, half enveloped in fog. After finding a way across the blocked railway line in Okotoks, we turned west towards Big Rock. Here it was several degrees below freezing, there was a fog, and the snow and ice covered the interpretive sign. But we walked around the glacial “erratic” and had fun imagining how this huge rock made its way down from the distant mountains – was it carried by the glacier, or did it chase a Blackfoot Indian across the prairie, or perhaps was it carried by The Flood? All options I have heard!

Continuing west, we passed through Turner Valley and up onto the Sheep River road.

We were in for a big surprise. Suddenly the fog dissipated, and we entered a sunny mountain world. If we had been in an aircraft, the prairie would have appeared as a sea of fog. Up here it was perhaps around freezing or a degree or two above, but the atmosphere was clear and the mountains stood out sharply along the western skyline.

Driving to the far western end of the Sheep Valley, we saw a group of horses being readied for a back-country expedition, and a guy preparing to offload a quad vehicle perhaps to go hunting up the Sheep River. We dropped our bikes off at the Indian Oils picnic area, then returned a little way east to Gorge Creek. My bear warning sign was still taped to the Indian Oils trail sign, over five weeks after I had put it there. I removed it.

Our first task was to cross an active Sheep River. Using our plastic bag technique we were mostly successful, except for a slightly wet sock which we quickly replaced. The Teskey Road trail is not marked on any maps but I knew where to find it. We picked up this old logging road by pushing our way to the back of the forested meadow on the other side of the river. After a straightforward ascent up a slightly clogged trail, we reached the Sheep River gorge and swung south through pleasant meadows into the forest. Joining the Sheep Valley trail, we continued along a wide, muddy trail, but it was frozen enough to allow us to stay dry. Dropping down to Dyson Falls, we sat by the Dyson Creek and enjoyed the sausage rolls which L had bought for us.

The next leg of the journey was familiar territory to me, as we strode along the Sheep Trail in a westerly direction. High above us to the left, on a distant ridge, we could see the Junction fire lookout – now closed up for the winter. The sun shone out of a mostly clear sky, although we could see some clouds bubbling up just over the mountain tops. In summer this might mean afternoon rain, but today they did not threaten.

The gradual descent through the forest brought us to the Indian Oils bridge and Tiger Jaw Falls. Back at our bikes, we relaxed in the sun, before speeding eastwards down the road. On the way, we stopped to walk across the meadow to the edge of the spectacular river gorge – a dangerous spot to stand. One final whiz down a steep hill and we were back at the car.

Reluctantly we returned to the foggy, cold world of the prairies, as the perfect Fall day was swallowed up in an icy mist.

Statistics
Teskey Road to Indian Oils
Wed. 27 October

Total Dist. 8.5 km (hike) + 4.7 km (bike) = 13.2 km
Height Gain 600 ft.
Max. Elev. 5410 ft.
Time on trail 3 hrs. 10 mins.

The Bears of Bluerock

Fri./Sat. 17/18 September:
The Bears of Bluerock

It was bound to happen. Given all my hiking trips around the Canadian Rockies, it was just a matter of time until I would run into a bear on the trail – and so it happened today.

Yet, given the weather, one could forgive any bear for thinking it would have the place to itself this weekend. For this was yet another miserable week of rain and snow in the mountains, followed by a discouraging forecast for more rain all weekend. Then right at the last moment, on Friday, the forecast was changed to suggest a brief weather window on Friday night through Saturday morning – it would be cold but sunny.

This was enough to get me moving quickly after work on Friday to pack the car and head out to the Sheep River. It had been a wet day, and there was plenty of cloud, but by 5.30 pm I was driving west out of the city with the expectation of an overnight camp followed by a good hike on the Saturday.

What a contrast between the eastern entrance to the Sheep valley and the western end at the mountain wall. At one end, gentle rolling ranching country, with a display of Fall colors in the trees. At the other end, a wintry scene of snow-capped peaks and forested hillsides covered by a coating of icing sugar-snow. Over the past few hours, up to four inches of snow had fallen around the Bluerock campsite, and the temperatures were dropping as the skies started to clear.

