Nice 4.5 km hike featuring approximately 685 m elevation gain. This time the entire trail to the very top was well packed. Steady moderate ascent, a bit steeper before the summit. The trail head is right on the left side of 742, if you are coming from Canmore. Once you reach the fork with 2 bridges, cross the one to the left. Can be sections with more snow here and there, especially after the big rock viewpoint. Take a look […]
The North Peak of Pigeon Mountain offers a strategic vantage point, presenting an extensive panorama of the Canadian Rockies and numerous well-known peaks visible from this location. From the North Summit, you can see a broad array of peaks including: The views of nearby Mount McGillivray and Skogan Pass are particularly remarkable, offering a unique perspective on these areas. The South Peak (with the weather station) is optional but offers some additional views. These expansive views make Pigeon Mountain a […]
This route to Old Baldy is mentioned by Andrew Nugara as a “shorter” approach (we did the “longer” one as a loop this spring, but were out of time and did not make it to the summit back then, only to the ridge, – still very nice, like on the photo above). Alternative route is indeed shorter than the official hike from Evan-Thomas Day Use Area, but it does not mean faster at all, – the route up to the […]
After my off-trail Collembola solo I was exhausted, but sunny days with no wildfire smoke were literally a treasure this Summer, so next day I decided to ignore all knee pain and to take advantage of the weather and do something long enough for a nice day but easy and adrenalin-free. Pigeon Mountain totally fits this description: very moderate but steady incline, no scrambling, no loosing shit, no exposure, but very rewarding all the way to the summit once you […]
I tried to summit Mount Collembola two times before. My attempt via North route from Dead Man’s Flats failed because I could not find a safe way to climb up the summit block (23 m of elevation left but hiking solo this time, I was not comfortable with exposure and turned back with tail between legs). My second attempt via Marmot Basin and Fisera Ridge also failed because I could not find a safe way to climb down from the […]
On the picture above there is The Rimwall mountain, as it’s seen from the Wind Ridge, which we hiked a few weeks ago. Looks pretty intimidating from Dead Man’s Flats side, but from the South-West slopes it’s a surprisingly very pleasant hike, moderately challenging and highly rewarding. Allocate half day for it, but to really enjoy it you do need good weather. Don’t get scared away with foggy Spray Lakes in the morning, it happens more often that you might […]
The original idea of this hike was to summit Mount Collembola using South-West approach which connects Allan and Collembola via Fisera Ridge. My previous attempt to summit Collembola via North Route was unsuccessful – I turned around at the base of summit block because I could not figure out a way to avoid exposure on this last scrambling push. Unfortunately my second solo attempt was also a miserable failure, but the reason was exactly the opposite: when I reached the […]
Wind Ridge Trail in Exshaw surprised us pretty much with everything: well maintained, not too long, challenging enough, with a little bit of scrambling fun, shady forest, almost no people, and most importantly, incredible views of our favorite Kananaskis peaks from totally unexpected angle, impressive and intimidating. We started early (we always do) and air was more or less clear in the morning, but then wind from the West started to bring lots of smoke from BC fires, and unfortunately […]
I was fascinated by the Wind Tower when I saw ascent trail to its summit (photo above) during my solo Little Lougheed hike. Since late May it was just a matter of good weather and smoke free weekend, when we finally decided to go for it. The hike turned out to be not too hard (just may be a bit steep before the summit, but totally OK if you just switch to 1st gear), and very rewarding. Allocate half day […]
Nice short trail which I tried to do in winter but turned back at the big boulder viewpoint because of deep snow. It was perfect this time. If you take 742 from Canmore, U-turn and park your car on the left side of the road, the trailhead is right there. Once you reach the fork with 2 bridges, cross the one on the left (the right bridge leads to Lougheed). Steady ascent through the forest for about 1.3 km, then […]