This post has become a victim of my own lack of proper research. I'm removing both the link and my original comments because I just don't enjoy stories of this type and don't want to pass it along -- there are enough wildlife stories with unhappy endings in the daily newspaper.
Thanks to Marvin for pointing out my mistake.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Fullerton Loop - February 17, 2008
A friend we encountered along the trail:
(Not bad for a cell phone photo, hey?)
Hiking was glorious this weekend. It was a long weekend here in Alberta and the warm weather had blown in, making this more like an early spring hike than a mid-February one.
If there's a greater weather phenomenon than the Chinook, I don't know what it is...
Question for the masses: Is "Chinook" (as a weather term) commonly known outside the Alberta region, or am I just speaking in tongues?
Hiking was glorious this weekend. It was a long weekend here in Alberta and the warm weather had blown in, making this more like an early spring hike than a mid-February one.
If there's a greater weather phenomenon than the Chinook, I don't know what it is...
Question for the masses: Is "Chinook" (as a weather term) commonly known outside the Alberta region, or am I just speaking in tongues?
Monday, February 11, 2008
Heart Creek -- February 10, 2008
Sure, Heart Creek is only a 2.5km stroll one-way, but load it with at least a foot of snow and a cold day and it becomes a choice hike for a casual Sunday.
It was rumored the temperature was going to hit plus 4 in this part of the mountains, but it wasn't anywhere close to that when N and I got to the trailhead near Lac des Arcs. Thankfully there was little wind, but we bundled up and hit the trail, which for the first 20 minutes or so runs excitingly along the Trans-Canada highway, has a few inclines and views, and plenty of snow:
However, once it turns along the creek and into the canyon, everything changes for the better: the highway was left behind, the trail became a lot quieter and within a couple of minutes, the temperature seemed to jump by at least 5 degrees. Or that could have been from 20 minutes of shuffling through mid-calf deep snow (at times).
We encountered these ice climbers about 2/3s of the way through the hike -- the only other people we would see on the trail that day:
Heart Creek has lots of bridge crossings -- I believe the trail crosses the creek 7 times -- and the deeper we went into the canyon, the more creek was exposed, with the snow melting away and the clean, crisp (and probably very cold) water running underneath:
It's a short hike, but it was a nice wintery change from the usual winter hiking and still gave us some good exercise and great photos.
It was rumored the temperature was going to hit plus 4 in this part of the mountains, but it wasn't anywhere close to that when N and I got to the trailhead near Lac des Arcs. Thankfully there was little wind, but we bundled up and hit the trail, which for the first 20 minutes or so runs excitingly along the Trans-Canada highway, has a few inclines and views, and plenty of snow:
However, once it turns along the creek and into the canyon, everything changes for the better: the highway was left behind, the trail became a lot quieter and within a couple of minutes, the temperature seemed to jump by at least 5 degrees. Or that could have been from 20 minutes of shuffling through mid-calf deep snow (at times).
We encountered these ice climbers about 2/3s of the way through the hike -- the only other people we would see on the trail that day:
Heart Creek has lots of bridge crossings -- I believe the trail crosses the creek 7 times -- and the deeper we went into the canyon, the more creek was exposed, with the snow melting away and the clean, crisp (and probably very cold) water running underneath:
It's a short hike, but it was a nice wintery change from the usual winter hiking and still gave us some good exercise and great photos.
Friday, February 8, 2008
Alberta's Land Use Plan - How To Get Involved
With the provincial election ramping up and the overdue land use agreement still in the works, there is no better time for hikers, cyclists and other recreational enthusiasts to educate themselves on the issues surrounding the areas we love to play in.
The Calgary Sun has an excellent look at the logging that is running practically unchecked in the West Kananaskis area in their piece City's playground faces trying time. Calgary MLA Dr. David Swann makes some surprising and disturbing comments about the province's logging plan.
CPAWS Calgary has also put together an excellent resource for Alberta voters to help each Albertan research the environmental issues and vote as green as possible. Make sure to stop by My Vote Is For The Environment. There's a lot of information to wade through here, but it's a real eye-opener.
The Calgary Sun has an excellent look at the logging that is running practically unchecked in the West Kananaskis area in their piece City's playground faces trying time. Calgary MLA Dr. David Swann makes some surprising and disturbing comments about the province's logging plan.
CPAWS Calgary has also put together an excellent resource for Alberta voters to help each Albertan research the environmental issues and vote as green as possible. Make sure to stop by My Vote Is For The Environment. There's a lot of information to wade through here, but it's a real eye-opener.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Outdoor activities on the decline
Found this fascinating article on Canoe.ca the other day: Video games replacing outdoor activity.
The Nature Conservatory funded a study on outdoor activity and found some startling numbers about camping, fishing, hiking and hunting in many countries around the world, not including Canada.
It was discovered - particularly in the US - that outdoor activities are in a sharp decline, most notable camping and fishing. Day hiking was up, but only because the study found many campers had switched to day hiking.
The decline appears to have started sometime in the 80s and 90s - as video games and the internet were rising in popularity and appeal.
The article also mentions that along with a decline in outdoor activities comes a lack of interest in environmental issues, nature conservation and preservation of public land space (something we might already be seeing in California?).
The reason why this is so interesting to me is that in Canada -- in my part of Canada anyway -- outdoor recreation seems to be skyrocketing. Sure, Alberta has had an influx of people over the past few years, but many of them seem to be adopting the outdoor lifestyle that is so popular here, leading to the need for new land use regulations.
I'd be curious to know if the rest of Canada follows this trend we see in Alberta.