Not surprisingly, apart from a couple of large camping trailers, I had the entire campsite to choose from. I was soon sitting in front of a warm fire enjoying my Somerset Maugham short stories – and a packet of double-cream Oreo cookies! The campsite attendant, a friendly middle-aged lady called Judy, dropped by to check things out. She was despondent about the weather as it was bad for business. Small family companies often run these campsites, and they rely on busy weekends to make money. There would be no money made this weekend, and the campsite closes after the October long weekend. She told me that a black bear and three cubs had been seen on Indian Oils trail - later she returned to say that it was in fact at Bighorn picnic site, much further east. We had a good chat about my planned hike the next morning. She seemed anxious to be sure she knew where I was going in case help was needed.

It was a cold night, under clear skies. Inside the tent I was warm and cosy and slept well.

The morning light turned bright pink for a few minutes. My plan today was to drive a few hundred yards west to the equestrian campsite, to leave my car there and bike east down the Sheep River Road to the start of the Indian Oils trail. I would then hike a long twenty kilometer loop into a mountain wilderness, ending up back at the car.

The first part worked as planned. I biked down the road, wearing winter gear – two wooly hats on my head. Leaving the bike at the start of the trail, opposite Sheep River Falls, I set out by foot on the Indian Oils Trail. In a short while, this trail joins an eastern branch, and the combined trail heads northwards up a fairly steep side creek. I was soon up into the snow level. The trees here were covered with snow, although the trail itself was bare, but muddy. Snowy peaks rose up above the ridge-line.

Taking my usual precautions, as I climbed the trail, I shook my pebble-tin noise maker and generally gave warning to any wildlife in the area. After about a kilometer climbing up the trail, I heard a sudden noise in the bushes about fifty yards ahead of me. I half saw and half sensed the movement of one or two bear cubs as they made sudden scratching noises as they climbed up into nearby trees. The mother bear came into sight, looking down the trail towards me.

I spoke in normal tones to the bear so it could recognize I was a human. Usually this is enough for bears – particularly black bears - to slip away. But this mother bear had no intention of going anywhere. She had her cubs with her, and nobody was going to get any closer than they were now. I tried to explain to her that she was being a “bloody nuisance” as I wanted to travel up the trail and she was in my way and would she mind getting the hell out of the way – and so on. She started to come down the trail towards me making a very quiet chuntering noise. There was no choice. Reluctantly I turned around and quietly exited back down the trail. She seemed satisfied with my decision and did not try to hurry me along.

Back down at the trail junction, I tied some red blaze tape between two trees across the trail and scrawled the word “BEAR” on the signpost with a small rock – not having a pen handy. The bears had looked as if they were heading down in this direction, and although it was unlikely today that any other foolhardy hiker would be traveling this remote trail, I thought it best to leave the warning sign anyway.

So now, with my day’s plan so rudely disrupted, I had to decide on an alternate scheme. Trudging east, I followed the other leg of Indian Oils trail to the Sheep River road, through some pretty woods, and then walked back westwards along the road to my bike.

Returning on my bike to the car, I decided to hike part way along my planned trail, starting from the opposite end. I knew that I would not now have time to hike the whole way around – nor did I want to go anywhere near Indian Oils trail again. But I knew I could get some of the way along Bluerock Creek trail and up onto the ridge. So it turned out.

Bluerock Creek trail starts in the equestrian campsite behind the corral. Today it was empty, but this is a very popular place for horse riders. The trail for the first two kilometers or so is a slightly “pedestrian” plod up a fire road through the trees. However, it was made more interesting today by a good fall of snow - four to six inches - on the trail and on the trees.

Eventually I came out into a clearing, with stunning mountains rising up all around, and a mist hanging around halfway up the snow-clad mountain slopes. It was a spectacular scene. I might have stopped for a while at the lone picnic table, except that it had a six inch covering of new snow!

