Forum Index > Trip Reports > lake louise, yoho, skoki - CANADIAN GOODNESS - 2013-08-27
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iron
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iron
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 9:33 am 
the weather forecast in WA had tanked, eliminating our plan to do either the bailey traverse or ptarmigan traverse. backup plans were rapidly developed. CA, OR, ID, MT, WY, and finally, banff. we'd never been there before (or those other places for that matter) and it appeared to have the best forecast of all the places on the wide-open list. we crammed a bunch of stuff in the car, not knowing what to plan for, picked up cartman, and set off on the 12 hour drive. i am happy to report the $20CAD toll on the coquihalla highway is no more. we drove thru provincial park after park, passing beautiful lakes, quaint towns, and gobs of BC goodness. makes one want to move... we first stopped in field, which is a half hour W of lake louise. the visitor center there was not all that helpful and the woman working the desk sounded pessimistic, at best, about our chances of doing anything during the labor day weekend. (note to self: labor day weekend = bad choice to go to huge national/provincial parks). when we arrived at lake louise, we were able to pick the brain of joannie - a super helpful parks canada ranger equivalent. she gave us endless ideas and got us going in the right direction. that night, we stayed at the lake louise CG, which is huge, protected by a grizzly-proof electric fence (jurassic park style), and expensive ($30+).
day 1 the plan was to head to skoki, a nearby ski area more or less across the hwy from the lake louise area. with permits in hand for the hidden lake area, we set off under grey skies. hey wait, those were supposed to stay in WA! after the 12 hour drive to lake louise, we found ourselves starting our hike on a road walk. awesome. it wasn't even a nice road. had we started 20 minutes earlier, we could have taken the free shuttle that one of the huts up there offers. whoops. eventually, you gain some vert and see the ski area. i'm sure i'd be quite nice skiing up here with the views and light fluffy snow. the trail is nothing to write home about. next, you pass a day hut before turning W for hidden lake. again, not too much exciting just yet. shortly, you reach the designated campgrounds where there are about a dozen spots, a bear pole, dining tables, and an outhouse. we set up shop and headed up to hidden lake.
the lake was bigger than expected and quite nice. finally, some alpine flavor!
we walked to the saddle S of mt richardson (summit EL 3040m) and headed up. the map shows a glacier near the summit, and indeed there was one. however, it was more like wind deposits from a cornice and easily avoided. we passed one huge cairn on the false summit and moved onto the next huge cairn on the true summit. we learned the canadians like their cairns! i guess i would too with all this loose rock lying around...
we reversed the process and headed back to camp, stopping first at a nearby tarn we saw from the summit. hotpantz noted lots of swimming, jumping mice! rain pattered on the tent and later a porcupine would pay us a visit and eat our trekking pole straps. that guy sure made some weird noises! at least he didn't eat the tent.
day 2 we had thought of trying pika peak, directly above hidden lake, but it wasn't super obvious where the route was and we wanted to lay low. plus, the scrambling definitions up here were confusing (5th class scrambling???). instead, we opted for the equally lovely, and easier, ptarmigan peak (summit EL 3059m). good choice.
we followed easy slopes up from the lake. nice plants and even a spring of water. that gave way to rock and patches of snow before leading to some dirty scree gullies near the summit ridge.
once on the ridge, enjoyable walking resumes. plus, you get to see some of the awesome skoki lakes, the wall of jericho, and an endless sea of BC and AB mountains that extend N almost indefinitely.
we headed down, aiming this time for ptarmigan lake. it wasn't one of the cool glacial fed lakes, but was still incredibly nice, AND, worthy of a swim (when passerbys weren't looking).
after a nice dip, we retraced some trail, packed up, and headed back to lake louise area for some more CG camping and trip planning.
day 3 the morning's weather was not great. our tent was soaked in the CG and signs of improvement were not to be seen. hotpantz and i decided to walk up to one of the teahouses near the beehive above lake louise and next to lake agnes. some drips and drops and a lot of people. the tea was good and the bread was overpriced. but, it was a cool place and neat to see a "remote" operating shack like this. down we came, still uncertain where our next destination would be. my gut told me the skies would be clearing and that the grey skies would be a thing of the past for the remainder of our trip. we eventually decided on some peaks near the presidents. we had given thought of climbing the presidents via the glacier route, but we didn't have enough beta or familiarity with the area to be confident. add to that a new dusting of snow and our choice was made. we drove the nicely paved road up the yoho river valley to the takakkaw falls trailhead. from your car, you get to witness a ginormous waterfall (over 800ft) pour out of a glacier. pretty sweet deal. as we sat and watched, the rain kept coming. eventually it abated and we geared up and headed upvalley to the little yoho valley trail. en route, and only .5 miles from the cars, there's tons of camping and self registration. probably spots for a few 100 tents in this flat, open valley.
the trail was nice enough. the amount of water in the creeks is staggering. picture thunder creek on hwy 20 at peak meltoff, and double or triple it. and boy was it milky!
eventually, we passed the alpine club hut with a super posh outhouse, and proceeded another 1/2 mile to the designated campground. temps were cool, so it was an early night.
