test & play day

I put today aside to be the day I get "out & about" taking the time to begin the breaking in of my new Styngers, being outside walking for an extended period without the wrist lacer and paying more attention to what I am snapping photos off.  This trio is best suited to be accomplished when I am on my own and can take as much time as needed whenever.  The time was right and the weather was conducive so I headed off to Glenbow Ranch just 25 minutes west of me.

I have a soft spot in my heart for Asolo Styngers and they are my tried & true go to hiking shoe.  This is my sixth pair over the years and I was so happy to see they now come in a color other than browny earth tones.  I have had success with this style but still always go for a couple of shorter test hikes to break them in.  I declare they are now good to go the distance, whatever that may be.          

At home, the wrist lacer spends loads of time on the coffee table, at work I have been removing it for short periods of time.  On the trails, it has been on full time with full force.  The paved, gravel & dirt trails at Glenbow Ranch are the kind where I felt safe to let my bare arm breathe, catch some rays, swing free and just be. This is the good side of my arm.  Some friends have seen the bad side.  I'll share that another time with you.

Prime wildflower time at The Ranch passed by a short while ago.  

Some petals were still thriving nicely affording me some pretty close ups & macros.  

Flower shots are not my speciality.

They take patience to shoot.

Time was not of the essance today.

So I took lots of it.

To get this!

It pays to sit to be more steady.

My favourites are vistas of all kinds.  I find at times when I am on official hikes, I tend to race my picture taking part of the adventures.  My camera can be a point & shoot and that is what I end up doing but it has much more capability than that.  Like with taking photos of the flowers, I had all the time in the world, so no pointing & shooting today.  

I remembered to turn my polarizer.

I worked with the lighting.

I played with angles.

I oogled for fine composition.

I had a triumphant trio today!  

My Styngers are ready for many miles!

The freedom my arm felt did wonders for it! 

Fab photos if I do say so myself!

Am I Dreaming?

Within mere minutes of me voicing the words "Citadel Pass next Saturday" my friends were on board and the plan was in place!  Today was an opportunity of new discovery for all of us as we headed in a direction we had never been before.  Every time I hiked up to Sunshine Meadows and passed by this sign,  I wondered what was beyond and hoped one day to find out! Today I found out!                                  

If you are a loyal follower of "Making Waves on top of the world" then I will warn you that while reading this post you may need to settle down with a bigger meal & bigger drink because it's a bigger post due to being a bigger day.  It was not bigger distance or elevation gain wise but everything else wise!  Shortly after one kilometre and we make that left turn onto the trail to fabulousness, we have a  view of the never ending meadows this area is known for and The Monarch.  

The trail goes on forever.

Through meadow after meadow after meadow.

Gradually gaining & loosing elevation all the while.

We make the steep descent to Howard Douglas Lake.  The smell of smoke we had at the beginning of the hike was disappearing but the hazy sky was sticking with us.  Not enough though to not afford a reflection shot.  We stopped for a very very short break here....  

....before coming out on the other side to a wildflower explosion! 

The views were expansive all day, and we were glad when that haze finally did lift.  

There were pretty little creeks to cross.

We concurred we had our timing right with the wildflowers possibly being at their prime.  I remembered about the "low down" I learned on Healy and went for it here.  With no effort to a "low down", this is the reward you reap.

We arrived at the base of Citadel Peak where Citadel Lake came into view.  

We knew we were not far now from our destination.  

Citadel Peak

the view to my right from our dining spot

the view in front of me

Mount Assiniboine 

After refueling, we explored a bit and played around.  

We began our day way back behind those ridges and mountains. 

The temperature was ideal, the breeze kept the bugs at bay,

I could have stayed here all day!

Short Stop and Making Waves

With still much more to see, we packed up and hit the trail for the return trip.  I checked out the kiosk and then crossed the border into Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park first then quickly back into Banff National Park.

I swear the wildflowers bloomed even more while we dined.

They appeared even more spectacular on the return trip if that is even possible.

My energy level was not at its finest today but I still felt like I could soar.  

I played at Quartz Ridge while my friends checked out Quartz Hill.

My friends are up there on Quartz Hill somewhere at a place I will check out on another day.  

Once we regrouped, we aimed for the long trails that wind through the massive meadows.  

This meadow was the proving ground for "hippy-on-a-stick".

Before exiting towards the intersection that would just about end our day, I had one final look back at this grand vista.  The clouds came and went all day while the temperture rose to 25C.  There was no drop of rain nor clash of thunder both of which were in the forecast.  I agree with a "premier" rating for this trek as it left me wondeirng "am I dreaming" was I really there, was all that beauty for real? Pinch me!

With a bit of time to spare, we visited Rock Isle Lake first before checking in to get our token for the bus ride down to our vehicle.  We were amongst the last remaining few who tried to prolong leaving the area.  Eventually though, you do have to head home!

OOOOOH Floe

Devastation to beauty!  

a transformation from the 2003 forecast fire in Kootenay National Park

Driving south towards Radium on Highway 93, The Rockwall to your right teases and beacons those that have have never ventured in.  I did venture in there for the night in 2012 and yet, I still felt the pull to return.  Today was return time and it pleased me to know that out of the seven of us, only three of us had ever been.  The trail head is at the Floe Lake / Hawk Creek Parking Lot and the views start immediately and last until the second you land back at the parking lot.  A mere few minutes into the day is where you cross the first bridge to get on the other side of the Vermilion River.    

Hours spent hiking through a forest is not my favourite but this forest is different.  

It is wide open, with gorgeous scenes after pretty views after amazing vistas.

This is our trail leading to Floe Lake which sits at the base of The Rockwall.

I hoped our timing would be right for the fireweed explosion and my hopes came true.

a fire affords fireweed

The slopes were spectacular.

It was a day of ooooohs and aaaaaahs offered up due to the scenery, the work and the warmth.  With the open areas, there was opportunity to feel the heat from the sun, it felt as hot as the look of the hot pink fireweed.  The climb was slow and steady with lots of oooogling around.     

a deserved rest on the rock sofa

It took us about four hours to make it to Floe Lake so once there we were in no rush to leave.  We spent an hour & fifteen minutes taking in the beauty, snapping shots, dining and for me "feeling the moment" and "remembering to breathe"!  It was chilly here thank goodness, we enjoy the slight breeze as it kept the bugs away.  

my destination shot at Floe Lake with The Rockwall as the backdrop

splendid scenery

The warden was home today.  We first spied her sweeping off the deck.   

A little later she came out to speak with someone who stepped up onto her verandah.  

Well after two o'clock, we packed up and aimed for the trail back.  

We took a short descent first though to have one last glimpse. 

Now it was all down hill from here on in, elevation wise that is, the scenery never did go down hill. 

looking up 

at the tall tree

caused a dizzying feeling

We made great time descending.  It was a challenge at times checking out the scenery and hiking at the same time.  In places the trail was narrow, with slopes to our right where the ground was soft and liable to giving way.  The vegetation along the way was in abundance and not necessarily a good thing.  Yet, the views held true all day long!

The day started with heat, beautiful scenery, a few fluffy clouds, it ended the very same way and in between there was no swaying from these conditions.  I could not have asked for today to be different in any way.    Thank you for this, thank you for that, thank you for everything!

from devastation to beauty

with hopes this beauty is here for ever