Leaving the clearing, I made my way through a dense snowy forest – another entrance to Narnia I thought. Then the trail took a turn to the right, and dived down a steep forested slope to the creek below.

Luckily the trail sensibly zig-zagged down the hillside, but it was wretchedly muddy and snow-covered. At the creek below was a footbridge – or the remnants of one. This bridge had collapsed in a past flood, and now lay in the creek, a jumbled ruin of wood and nails. Luckily the creek was easily forded, using my rapid-solution dry-bag technique!

But of course, having descended to the creek, the trail now had to climb up the other side, on equally trying steep and slippery slopes. My MicroSpikes once again proved their worth. After some hard uphill work, I reached a more open area of ridge, being the lower slopes of Bluerock Mountain. Here the views across the Bluerock Valley were superb. The skies were mostly clear to the west, with little arms of mist drifting along halfway up the mountains. It was altogether a magical place made even more so by the new fall of snow. But this was only a very temporary weather window. Already a new mist was rising up the valley from the east. In a very short space of time, it had started to swallow up the sky.

I decided that I had done enough today. I had reached a logical turning point, although still perhaps a kilometer from the top of the ridge. I told myself that I would return next year to complete this challenging circuit. But given that we were due at J and C’s for dinner at 6pm, it was time to think of my stomach and turn around.

As the mist swirled around, it caused an instant rise in temperatures and a melting of the snow. The snow and ice dropped from the trees above me almost like a rain. As usual, the return journey took no time at all, and I was soon back at the car. I had noticed new paw prints on the trail, and also hoof prints. In the car park was a horse-box, so I had probably just missed seeing a rider and their dog. I saw nobody else all day.

Returning to the campsite, I bumped into Judy and her husband, and shared with them details of my encounter with the bear. After packing up the tent, I headed east, stopping at Indian Oils trailhead to add a warning note on the sign.

The Sheep River valley is a spectacular place to visit at this time of year. It was a strange feeling so easily to ascend into winter, then simply to drop down again into a gentle world of green and gold.

But now it was time to put bears behind me and consider a large dinner with our friends!


Statistics
Indian Oils/Bluerock Ck.
Sat. 18 September

Total Dist. 11 km (hike) + 5 km (bike) = 16 km
Height Gain 1500 ft.
Max. Elev. 6320 ft.
Time on trail 5 hrs. 0 mins.

Junction Creek - across the Sheep River

Fri. 21 May: Junction Creek


This trip relied entirely upon my being able to cross the Sheep River – which I was able to do – just!

Strong southerly winds were blowing the clouds away, leaving a clear sky as I traveled down to Turner Valley. For the first time it all looked very spring-like: cattle with their young calves, green grass, leaves finally appearing on the trees – and a clear light that made the foothills of Alberta look their best.

The trail to Junction Creek starts from the loop at the very western end of the Sheep River road, past Bluerock campsite. A short walk down the slopes brought me to the Sheep River, which I had to cross. I had been wondering how easy this might be. A few weeks ago I had made a fairly easy crossing, further east, on my way to Teskey Road. But since then, the spring snowmelt had started, and today the river was a different proposition. The current was strong, and it looked to be a couple of feet deep in the middle. I hesitated, walking a few yards upstream to see if there was an easier route across the swirling waters. There wasn’t.

So I rolled up my trousers, took off my socks, donned my sturdy sandals, and ventured carefully out into the flow, a strong walking stick in each hand to provide balance. Surprisingly, apart from a fierce current in the middle of the river, I made the crossing quite safely, although the water came up above my knees. But this was a dangerous venture. One slip and nothing would have prevented my being washed away downstream – no kidding!

My feet were freezing from this early morning dip! I sat on the opposite bank of the river putting my socks and boots back on, feeling as if I had already achieved something worthwhile today, but aware that I would have to repeat this exercise later in the day – and aware that rivers can rise rapidly in a few hours. With those happy thoughts, I clambered up the bank onto a wide trail, once a logging road, and started down the long, straight Junction Creek.

