Finally back at my computer, and I thought I'd post some pictures of the hike I just completed with my wife. We started off with way too much gear, and it kind of took a toll on us. The last portion of the trail was insane.
Our first day had fantastic weather. about 18 degrees celsius and sunny, which was perfect for backpacking. Not too hot or cold. We crossed over a bunch of little streams like this one.
Here is a view from our campsite the first night.
The second day we had some crazy weather. 30 hours of torrential downpours, and a huge thunderstorm too. I wore my bikilas that day, and they felt good even though wet. My feet didn't move in them at all. It was about 4 degrees at night, and we got soaked.
With 31k left, we decided to go for the end on day 3 when we saw the sun rise in a clear sky. I threw my treks on for day 3 and we did it. It was crazy, especially given the elevation gain we had. We gained about 1k of elevation that day, and then lost 1.5k in the last couple of hours.
We found some snow after a pass here,
My wife on our way up to 'The Notch', a 2510m high summit. That was the longest, steepest thing I've ever climbed. The treks gave me great grip on the partially melted snow and the loose shale at the top of the summit.
On this 'foot-shot', you can see Mount Edith Cavell and the Athabaska river in the background. It was a fantastic view from up top!!
We walked along a very long section of ridge before decending downwards. We crested another mountain, and then went down for the next couple of hours on an old fire road until we hit the trailhead. It was a brutal day, 31k with all that gear on, especially when we could have gone with 1/4 of the food we brought. Still though, it was a great trip!!
If you ever find yourself in the Canadian Rockies and like to backpack, this trail is rated the most outstanding by a number of sources. It isn't overly hard to do elevation wise, yet you spend 60% of the hike above the treeline, and get some stunning views. Happy trails!!
