Last weekend I drove to Arethusa Cirque in Kananaskis for a quick 1.5 hour hike along the 4.5 kilometer trail. During the hike you gain 378 metres, but most of its towards the middle of the loop. Apparently the trail features a waterfall, however there was no water visible when I went. I suspect the waterfall is present only during the spring runoff.
The hike starts off through a heavily forested area, before emerging into a valley surrounded by Little Arethusa, Mount Arethusa, and Storm Mountain. You’ll then climb a few switchbacks, which gives you some outstanding views of the trees below. The trees are mostly larches, so be sure to visit on the 3rd of 4th weeks of September to get the full fall effect with the colour changes.
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A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hiking one of Alberta’s premier hikes, if not one of the top hikes in Canada. Carnarvon Lake, located in the Kananaskis area, is a difficult 20.4 km hike with an elevation gain of 857 metres. The hike starts off flat, going through a pasture area, where I saw a bunch of cows grazing.
About 2 kilometres later you’ll come across one of two river crossings. You’ll want a pair of water shoes here so you don’t soak your hiking boots. Even in mid-July the water was up to my waist, and somewhat strong so make sure to follow proper river crossing techniques. If you’re travelling with a partner, put the stronger person upstream, unclip your backpack, and gently cross the river. Hiking poles may also be useful here, however I don’t hike with them.
After the first river crossing you’ll walk about another 0.5 kilometers to the second river crossing, which is only about 1 foot deep, but you’ll still want water shoes for that one.
After crossing the second river you’ll enter a forested area that has a somewhat gentle incline for the next 2/3rd’s of the hike. After the forested area you’ll emerge to a steep scree (loose shale over a slope), with a bunch of switchbacks containing a few chains, and even a ladder, before emerging at the freezing cold turquoise blue lake.
I soaked in the freezing cold lake for a while to cool off, as it was 32°C out the day I went hiking. After cooling off it was time to head back to the car. The descent is a bit more difficult than the ascent, so make sure to just take your time and be careful. The hike took me about 7.5 hours return, but I was taking my time.
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It’s been a quiet last few months on my blog page, however I’ve been fairly busy in my personal life, so here’s a bit of an update.
Over the last few months I have built multiple LEGO models including the Bugatti Chiron, Lamborghini FKP37, Porsche 911 RSR, Dodge Charger, Cargo Plane, Crocodile Locomotive, James Bond Car, and Disney Railroad.
I’ve also been busy doing quite a few carpentry projects including a reclaimed wood bed frame, raw spruce bedside tables, a planter box, spice rack, side tables, a foot stool, and a wine rack.
Every week we have been playing online board games with our good friends John and Nicole; usually Catan. It’s a lot of fun, however we look forward to the days where we can play again in-person.
On October 11th Julie and I had a physically distanced meeting with my friends Al and Dawn, as well as their son Ben and his lovely wife Vivian. During our visit Al showed me around his beautiful 1966 Dodge Charger, and we even went for a brief ride in it.
On November 11th Julie and I drove to Canmore on a beautiful, crisp and cool morning to hike Grassi Lakes. This is my third time hiking Grassi Lakes, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. It had just snowed the previous day, which made for beautiful photos. The trails were fairly quiet, which was an added bonus. The lakes hadn’t frozen yet, as it was still fairly early into winter.
On November 15th Julie and I drove to Kananaskis and completed the Cat Creek Falls hike. The 2.4 kilometer hike is fairly easy and took us only 45 minutes to complete. At the end of the hike there is a cute waterfall that was half frozen.
On November 22nd I took some maternity photos for my good friends John and Nicole. They just had their beautiful baby girl Alex a few days ago.
On December 6th Julie and I drove to Kananaskis and completed the Black Prince Cirque Hike again. You may remember that we completed this same hike in the summer time, and wow it certainly looked different in the winter than it did in the summer.
On December 8th we had to say goodbye to our beautiful Grady girl. She had just turned 11 years old on November 8th, but sadly she had quickly developed cancer in her stomach and over the course of just two weeks she was unable to eat or drink anything, and had barely enough energy to stay awake. We will remember all the wonderful memories we had with her.
On New Years Eve Julie and I hiked Grotto Canyon and Heart Creek Bunker during the day, before checking into Solara Resort & Spa in Canmore for the evening. I have completed Grotto Canyon and Heart Creek Bunker hikes previously in the summer, so be sure to check out my blog posts on those as if you’re interested. We made a delicious steak and lobster dinner, played some board games, and had some wine and bubbles before tucking into bed at 2am.
What’s in store for me next? I’m not entirely sure as COVID-19’s second wave is here, and we’re going through a second lockdown currently. I’ll still be out hiking, but I don’t see any travel plans in the horizon at this point in time.
If you like the content that I produce and want to donate money towards the upkeep of my site, or buy me a cup of coffee please feel free to contribute towards it. I really appreciate it.
Ian Griffin Photography 