Prince's Island & Kensington Calgary July 23, 2017

On Sunday they shall rest!  My friends requested some time to see the sights in the city of Calgary.  Well, that was a challenge for me to come up with where we should go as sightseeing in the city is not my forte.  I live in it and work in it and that's about it.  Keeping it simple we drove to the curling club parking lot off Memorial Drive and explored from there.  

Prince's Island and acknowledging Canada's 150th Birthday

strolling around Prince's Island

crossing the bridge over to Memorial Drive 

confirming the 150th celebration

view west of the Bow River from the bridge

my friend is a rafter and would love to have been rafting The Bow with all the others

looking back at the bridge we crossed, the rafters, and the light reflecting in the river

on Memorial in Kensington

Our plan was to stroll the streets in Kensington and eventually find a place for refreshments.   Along the way we saw "Craves" so stopped in for a visit. No one felt for a full size cupcake so we opted for minis.  My friends already commented how hot it was today and as it was cool in the store we hung out there to savour the treats.

Not far down the street we stopped into the Bernard Calebaut chocolate shop.  

If the cupcakes didn't alter our sugar levels, the chocolates would.  

Yes, they were delicious.

Next on our agenda was a cool refreshment to wash down the sweet treats.  

The cool Pub and refreshments were a nice break from the heat outside.  After an hour or so, we checked out a few other stores and then made our way back over the river to the other side.  My friends were still intrigued with the rafters and kayakers especially at this point along the way.

Before heading back to the curling club we stopped off at Eau Claire at another pub for more refreshments.  Our designated driver enjoyed her water.  We chatted, laughed, got silly then got on our way.  An easy early evening at home was needed in preparation for an early start tomorrow.  This visit with my friends feels so good and it feels so right.  It is taking no effort at all to renew and no effort at all in forming new friendships.  Life is good, right!

Burstall Pass July 22, 2017

Being flexible was coming into play as we discussed what our destination would be each day.  With trails being closed due to bears or fires, we searched for alternate ideas that would be just as pretty and the distance and elevation gain in line with what we wanted for the day.  It had been ages since I visited Burstall Pass and I had been wanting to venture up into that area again so that became our objective for today.  We were early at the parking lot and right away a couple came to give us a heads up that a  grizzly was on the trail yesterday.  I wondered did that Chester Lake bear cross the road or was this another grizzly.  We geared up and aimed for the trail.  

It was beautiful right from the get-go and the weather was ideal.  We packed many layers because the forecast said cold and windy for the summit.  We stuck close together and made loads of noise to warn that bear we were on our way.

 fresh bear scat

 We worked our way through the alluvial fan.  

There was loads of water, thankfully there were logs to cross in some spots, rocks to hop in others and yet in some spots we built up rocks in the water to make a stepping stone crossing.  I did think about what it could be like upon our return, if you are in the know, then you know there of course would be higher water levels.

 The wild flowers were glorious.  Meadows were carpeted with them.  

We reached where we would go above tree line.  We met up with a trail runner who was already on his way down.  He asked did we see the grizzly bear.  On his ascent he went around a corner and pretty much came face to face with that bear, he said the bear took off.  The bear scared him.  We were not scared, we just made more noise.

our wild flower collection

We arrived at Burstall Pass and it looked stellar.  I forgot how beautiful it was up here.  We crossed over from Peter Lougheed Provincial Park into Banff National Park and then went off trail to reach a higher point for our lunch time visit.  The higher we went the more windy and colder it became.  We bundled up.....

 .....and captured our summit shots.

 We picked a spot down slope a bit to stretch out, relax and dine.  

Our lunch time view was prime.

The opportunities up here to explore are grand so we took advantage of that.  We could see Leman Lake far below.  We did meet up with backpackers who were heading there for the night.  We watched others summit Snow Peak.  

 exploring

We reached another high point and thought it worthy of a summit shot.

 seeing mountains through the flower bouquet

 We explored the north and my friends went off to explore the south end.  

The south end of the pass had a different array of wild flowers.  I waited a very short while as they visited yet another high point.  This was the first time I was over on this side.  Into the memory bank this goes as I would enjoy investing more time exploring this side.

We gathered together again and began our descent.  We enticed my friend to get into the snow and make her first snowball.   It took a little coaxing then she went for it.  I love the look on her first as she tries to take cover from the oncoming snowball.  After spending a little more energy here, it was time to get on with our day and make our way back.

We were three today and wish our friend could have joined us.  We had many pictures to share with her along with our stories.  We were quicker with our trek back to the alluvial fan but slower crossing back over it, as I expected the water was running higher and wider.  We made it back to the parking lot, geared down, snacked then hit the 742 to 40 to 1 and back home again.  I thought about how fortunte we have been to have the weather we were having and for there to be no smoke considering the number of fires and size of them that are not all that far away.  I have been a little extra thankful these days!

