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This was my first mountain. I was in Calgary on a business trip,
and I thought I would give it a try. George (a friend of mine
living in Calgary) and I hooked up with Lorene (a friend of George)
and away we went.
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Technically, the hike is pretty simple. There aren't any complications
until the very top, but getting to the top is a rather tiring task.
I would like to blame the elevation as my excuse. I have lived in low
elevation climates my entire life. Calgary was the first time I had been
above 1,500 feet. I was still getting use to the altitude change.
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We start the hike at Cougar
Creek canyon. Walk up the canyon until you see the trail head on the left.
From the start of Cougar Creek, this is what the mountain looks like. The trail is
quite worn and very easy to recognise. The trail is rather steep and ascends
the mountain quite rapidly, winding through trees and grassy
slopes. The entire time, you are running parallel to the west side of a small
ridge. Towards the top of that ridge, you will need to cross it, and make your
way to an abandoned tea house.
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Eventually, you will get to the tea house just as you break the tree line.
I believe the other platform is an old parasailing platform of some sort.
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This picture was taken from the
tea house, and shows the remaining trail. As you can see, the terrain changes
quite a bit. There is lots of scree on this section. Then, once on the ridge, the
true summit is an exposed ridge walk away.
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As I got closer to the top, I began to catch an adrenalin rush. As I
began to speed up, George was getting further and further behind.
Of course, he was carrying all the water because I didn't have any equipment
yet.
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At the top of the ridge, you can see a Canada state flag. Being that this was my first mountain, I thought they put
these flags at the top of every mountain. Little did I know, that this was the only one I would come across.
I now understand that the flag isn't there any longer.
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Two and a half hours after we
started, I made it to the summit ridge.
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About five minutes later,
George made it to the summit ridge.
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The final 50 meters is the only
technical part. As you can see, it's a very narrow ridge. You might
consider straddling the first part because it's a long way to the bottom,
and on the back side. It's straight down!!!
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The last 20 yards or so, the ridge widens a bit, and you can casually walk over to the true summit.
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Aside from the mountains, I also came across a chipmonk.
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