day 4 a bright sun and steaming plants started our day. it was nice to be in a valley for such an occasion. our goal for the day was mt kerr (EL 2868m) and kiwetinok lake, apparently the highest alpine lake in W canada (unverified by me). a fine trail from camp led us to the lake and the saddle. it was very pasayten-like, except with more plants, color, and cooler geology.
the lake was nice, but the air was chilly. we passed on the swim, but would make up for it later. from the saddle, we headed S to the summit of kerr. the scramble book we briefly read at parks canada said most people stop at the false summit. huh? what kind of scramble book is that?
we actually did stop at the false summit, but only because we thought it was the true summit. then, the next "summit" looked so close, we thought we'd tag that too. well, it turned out that next summit was actually kerr's true summit. i'm happy my map reading skills at least alerted me to the notion that something was wrong with our location. views were splendid. the selkirk range looks quite inviting. many glaciers there. looking back to the E towards mt niles wasn't too shabby either. that's the peak with the glaciers that feed takakkaw falls. again, lots of views of amazing lakes; there is no shortage of those here in canada. of particular interest to me was a group of multicolored tarns located between us and the presidents. i convinced everyone to head down there to explore.
before we could get down, there was one awesome ledge that begged for some rock tossing into the tarn directly underneath.
finally, down to the super awesome tarn. it was the definition of clear and provided an enjoyable swim in a truly beautiful setting.
from the basin of tarns, we picked our way down, eventually connecting up with a trail system that splits off of the presidents climbing route. that rejoined the main trail and then we just had to reverse the approach, pack up, and head out.
instead of heading down the little yoho valley, we took the iceline trail, which is more or less a high route that passes underneath the icefall of a bunch of hanging glaciers. it's a stupendous trail, though it does take a little extra effort and time. just beautiful.
eventually the iceline trail descends and drops you out on the road about 1/2 mile from the takakkaw falls TH. i jogged it, grabbed the car, and came back to the rescue. we had few options where to camp this night as it was the peak of visitation. we ended up in a parking lot, which is not uncommon, apparently, but also not expressly allowed. day 5 we headed back to lake louise for the zoo known as labor day weekend. hotpantz headed over to moraine lake while cartman and i did fairview - the mount si of the area. i found the best way to find solitude was to just go a lot faster than everyone else and be the first one on the summit for the day smile.gif but first, i tagged saddle mountain (EL 2427m), which was so-so. larch trees at the saddle of saddle mountain and leading towards fairview.
the trail heading up fairview (EL 2739m) is surprisingly steep and slick, at least in tennis shoes. i'm surprised more tourists don't get injured here. the views from the top were fair, but not fair enough. i decided to head down the N ridge for more unobstructed views of lake louise. was it worth it? sure, i guess.
i jogged down the trail which earned lots of comments from people struggling upward. fun times. back at the lake, i waited for hotpantz. she was to pick us up and we'd head off to the mt niles area. somehow, timing and parking worked just right enough that she didn't have to walk for miles (the car backup was insane). it was fun to observe everyone hanging out at lake louise!
back on the road, we passed wapta lake and then pulled into a parking lot next to an old gas station and some lodging that didn't look very used. a trail takes off from here to get to sherbrooke lake. i actually enjoyed this trail quite a bit. it was just the right grade, temperature, and lushness. it's amazing how a few miles from the crest turns the forest back into a lush environment. sherbrooke lake was simply amazing.
niles valley was pretty awesome too. lots of waterfalls and great views of mt niles (EL 2972m). no bugs whatsoever. our ranger friend had told us she could issue a backcountry camping permit, but when we tried to get one, she wasn't there. another ranger said no, it wasn't allowed. there's lots of conflicting advice here. so, we decided, begrudgingly, to stealth camp in the forest where there would be zero impact. we didn't feel good about it, but also recognized that niles was a long-ass daytrip. it turned out that others had camped higher up in the basin; they were peakbaggers from alberta and said no one knows the rules, so they just buy their backcountry pass and go where they please. makes sense...
day 6 again, it was a nice morning. things are so much more beautiful here with blue skies instead of threatening storms. we headed up the trail into the upper valley. eventually, you cross sherbrooke creek and head up to niles SW shoulder. we missed the trail on the way up after crossing the creek, but found it on the way down. it was a nice trail, and, if you go, it's more right than you think from where you cross the creek.
tarns and running water beneath niles provided nice reflections and refreshing water.
from niles saddle, it's a straightforward walk up some scree slopes that are over-cairned. the views on the summit are most excellent, again, and now we could look back at the little yoho valley and the presidents and mt kerr. we could also look back at the lake louise peaks like mt temple and mt victoria - two really beautiful mountains. and, we could now see the skoki peaks we did earlier too. it was a fine vantage point. we chatted with some peakbaggers (those that had the high camp) and got the goods on the area.
down we went, enjoying the views, and reflecting upon a great 6 days in this special part of the world.
back at sherbrooke lake, we had to swim, so we did. there were a lot of trees on the bottom, so that wasn't so nice, but the water was just the right temperature and oh so photogenic!
we arrived back at the car around 3:30p, packed up, and made a straight shot push back to seattle, arriving around 2am. go canada!

