Friday, July 27, 2007
Hello global warming
It's been sunny and around 30 degrees C for about 3-4 weeks now. Apparently unusually warm, unusually long for Calgary. In Sweden it's been raining since May.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Mountain of the Week - Sentinel Pass and Wasatch Pass
Okay, mountain of the week should really be pass of the week and was more of a hike than a scramble. A fantastic hike, I might add. We started at Moraine Lake (which is depicted on the backside of Canada's old 20 dollar bills) close to Lake Louise. The first three k:s are not very exciting, switchbacks through pine trees, but then you reach Larch Valley full of larch trees, meadows and wild flowers. Around you you have the ten peaks and the majestic Mount Temple, the highest mountain in the region with its 3544 m. We went over Sentinel Pass (2606 m), between Pinnacle Peak and Temple, and into Paradise Valley. Sentinel Pass got its name from the high pointy rock formations.
Paradise Valley lives up to its name. Surronded by mighty mountains where you can hear avalanches roar down the mountain sides, forest covered slopes and meadows in the valley with small streams, it is an impressive valley.
After a few kilometers in the valley it's time for the next pass, Wasatch Pass. You work your way up boulder fields, scree and steep snow slopes to reach the top and catch a glimpse of Eiffel Lake. After the descent to Eiffel Lake there is easy hiking for about 6 km back to Moraine Lake. The trip was in total about 17 km and 1200 m total elevation gain. Anyone visiting the area around Lake Louise shouldn't miss Larch Valley and Paradise Valley. No bears this week, we had to be satisfied with chipmunks, a deer and a porcupine.
Picasa.
Paradise Valley lives up to its name. Surronded by mighty mountains where you can hear avalanches roar down the mountain sides, forest covered slopes and meadows in the valley with small streams, it is an impressive valley.
After a few kilometers in the valley it's time for the next pass, Wasatch Pass. You work your way up boulder fields, scree and steep snow slopes to reach the top and catch a glimpse of Eiffel Lake. After the descent to Eiffel Lake there is easy hiking for about 6 km back to Moraine Lake. The trip was in total about 17 km and 1200 m total elevation gain. Anyone visiting the area around Lake Louise shouldn't miss Larch Valley and Paradise Valley. No bears this week, we had to be satisfied with chipmunks, a deer and a porcupine.
Picasa.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Canada Day
Canada's national day today. It's 140 years since Canada became independent from Great Britain. As an independent nation Canada is not very old...
Friday, June 22, 2007
Mountain of the Week - Mt Kidd North
No more 85-year olds or women with bionic feet, this week's mountain was a real scramble with an elevation gain of 1350 m over 11 km and the highest point at 2950 m. I was tired when I reached the summit. Walking up scree sucks, it's two steps forward and one back. Walking down scree is much better, you're basically gliding down the mountain. An even more entertaining way of getting down the mountain is glissading, which means that you find a snow covered slope, sit down on your bum and slide.
The weather was so-so, during the day. It was raining during the night which made me worry that there would be new snow on the mountain. You do want snow because it is easier kick stepping up snow covered slopes rather than walking up scree but new snow lays itself in a layer on top of the old one and it can easily cause small avalanches leading to accidents. Luckily there was no new snow and it didn't start to rain until we returned to the parking lot after nine hours. However, the mountain was covered in mist most of the time which made the navigation a bit tricky. The guide book said "after the ridge you will see an obvious gully to follow to the top". We saw nothing, but our organizers got us to the summit even if we did take a bit of a detour.
This day 85 year old Ed wasn't on the trip but instead we had a 66 year old crazy Iranian. He is fitter than most of us but has a tendency to wander off on his own and get lost. Once they had to call in the rangers (or Bush Police as he called them) to find him. They found him on the highway trying to hitchhike back to Calgary.
The bear of the week was on the roadside when we went past in the car. Someone yelled "oh, a bear" and this time I actually saw something black by the road.
The weather was so-so, during the day. It was raining during the night which made me worry that there would be new snow on the mountain. You do want snow because it is easier kick stepping up snow covered slopes rather than walking up scree but new snow lays itself in a layer on top of the old one and it can easily cause small avalanches leading to accidents. Luckily there was no new snow and it didn't start to rain until we returned to the parking lot after nine hours. However, the mountain was covered in mist most of the time which made the navigation a bit tricky. The guide book said "after the ridge you will see an obvious gully to follow to the top". We saw nothing, but our organizers got us to the summit even if we did take a bit of a detour.
This day 85 year old Ed wasn't on the trip but instead we had a 66 year old crazy Iranian. He is fitter than most of us but has a tendency to wander off on his own and get lost. Once they had to call in the rangers (or Bush Police as he called them) to find him. They found him on the highway trying to hitchhike back to Calgary.
The bear of the week was on the roadside when we went past in the car. Someone yelled "oh, a bear" and this time I actually saw something black by the road.
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