Rae Lake Attempt November 11, 2017

I knew all along I would be snowshoeing today, that need was within me.  I was brain storming on options when a friend put a shout out to venture into Rae Lake so I hopped on board!  I have visited that lake a handful of times in various conditions at different times of the year between June and November.  My favourite spot along the way is when we have this view of Tombstone Mountain from this vantage point.  Today the view was incredible with a touch of snow to brighten it up.

"Red sky at morning sailor take warning!"  

That's for sailors not snowshoers!  

As we drove down Highway 40 where life begins, the scenery was captivating.  

We arrived at the trail head parking lot which was empty.  It was calm and not that cold.  We bantered back and forth whether to take snowshoes, microspikes, both.  We opted to carry snowshoes and pull on the spikes.  I just wanted that first hill out of the way, I don't like it.  I enjoyed the views as a distraction while we tackled it.

early morning at Elbow Lake

We rounded Elbow Lake and arrived at the Park Boundary.  We saw loads of fresh animal tracks some looked dog-like others cat-like.  No people today had gone before us.  It was such a pleasure to have outright ownership of this territory.

Here's Tombstone Mountain and the wide open valley for your viewing pleasure.

The new snow yesterday added an added touch.

We carried along the Big Elbow Trail for some time then began to pay attention for the cairn signifying time to turn off and aim for Desolation Flat.  We ended up going a little too far so we backtracked eventually finding a big lump of snow and then discovering the cairn was buried underneath it.  We cleaned it up a bit and take notice of the little yellow piece of tape.

time to change our mode of movement

from microspikes to snowshoes

My second favourite spot on this venture is at the boulder field in Desolation Flat.

my friends passing through The Flat

A couple quickly passed us and then they were gone up the hill and into the trees.  We slowly followed!  We should know better than to do that.  What was that saying?  "Red sky at morning sailor take warning!"  That's not for us snowshoers!  Or is it?  We had a few elevation gains & losses as we followed that couple's track.  The terrain was not user friendly and a little sketchy in sections but we carried on.   My focus was not enjoying the beauty or capturing it but we did have one opening where I did enjoy the distraction.

We realized time was now not in our favour and we would not be reaching Rae Lake.  We aimed for a hill and called that our destination for the day.  I felt a little anxious about not knowing our route back and that it would be route finding and bushwhacking with maybe some steep slopes to go up or down.  I enjoyed the lunch time view but was not up to savouring my sandwich and salad.  

I'll call this my summit shot for today!

We did not linger long for lunch.  We began to work our way back to the main trail having an idea where it was and route finding our way to it.  The views were spectacular and there were huge snow drifts in places.

We finally reached the main trail.  I was standing right on it not realizing for a few seconds.  We gathered together and then got in a mind space to get going and cover loads of terrain before it got dark.  The wind picked up and included gusts which we pushed against.

I captured one last view of the trail in front of us.

When we arrived back at the Park Boundary and there was still a little daylight left I breathed a sigh of relief.  We rounded Elbow Lake and I walked over to the edge to have a look and take a lasting impression.

My lasting impression!

It's November 11th.  I feel fortunate to have friends who enjoy being "out & about" exploring, adventuring and sharing laughs.  We are a supportive crew of characters.  We know how to make the most of our day, how to embrace when things go great and how to work together and get through the oooops.   Today, Remembrance Day, we created many memories we can be thankful for!  Thank you for this day of sharing and Thank You to all those veterans who made sacrifices so we could be out here today living our passion!