What draws you to the mountains? (Video)

During the Wapta Traverse, I experimented with some time lapse photos. It is clear that I need a tripod but it still looks pretty sweet. The clouds were moving fast so it didn't take much time to get the footage. The best interval I used was every 4 seconds but 3 or 2 seconds would have made the video a lot more smooth.

Also please ignore the voice-over. I don't know what it is about hearing our own voices but I promise I don't sound that nasaly (at least inside my own head)! Plus, it didn't help that I only had my phone to do the recording over my hands free headset microphone.

Ok, ok, I'll stop over-analyzing. It was pretty sweet for my first attempt at production. I think it illustrates what we are trying to do with the project. Plus, my next one will be perfect ;)...I promise!

Peter and Catharine Whyte (Peyto) Hut

It has been many years since I first learned that Bow Hut had the freshest air. And let's not forget the bluest sky.

I was 12 years old the first time I was allowed to follow my father up to Bow. I still remember it vividly. Racing past him only to run out of breath and have to sit to pause. Each time as he passed me he would say "slow and steady will get your further, faster". What did I know? I was at the stage in life where I knew I'd be working in the video game industry (read: playing video games all day), that I would be driving a Lamborghini Countach by age 16 and undoubtedly, that girls had cooties.

Little did I know that my paradigm was going to be shattered over the next few years. All except one truth - girls still do have cooties. Two weeks ago I had that paradigm shattered once again. Let me tell you how it happened:

The phone rang. "Hello?" I croaked. "How close are you?" the other voice asked. My alarm had been set for 4:00 am. His question indicated it was more than a little past 4 and so did the light that was forcing it's way through the blinds. "Um, I'm a bit behind". "How far behind?" - I could tell by his voice that reality was sinking in. "Honestly, I just woke up. Not sure what happened to my alarm. I'll hurry."

Days that start out like that generally turn out to be pretty good because you can't do much to make them worse. The plan was to be in Nordegg at 8:00 am, drop the exit vehicle at Sherbrook Lake trail head at 10:00 am and be on the trail to Peyto by noon.

By the time we hit the trail head it was about 2:00pm and thanks to my tardiness I got an extra book to carry. The punishment could have been much worse so I didn't complain. Plus, the weather was great. Mixed clouds, nice and cool - the perfect day to work like a pack mule.

We headed down the hill to the delta and made our way up to the moraine a couple of kilometers in. The water was high thanks to tons of snow and strong runoff. We also heard that the footbridge (read: logs across the river) had been washed out so there was going to be a river crossing. I had my fingers crossed that it was below waist height - being a couple hundred meters from the glacier, there was no question it was going to be cold.

It didn't take long for us to find remnants of the footbridge strewn across the delta. It was apparent the water had been much higher days before. We ended up only knee deep in water (the junk was thankful) but the temperature still shot pain from the cold all the way up my body. Minutes later we were headed for the sky via the moraine.

At the toe of the glacier we roped up. I'll take this moment to introduce my two newest friends, Cody and Kelsey Pivert, a couple from Red Deer. I met them earlier this morning when I was astronomically late. The great thing about bad first impressions? You can only get better! Since I discovered that, I strive to set the bar low. Kelsey had the unfortunate job of waiting at Peyto with the gear while Cody and Nathan took a nap in the exit vehicle. I think she waited about three hours. It was her book I was sentenced to carry - not because I had made her wait, but that I subjected her to getting hit on by some gypsy-tour-guide-bus-driver.

The toe of the glacier was pretty straightforward and tame. The firn line was crisp and transitioned quickly to thick snow cover. By 7:00pm we could see the hut. It's blue tin siding stood out from the rock outcrop it sat on, the outhouse sticking up awkwardly like a clock tower. The wide berth we took added some additional walking but kept us clear of the hidden marginal crevasses lining the edge of the glacier.

By 8:00pm we were approaching the hut. I was just starting to realize how amazing of a location this was. Turning back and looking at the expanse of this cirque was the moment my eyes were opened. This was truly the most amazing ski playground I had ever seen.

