Bow Peak & Survey Peak (9/17/2010)

Please note that if you are someone whom I am not familiar with or whose event history does not show similar events then I will be contacting you to confirm your experience and ability to do this event. Should I not feel comfortable or have doubts concerning your experience and ability or if I cannot reach you in a modest amount of time then I will remove you from the event. Please know this is done so as to maintain a level of enjoyment for yourself, myself, and the group as well as to have the highest chance of completing our objectives.

This event will be difficult in nature and is an advanced hiking trip involving but certainly not limited to off-trail hiking, route finding, clambering over and under deadfall/logs, bushwhacking, steep hiking over possible loose scree, clambering over rocks and boulders, river/stream ford, and all the while gaining upwards of 1000m plus elevation EACH DAY! Please do not sign up if you have issues with this as this is unavoidable. Also, do not sign up if you are not capable of doing this type of activity over TWO DAYS. This type of activity is very hard on the body physically, and at the end of our first day, you will have to repeat the same and then some the following day. Please do not sign up if you think you can do this event, sign up if you KNOW you can. My screening will be strict. Obviously if you are someone who hikes difficult and steep trails, enjoys off-trail hiking, or has scrambling experience, and has done previous weekend trips like this, you would be ideal to attend this event. While this may seem harsh, this is only to ensure enjoyment for myself and the group, to ensure a higher rate of success, and for personal safety.

Now on to the fun stuff. We are going to Banff Park to hike a couple of mountains over the space of a weekend while camping and enjoying the mountain air. Both Bow Peak and Survey Peak will provide magnificent views of the Rockies pending weather etc. Our departure from Edmonton will be 1pm on Friday. I am taking my vehicle which allows 3 plus modest amount of gear. I would prefer to take 2 vehicles and would want to leave at the same time. It will take about 5 hours give or take to reach our destination, Mosquito Creek Campground (CG) situated south of Saskatchewan Crossing on Hwy 93. We will be driving to Red Deer then west on Hwy 11 to Banff. We will not have reservations at the CG but there are 32 sites available on first come first serve basis. Should something not be available, we will drive 24km to Lake Louise. With an arrival time of about 6pm, we will have plenty of time to set up camp and cook our supper and get ready for the next day. Mosquito Creek CG has outhouse facilities, has fire pits with firewood at extra cost. Ideally we will enjoy a campfire each night so we can all pitch in a few dollars for firewood. There are no showers but there is potable water.

Saturday we will be hiking Bow Peak. Distance of 12.6km roundtrip. Elevation gain, 930m. Summit elevation, 2869m. I would like to leave the CG no later than 10am on this day. Information for this trip is available in the guidebook “Don’t Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies”. I will not provide the route description verbatim but will highlight a few items. There will be a small creek/stream ford at the outlet of Bow Lake so please bring crocs or sandals as the water is deep enough to warrant such. Please take note that while listed in a hiking guidebook, there WILL BE some minor scrambling as we near the summit from Crowfoot Pass. Minor meaning no exposure or rock fall hazard but rather clambering over small or large quartzite boulders. We will return the same way but will attempt the detour to a couple tarns off Crowfoot Pass as suggested in the guidebook. We will return to the CG to cook supper and spend the night.

Sunday We will be hiking Survey Peak. Elevation gain of some 1400m. Summit elevation of 2672m. We will need to pack up early so we can get a good start to our day. Expect a departure from camp by 8am sharp! We will be driving back north to the Glacier Lake trailhead to hike Survey Peak. This particular trip does not appear in any guidebook but the route is straightforward and while a hike, it is mostly an off-trail hike requiring bushwhacking and minor route finding through forest to tree line where it will be a steep hike on loose or firm scree to reach the summit. The majority of this route will be spent in the trees but once at treeline and at the summit, as the name suggests, is a great place to 'survey' the Rockies. We will return the same way. Initially, we will be on the Glacier Lake trail for about 5km before leaving the trail for the forest. We will return to Edmonton following our return to our vehicles. Expect a stop in Rocky Mountain House for supper, (Boston Pizza, A&W etc). Do expect a late, late return to Edmonton, hopefully before midnight.

Tenting: you will be required to share a tent with a partner either male or female depending on who has signed up and registered for the trip. I am hoping to have 6 people so this would be 3 tents and 3 sites total.

Weather: September can be a great month for this activity but it can also be quite the opposite. I will be monitoring the weather forecast leading up to our event and should the forecast or mountain conditions be unfavourable then the event may either be cancelled or I may find another lower elevation trail to hike for the weekend.

Cost: there will not be any advance payment for this trip but there will be costs to pay for each member. It is $17.60/site/night at the Mosquito Creek CG so if sharing a tent then your cost is roughly $17 for 2 nights. More if we have to camp at Lake Louise. There is a cost to enter Banff Park, $9.80/person/day. Let me know if you have a group annual pass. My vehicle will have one so a second pass would be ideal. Carpool gas money as outlined on this page. Also, money for supper on Sunday and any other snacks you desire. If you are sharing cooking fuel, it is considerate to bring some money to help compensate for fuel. Please plan to bring some money to help pay for the firewood so we can have campfires each night. Ideally, bring cash with you as most of the services will be cash only.

Food and Cooking: the plan right now is to cook separately but share camping stoves and fuel. Ideally 1 stove and cookware for 2 people. Please bring easy to prepare breakfasts so we can depart camp in the mornings at the appropriate time OR plan your wake up early to make your breakfast. Lunches will be on the trail so plan accordingly. Friday and Saturday suppers will be at the CG. Sunday supper will be in Rocky. Coolers, my vehicle will have a modest size cooler and there will be space to share for 2 other people, go easy on the fridge items though. Perhaps the same can be done for the other vehicle. Since I like hot dogs, I was planning to bring and roast hot dogs by the fire for my Friday supper. If you want to participate, let me know and we can do a communal hot dog roast supper. If there is a suggestion for a second communal supper (spaghetti, sloppy joes, burgers), let me know too otherwise expect to cook individually.

Notes when signing up: please indicate if you have a tent or if you require sharing a tent. Indicate if you have a camping stove and willing to share or if you need to share one.

Gear:September can be warm, but can also be cold so please bring shoulder season gear i.e. sleeping bag, clothes. Also please bring rain gear. If someone has a tarp, please bring one if you can. While I don’t want you to leave something necessary behind, at the same time please be smart and considerate when packing so we can load everyone’s gear into the vehicles. I know we are car camping but we are travelling as a group and so try to be as minimal as possible without sacrificing essential items.