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seattlenativemike
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 9:43 am 
Sweet! what an epic adventure....nice weather too

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olderthanIusedtobe
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 12:17 pm 
If you're up north again, you gotta check out the Bugaboos. You weren't too far away. Valhallas are really cool too. So much to see up there.

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fourteen410
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 1:00 pm 
I was up there just a couple days after you. and I thought Lake Louise was crowded after labor day weekend...dang!

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Magellan
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 1:26 pm 
Great stuff Iron. up.gif I love the part about no one knows the rules. I had heard that Canadian backcountry camping was much less of a hassle, less permits and all.

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fox212
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 2:02 pm 
Really, REALLL great photos! up.gif up.gif up.gif

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cascadetraverser
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 2:29 pm 
Another amazing report from you guys??? You both get the NWhikers award for fun hogs of the summer! Great job!

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Backpacker Joe
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 2:38 pm 
The adventure continues. What, no trip to the Bugaboos? hockeygrin.gif

"If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide." — Abraham Lincoln
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raising3hikers
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PostThu Oct 03, 2013 6:17 pm 
that's too many awesome trips for you guys in one year! wow, more great pics up.gif those glaciers look nice but look like they're lacking most of their snowcover:(

Eric Eames
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Stefan
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PostFri Oct 04, 2013 10:57 am 
Great trip for you! Stunning photos as usual. Wowza. I gotta get more Canada into me!

Art is an adventure.
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Gimpilator
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PostFri Oct 04, 2013 11:06 am 
Stunning photography Mike. I did Temple and Ptarmigan and a handful of others a couple years ago. This is my favorite area to hike in North America. I can't wait to go back. Thanks for sharing your trip with us.
near the summit of Ptarmigan
near the summit of Ptarmigan

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Redwic
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PostFri Oct 04, 2013 12:48 pm 
Although I have never done any peakbagging in this area (yet), I have been there multiple times and my wife & I both love driving through that area just for the scenery. I really enjoyed your TR and photos. up.gif up.gif up.gif

60 pounds lighter but not 60 points brighter.
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the Zachster
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PostFri Oct 04, 2013 8:50 pm 
Goodness indeed!! Thanks for sharing your trip with us. Makes me want to go back really soon. Absolutely gorgeous country (and really nice people too! winksmile.gif )

"May I always be the kind of person my dog thinks I am"
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peltoms
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PostSat Oct 05, 2013 3:57 am 
Spectacular trip and images hockeygrin.gif

North Cascade Glacier Climate Project: http://www.nichols.edu/departments/glacier/
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b00
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PostFri Oct 11, 2013 12:51 pm 
was the swimming cold? :>) ps - i did not see are horses. that must have made cartman happy as you don't put the horse before the cart-man :>)

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Forum Index > Trip Reports > lake louise, yoho, skoki - CANADIAN GOODNESS - 2013-08-27
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