Wandering in Waterton March 16, 2023

 

The freeze thaw these past few days is making for quite a variety of trail conditions. I was hesitant on hiking up the Bears Hump for those reasons.  Today I thought at least have a look at the trail and assess  my comfort level along the way.  I geared up at the trailhead, climbed over the snow back and took a look at the trail.

People had been in the past days. 

The snow was supportive in the centre of the trail.

  It was easy going early on.

 

Just as I was reaching the first steep section, a half dozen deer were working their way down the hill in front of me aiming for the townsite area. All of them were off trail going through the trees, except this one,  it was on the trail coming towards me.  I did not want to move off trail, one side I would probably sink over my knees in snow and the other side had the possibility of me sliding down the slope.   We starred at each other, it moved forward, I moved forward, we starred again at each other.  I tapped my poles together and voiced a few words.  It finally moved off trail and went around me, stopping and giving me this look as it did so.  

The trail was a bit sketchier the higher up I went.  There was loads of snow, it was still supportive but I knew that would not last when the sun hit it and would soften it.  I made it!  How gorgeous!  There was not even a breeze!  

With the warm temperatures, the lake now shows off lots of ice rather than snow. 

tea time

This is a view up the Akamina Parkway.  

I spent about twenty minutes up on The Hump.  I wanted to get down the steep sections before the snow got soft.  It didn’t take long, it was already less supportive.  Once I got the sketchy parts out of the way, I breathed again and enjoyed the scenery.  

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️

Once back at my vehicle, I geared down for the short drive to the closed gate at the beginning of the Red Rock Parkway.  After enjoying a sip and a snack, it was time to gear up again.  There was already one vehicle in the parking location and from what I could tell, they were walking and not biking.

Even though there was loads of snow on long stretches of the road, I still stuck to the road instead of venturing along the trails through the trees and fields.  It just felt like the right thing to do today. This photo is looking back with Pass Creek down below.  

I did end up spending a little time hiking through a meadow.  

I found a slice of ice with a hole in it.  

It made a great prop to use for fun photo opportunities. 

view further along the Parkway

It was so pretty along here today.  It was warm with no wind.  

There were long stretches where there was no snow.  Around this time last year, the Parks People were driving the road, not yet this year, still too much snow. With a clear section on a closed road, I took advantage and walked the line.  This is how I do it!

A little while later, after performing my walk, I met a guy and his dog.  I hope he did not see my performance.  He was on his way back after hiking in 7kms. I reached the turn off for the Bellevue Trail and instead of veering off and following that trail, I carried on along The Parkway which I had not done before. 

view further along

This is as far as I hiked which was just short of six kms in from where I parked.  It is also the location of the first Avalanche Area sign.  While it looked like it would have been OK to go further, for me it was not a smart thing to do today.  I had a snack and a sip here then began the hike back.

I hoped the long snowy sections were still supportive, and they were!

The hike back was just a slow saunter. 

 It was a most beautiful day to be out & about in wild Waterton.