Rummel Lake & Rummel Pass

July 14, 2024. A visit to a picturesque lake in K-country with an extension (most of the way) to a high mountain pass. A short distance north of the perpetually busy Chester Lake trail in Kananaskis is the Rummel Lake trail. It is featured in both Gillean Dafferin’s Kananaskis Country Trail Guide Vol 1 as […]

Elbow Lake & Rae Glacier

July 13, 2024. An enjoyable journey to a popular lake and diminutive glacier in K-country. Elbow Lake is a picturesque and easily accessed lake in Kananaskis Country. There’s a backcountry campground on its shore and it’s also the jumping-off point for some longer hikes. Put all that together, and you have a popular and crowded […]

Mount Sparrowhawk

August 3, 2022. Straightforward scrambling to above 3100 metres. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 10.8 km round trip Total Ascent: 1410 m Elevation of Objective: 3151 m Total Time: 5h 18m Safety and Disclaimer My smoke-free 2022 hiking season came to an end with this […]

Mount Chester

July 31, 2022. Scrambling a K-country 3000’er next to a hugely popular lake. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 13.5 km round trip Total Ascent: 1140 m Elevation of Objective: 3054 m (the official summit elevation, my apps gave wildly different readings) Total Time: 5h 8m […]

Rimwall Summit

June 10, 2022. A short scramble to great views of the Spray Lakes area. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 7.7 km round-trip Elevation Gain: 1000 m Elevation of Objective: 2657 m (Kane’s guidebook puts it at 2680 m) Total Time: 5h 14m Safety and Disclaimer […]

Arethusa Cirque

July 19, 2021. A hike with kids to a picturesque cirque near the Highwood Pass. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Tsuu T’ina, Stoney Ktunaxa, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 4.9 km loop Elevation Gain: 270 m Elevation of Objective: 2427 m Total Time: 2h 31m Safety and Disclaimer There are 3 cirques clustered […]

Rawson Lake

February 8, 2020. A popular all-season hike to a gorgeous lake in Kananaskis Country. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, Ktunaxa, Michif Piyii Metis, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 7 km round-trip to and from the nearest part of the lake Total Ascent: 292 m Elevation of Objective: 1997 m Total time: 2h Safety and Disclaimer […]

Troll Falls & Marmot Creek Upper Falls

February 7, 2020. A trip to K-country’s most famous accessible waterfall, followed by an exploration of a new trail to the less frequently visited Upper Falls. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional territory of the Stoney-Nakoda, Ktunaxa, and Blackfoot First Nations. Distance: 5.4 km round-trip Total Ascent: 100 m Elevation of Objective: 1,538 m Hiking time: 1h 30m Safety and Disclaimer […]

Headwall Lakes

July 22, 2019. A fantastic Kananaskis hike featuring high mountain lakes and waterfalls. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional Territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, Ktunaxa, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 15.9 km round-trip* Elevation Gain: 475 m Elevation of Objective: 2350 m Hiking time: 5h 46m Safety and Disclaimer *The 3 apps I was running to track this hike gave 3 different […]

Pocaterra Cirque

July 21, 2019. A hike with kids to a lovely but lesser-visited cirque just across the highway from one of K-country’s most heavily trafficked trails. Region: Kananaskis Country. Traditional Territory of the Stoney, Tsuu T’ina, Ktunaxa, and Blackfoot First Nations Distance: 3.67 km one-way Total Ascent: 415 m Elevation of Objective: 2435 m Hiking time: 2h 13m ascent Safety and […]