The Nature Conservatory funded a study on outdoor activity and found some startling numbers about camping, fishing, hiking and hunting in many countries around the world, not including Canada.
It was discovered - particularly in the US - that outdoor activities are in a sharp decline, most notable camping and fishing. Day hiking was up, but only because the study found many campers had switched to day hiking.
The decline appears to have started sometime in the 80s and 90s - as video games and the internet were rising in popularity and appeal.
The article also mentions that along with a decline in outdoor activities comes a lack of interest in environmental issues, nature conservation and preservation of public land space (something we might already be seeing in California?).
The reason why this is so interesting to me is that in Canada -- in my part of Canada anyway -- outdoor recreation seems to be skyrocketing. Sure, Alberta has had an influx of people over the past few years, but many of them seem to be adopting the outdoor lifestyle that is so popular here, leading to the need for new land use regulations.
I'd be curious to know if the rest of Canada follows this trend we see in Alberta.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Johnston's Canyon -- January 26, 2008
Johnston's Canyon trail, particularly the Inkpots, is an excellent example of a trail that is completely different depending on when it is hiked. N and I had hiked this same trail back at the end of October, but the difference between the two experiences is stunning.
(Trail details here)
This time of year the snow is just starting to build up along the canyon walls, and the catwalks of the trail. It wasn't as slippery as it has been in previous years, but give it time and a little more packed snow -- it will be.
The difference in this snow was this it seemed thick, wet and heavy... very much like late spring snow. Here it is hanging of the crags and cliffs of the canyon wall:
D and I were much more interested in the Inkpots part of the hike, plus we had some serious time constrictions related to daylight, so admittedly we sped through most of Johnston's Canyon. But even we had to stop to watch the brave and determined ice climbers scaling the wall along the Upper falls:
Once we got away from the canyon and onto the trail things changed quite a bit. There was much more snow on the trail, and it was a good thing the trail was packed down as much as it was because if we veered too far to either side we'd wind up knee deep in the snow. It made the uphill that much tougher to climb, but the snow-spotted, sparkly lookout was worth it:
From the lookout, it's all downhill (and a mighty big downhill -- something to remember for the trek back), and the thick heavy snow hung in the forest around us, making the whole area look like a picture postcard:
From a brief opening in the forest, maybe 5-10 minutes from the Inkpots. Check out the huge ball of snow covering the tree on the left side of the photo:
When we finally arrived, the snow was covering some of the Inkpots, while the uncovered ones certainly didn't have the amazing colours they had before. But it didn't matter, the area is still absolutely gorgeous:
We didn't stay long. After being sheltered by the forest for so long, the wind at the Inkpots was an unpleasant surprise. Besides, we had about 2 more hours of decent light left and needed as much of that to get back to the car. We made it in 90 minutes, and headed into Banff for dinner and a trip to the hot springs.
(Trail details here)
This time of year the snow is just starting to build up along the canyon walls, and the catwalks of the trail. It wasn't as slippery as it has been in previous years, but give it time and a little more packed snow -- it will be.
The difference in this snow was this it seemed thick, wet and heavy... very much like late spring snow. Here it is hanging of the crags and cliffs of the canyon wall:
D and I were much more interested in the Inkpots part of the hike, plus we had some serious time constrictions related to daylight, so admittedly we sped through most of Johnston's Canyon. But even we had to stop to watch the brave and determined ice climbers scaling the wall along the Upper falls:
Once we got away from the canyon and onto the trail things changed quite a bit. There was much more snow on the trail, and it was a good thing the trail was packed down as much as it was because if we veered too far to either side we'd wind up knee deep in the snow. It made the uphill that much tougher to climb, but the snow-spotted, sparkly lookout was worth it:
From the lookout, it's all downhill (and a mighty big downhill -- something to remember for the trek back), and the thick heavy snow hung in the forest around us, making the whole area look like a picture postcard:
From a brief opening in the forest, maybe 5-10 minutes from the Inkpots. Check out the huge ball of snow covering the tree on the left side of the photo:
When we finally arrived, the snow was covering some of the Inkpots, while the uncovered ones certainly didn't have the amazing colours they had before. But it didn't matter, the area is still absolutely gorgeous:
We didn't stay long. After being sheltered by the forest for so long, the wind at the Inkpots was an unpleasant surprise. Besides, we had about 2 more hours of decent light left and needed as much of that to get back to the car. We made it in 90 minutes, and headed into Banff for dinner and a trip to the hot springs.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Sulphur Springs -- January 12, 2008
Back to back Sulphur Springs hikes! It's true! D had never been on the rollercoaster journey that is Sulphur Springs and since we were looking for a nice long hike that was a workout without being too strenuous, we thought we'd give this one a try.
The most amazing thing was for once most of the hike was calm -- little to no wind, beautiful weather. Even the lookout, which we usually *feel* before we see if you know what I mean, had barely a breeze, so I was able to compose a little nicer shot than usual:
Just like Diamond T a few weeks back, the upper part of the hike was surprisingly devoid of snow. As in really devoid:
Which was in stark contrast to what the surroundings looked like at the beginning of the loop:
Lots of snowfall since then! Can't wait to see what the area looks like now...
The most amazing thing was for once most of the hike was calm -- little to no wind, beautiful weather. Even the lookout, which we usually *feel* before we see if you know what I mean, had barely a breeze, so I was able to compose a little nicer shot than usual:
Just like Diamond T a few weeks back, the upper part of the hike was surprisingly devoid of snow. As in really devoid:
Which was in stark contrast to what the surroundings looked like at the beginning of the loop:
Lots of snowfall since then! Can't wait to see what the area looks like now...
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