by Brian Patton | Jul 31, 2021 | canadian rockies trail guide, hiking, Home page News, Kootenay National Park, Wildfire
Climate change has replaced cloudy skies and rainy days with forest fire smoke. The summer of 2021 is no exception. One of the problems in the early days of the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide was cloudy conditions and showers. Thanks to these unsettled conditions, it...
by Brian Patton | Dec 26, 2020 | Banff National Park, canadian rockies trail guide, hiking, Home page News
The original Guide to Hiking Trails in the vicinity of Storm Mountain Lodge was published in 1978. The text and design was created by then lodge co-owner Jim Thorsell. After the lodge changed ownership, the book was out of print for three decades. Many things changed...
by Brian Patton | May 9, 2020 | backpacking, COVID-19, hiking, Home page News, National Parks, Provincial Parks
Hiking and backcountry access in the Canadian Rockies during COVID-19 Updated July 28, 2020 Parks Canada began lifting COVID-19 restrictions and closures in the National Parks on Monday, June 1. Most trails and day use areas are now open throughout the Mountain...
by Brian Patton | Mar 24, 2020 | Canadian Rockies, hiking, Home page News
In these uncertain times, it’s hard to guess what the 2020 season holds for hikers. But snow pillows are predicting one of the latest hiking seasons in recent years. Since I started writing this blog back around 2014, I’ve tried to predict when the first...
by Brian Patton | Mar 17, 2020 | backpacking, Canadian Rockies, canadian rockies trail guide, gear, hiking, technology
A veteran solo backpacker looks back to a decade of exploration on the remote trails of Banff, Jasper and the Willmore Wilderness and provides useful tips for today’s wilderness travellers. Back before there were text-enabled GPS units, solar panels with power...
by Brian Patton | Jul 22, 2019 | Banff National Park, Canadian Rockies, hiking, Home page News, Lake Louise
The expansion of shuttle bus routes at Lake Louise and Moraine Lake this summer promised to ease some of the congestion and improve access to these two popular destinations. But things haven’t been running smoothly. Here are some comments that were sent to my...