Rawson Lake July 21, 2017

There was a group consensus that we go for an easier day without bolting out the door before the birds are up.  We opted for a hike up to Rawson Lake with time after wards to hang out at the Upper Kananaskis Lake.  My friends were keen to  deck out in their summery attire but I offered up the suggestion to layer up after checking out the weather reports for out in K-Country.  The drive out was pretty and not busy at all.  We were fortunate to see two healthy happy looking foxes. Seeing a bear from a safe distance would have been nice but the chance to witness a moose on the loose was the true wish.  We arrived at Upper Kananaskis Lake, geared up and hit the trail.  

It was cold and windy in the open but we still took the opportunity to admire the views.  The sun peaked through every now and then and cast pretty light on the mountains.

a little time was spent down by the water's edge

We warmed up on the climb through the trees.  It's not the prettiest place in those trees so I was glad to get out of there and arrive at Rawson Lake.  There was lots of grey in the sky and that didn't work in our favour for the best photo ops.  We decided to head to the far end of the lake to get a different perspective and hope maybe the sun would come out by the time we got there.

hiking along the rocky route

We took a little time to play and capture our destination shot at the end of Rawson Lake. 

while the child within came out for some

another sensibly searched for shelter

It was still well before dining time and it was not the warmest and prettiest at Rawson so we hiked back to the trail head expecting we would need to be having our picnic lunch in the vehicle.  Blue appeared and it warmed up as we got closer to the parking lot.

what a difference a couple of hours makes

and still friends after that snowball rivalry

The best table at the lake was available so we snatched it up.  A picnic like this was unusual for my friends and they gladly and happily embraced it.  For them a picnic would be seeking shelter from the sun and the heat wearing shorts and a singlet.  We savoured beverages, sandwiches, veggies, fruit, chips & cheese.

our spread

Shortly after leaving the Lake, what to our wondering eyes did appear, but a moose on the loose.  

This was the icing on the cake!

I told my friends about the sign that used to be at the Highway 40 entrance to Kananaskis Country.  It said "Life Begins at Highway 40".  On the drive to and from Upper Kananaskis Lake, they recognized that this area is a wonderful large playground.  It was an enjoyable time to be able to just sit for awhile and enjoy our surroundings and tell stories and bring up memories.  I'm glad we got to share a day like this and they were game to embrace it even with the wind and the cold we had.  

Mount St Piran July 20, 2017

It had been a long time since we shared smiles & laughs, drinks & meals, walks & talks.  Thirty years  later and we would be having the opportunity to share days filled with fun times again.  I counted down the days, I put hiking plans in place and I watched the weather hoping for it to be ideal for my friends visiting from Georgia and South Carolina.  I also paid attention to the smoke index due to the recent fires in British Columbia and Kootenay National Park.  I wanted the best for my friends.  

I was happy they were game to start off with a bang!  We picked Mount St Piran as our first destination.  We left Calgary with hopes of leaving any smoke behind and having a clear sky in the Lake Louise area.  We were blessed with ideal everything.  When I pointed to where we were going there was not a whole lot of words spoken but I did hear one whisper "dang".  I hoped that meant something good!  

Lake Louise presenting its best!

crossing the bridge along the way

We made good time once we got away from Lake Louise and onto the switchbacks up to Mirror Lake.  We took a few moments to admire Mirror Lake and the Big Beehive.  It was already warm for me, they savoured this compared to the heat they would be experiencing if they were back in their home states.

reaching above tree line where the views begin

freinds rebonding on the trail

In my mind I thought "kindred spirits" we are!  My friends initiated the mountain-top play time and it was just as I like it.  It was colorful and fun and full of laughing.  Before settling in to relax and dine, we secured out summit shots.  Both group......

.....and individual!

The weather on the summit was ideal.  We had sunshine and blue in the sky.  Wind was very minimal but we did add on a layer as we sat and admired the scenery.  Looking to the west was clear as can be.   The only indication of fire was some smoke to the east.

view from the summit

glaciers & mountain peaks

our dining spot

After lunch we still had some silliness to expend.  We enjoyed owning the summit and took all the time we felt worthy of investing on Mount St Piran. It was here that I learned about summit planking.  I gave it a try and I have added it to my options of summit celebration styles.

After a good hour we packed up and made our decent off the mountain. 

We stopped by to visit Lake Agnes before heading back down to Lake Louise then hitting the highway to home.  I was so pleased with how today played out and was thankful for the weather so my friends could have a great introduction to this mountain playground.  Although I have hiked up Piran a few times today felt like new all over again as I was seeing this place through their eyes.  I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to renew our friendship and to make new friends.  We created wonderful memories today!