Being hungry from the late start and lack of a real lunch (no, protein bars actually do not constitute a meal) we headed in the hut to get dinner ready. For the first time in a while, I decided to haul up a little more than the staple freeze dried dinner. I had fresh asparagus and a steak with Cajun seasoning in my pack just waiting to be devoured. I don't recall what the others had except for Nathan's lemon chicken - dinner envy got the best of me. Let me tell you, the dinner view from this hut is second to none.

I don't recall what time we actually went to bed, but needless to say, I had a smile on my face. I had found a new favorite spot AND had a belly full of non-freeze-dried food. Plus, the fresh air was really fresh. Maybe even fresher than it was at Bow Hut...

Approaching the hut, the view was spectacular. Every direction you could see had a skiers dream playground.

The outhouse was a class act. Note the panorama window conveniently placed at eye height when seated. That my friends, is a room with a view!

Kelsey reluctantly posing. Her pack/harness combo was not being nice to her lower back so she has her game face on here. With a few pack adjustments, the next day went much better for her.

I'm not sure what beats sitting down after a slog and just enjoying the view. Wait, eating good food does...

Elk Lakes Cabin - Hut #1

It seems that getting these books into the huts is the easy part - taking the time to blog about it takes forever!  Despite the fact that I am desperately behind in all of my other duties/jobs/pursuits, I've decided to take the time to get started on this.  On July 1st of this year, my family and some friends embarked on the first of many journeys to come, and set out to deliver the first copy of Freedom of the Hills.  This is the first of 35 copies to be delivered to all of the ACC huts, cabins and structures in an effort to provide current information on mountaineering practices.

The hike itself is simple enough - it starts at the Lower Kananaskis Lake at the trailhead marked 'Elk Pass' and travels south for about 9 km, crosses into B.C. and ends up at a large, beautiful cabin.  Although I had pictured this as a huge undertaking (I have five children and I am starting a new Guiding business), in the end all worked out.  We left the parking lot around 11:30 a.m. and made pretty good time hiking through a swampy, snowy trail (this has been the theme throughout most of the hikes I have done so far this year!). All five children carried their own sleeping bags, water and changes of clothes, while my wife and I carried everything else.  Spirits seemed to remain high for the hike, until the questions got started. "Dad, how much farther?",  "Are we there yet?", and most of the other types of questions you might expect children to ask.  In their defense, some of my children remained positive throughout the hike, which actually helped some of the doubters feel less concerned.

We arrived before supper and once we had settled in, wet clothes were hung, a fire was started in the stove, and children were playing in the sleeping area.  After a few short naps, I joined in with helping prepare for supper, and we began eating our food together. Several jealous hikers poked their noses into the cabin widows, but with 9 of us having reserved spots, there was no room. I took a short hike with Lisa and my oldest daughter up to the lower Elk Lake, and we were treated to a beautiful hike along the Elk River/Creek, which was quite high.

The insert on the inside cover.

The next morning we arose somewhat early and began preparing to leave. Making sure we left a copy of 'Freedom of the Hills' (that's why we went, right?), we set out to return via a different trail. Having scouted out the lake the night before, we decided we would hike back along a longer, albeit more scenic route along the edge of Fox Mountain, which would take us past the lower lake and to the outlet at the NE end of the Upper Elk Lake.
As we crossed the scree slope heading N, my youngest, who is normally up for a challenge, decided that it was scary and did not want to continue.  He was quickly coerced into thinking otherwise (!) and once we were in the trees, all was well.  Again we ran into copious amounts of snow on the trail home, but the most interesting part of the trip (from my perspective, anyway) was seeing an alpine meadow that had been turned upside down by a hungry Grizzly.  I've always heard about these, but this was the first time I had actually seen one.


So there you have it.  Hut #1 is in the bag.  Huts 2, 3, 4 & 5 are all together, as they are all on the Wapta Traverse in Banff and Yoho National Parks.  And no, my kids won't be joining me on those trips!