The first few kilometers were a gentle walk along this nice trail, mostly in the trees, with a few glimpses of tall ridges and peaks on both sides of the valley, poking up above the trees. Junction creek heads in a southerly direction into the heart of the mountains, with no easy escape. My plan was to go about two-thirds of the way along the valley to a set of waterfalls which according to the guide book might be spectacular in spring run-off.

The trail was littered with fallen trees, some quite large, which had over the years simply been allowed to sit where they had fallen. Hikers and equestrians had made detours around the obstacles. These well-worn detours were an indication of the popularity of this trail. Not surprisingly I had the entire valley to myself today!

After about three and a half kilometers I reached the site of a saw-mill – the orange sawdust still covering the trail after many, many decades.

Crossing a side creek (no sign of a side trail up to Junction Lake), the trail soon came closer to the lively Junction Creek, which was full of interesting little waterfalls and small rapids. There were great views of the mountains and high ridges enclosing this valley.

Several kilometers further – about 7 km from the start- I came to another side creek, and turned up hill, past some campsites in the trees, to my destination: a pretty little waterfall, dropping to a small pool in three stages. I would not call it spectacular or dramatic, but it was certainly worth a visit. It would not have been out of place in Derbyshire or Devonshire, where of course there would have been crowds of tourists and an ice cream van. Here I had it to myself.
Returning to the trail, I continued up a hillside. A well-disguised, but important trail, headed off to the right up the forested hillside. This is the route up over a high pass and down to Picklejar Lakes. Not an early season route. Then my trail dropped down to the Junction Creek. Here is what the guidebook author describes as “the greatest swim hole this side of the Pacific Ocean”. Overstated I think. Nevertheless it was a nice place to stop for a picnic and enjoy the mountain scenery.

If I had wanted to continue up to the head of the valley, I would cross the creek here, and on up the increasingly steep and narrow trail. But there was already snow and ice on the path, and I felt that this was a perfect destination.

So I turned around and made my way back down the trail. I had spotted some grand mountain peaks at the far end of the valley. These were part of the Dogtooth Mountains, which can be seen from an entirely different angle from my favourite destination – Flat (Trap) Creek.

Strolling back down the trail, I stopped to admire the creek as it tumbled along, below the long, high ridge of Junction Mountain, with its strange rock formation on the ridge top.

The day had been cold, and windy. The wind funneled straight down the valley, so at least on the return journey it was at my back. Although it was a cloudless sunny day, it took a long while for it to warm up.

And so at last I was back at the Sheep River, and relieved to find that the water levels had not risen three feet in the past half-day! Nevertheless, on the return crossing I decided to keep my boots on – as it was the end of my hike – and also to put on my versatile MICROspikes for added traction. I was glad that I did, for the current seemed much stronger than before, and I felt in imminent danger of being torn from my foothold and washed away downstream. It was quite an effort to move one leg forward at a time across the flow. But I made it – and for good measure, then took out my camera and got back into the freezing water, where the current was less strong, to take a couple of photos from part mid-stream!

I climbed up the riverbank and found a well-placed picnic area in the trees, protected from the strong wind, but in a now warm sunshine. I changed out of my soaking footwear and relaxed for a few minutes before returning to the car.

Out of curiosity I took a drive around the Bluerock campsite, as everything seemed so quiet and deserted on the road. I found that, this being the start of the May long weekend, every site had been taken. This Friday noontime peace would soon turn into evening bedlam in a few hours as absent campers streamed back into the site after work ended in the city later that afternoon.

The drive back down the Sheep River valley was a delight, with the new spring colors shining brightly in the sunshine. Spring really had arrived – finally. And I had avoided becoming an early season casualty of reckless river crossings!!


Statistics
Junction Creek
Fri. 21 May

Total Dist. 16 km (hike)
Height Gain 800 ft.
Max. Elev. 6100 ft.
Time on trail 4 hr. 28 mins.