What a great start to the season! A somewhat taxing hike, mostly due to the snow combined with skipping a few switchbacks to head straight up the hill at one point. That meant we had a fun time sliding back down though! This is definitely one to revisit in the summer, I imagine the sunlight dappling through the many tree-filled ridges on this hike would be extremely beautiful.
This hike does definitely beg some tips on shoulder-season hiking though. My friend from the Calgary Outdoor Recreation Association (CORA), Becky has some good tips here. But some additional ones I would add are:
- Bring sunscreen. Even on a day like this was, with overcast skies and <5m visibility at the summit, the reflection of even limited sunlight off the snow can result in some pretty nasty burns. I forgot to reapply and ended up quite red-faced on Monday!
- Add extra time to any estimates given for hiking time that you mind find in guidebooks or websites. Even a small amount of snow can be deceptively hard to hike in, and can add significant time to your hike. I tend to assume that we’ll be moving at half of our usual pace if there’s non-patchy snow covering the trail.
- Bring your camera! Don’t assume that all the views will be unappealing. Pristine, untouched snow can be very beautiful!
Elevation Profile and Route
Pictures and Footprints 