That Time of Year Again

It's that time of year again for the migration west to see the spectacular larch presentation.  Due to the grizzly activity in this area of Banff at this time of year, it is mandatory to hike in a close knit group of four or more folks. Well, that was the law until this morning.  The restriction was lifted so every single soul, twosome, threesome and dog was there today.  Thank goodness though, a very high percentage veered off at the fork and went up to Larch Valley.  I have done the Larch Valley trek three times already, so come hell or high water I was going to view the presentation in a different area and was determined to touch this sign.

The scenes in the presentation were as I had hoped for and have come to expect. 

Yet I would have preferred a blue sky which would have made the view of the Valley of Ten Peaks that much more award winning.  When it came down to it, I still loved being there with my friends sharing in this "that time of the year again" thing. 

My friends have been here before and stated that Eiffel Lake looked drained.  While the water level was drained, the color wasn't when the sun peeked through.  Gold against turquoise was another sight I had hoped for and as you can see, I saw it! 

Our destination is behind me above the area where the numerous patches of snow are.  At this point it is very warm and humid and I thought to myself this feels like the calm before the storm and especially made the feel seem more real with the sky looking the way it was above our destination.

Off in one direction, the trees are so colorful, looking delicate and soft then turn your head around and you see rough and rugged.  I love these wide open spaces and what they off to offer.

In every direction, there were award winning presentations!

Just before starting our ascent to the summit, the wind picked up, the rain started, the temperature dropped but like I said before, come hell or high water I was going to touch that sign.  I'm not sure where my energy came from, but all of a sudden I felt a surge and I pushed on into the wind and rain, all the while looking back every now and then to see where my friends were.  I could see they were determined too.    One by one, we reached the summit.  The rain stopped for our summit experience but the wind didn't.  It was a short visit, just long enough to get the job done.  I held on for dear life while getting my summit shot!

After about thirty minutes, we descended over the rugged rock to a somewhat sheltered spot for our late lunch.  After that, it was a steady trek through wind, off and on rain, off in the distance thunder yet still award winning scenery all the way back to the trail head.  We commented that this may have been one of the last few days to view the larch show, as we saw the larch needles blowing past us.  

"That time of the year again" is, once again, over for me!  

I'm thankful I got to be amongst the beautiful larches again and to share it with my friends.