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More free shuttle buses in Banff for 2017
There will be more Roam buses and Parks Canada shuttles plying the roads of Banff National Park this summer as the park and Town of Banff gear up for the busiest summer ever. Parks Canada shuttles will be free, and Roam bus fares nominal. The expanded shuttle...
Ticks, Permethrin and Canadian hypocrisy
Once again, tick season is upon us. For most in the Rockies wood ticks are an annual nuisance that we suffer for a couple of months. The only defence is to tuck our pants into our socks and check ourselves carefully for the beasties following every hike. But in many...
Spring hiking with crampons
With the onset of spring, most well-travelled winter trails turn into skating rinks with the daily freeze-thaw cycle. That's why I decided to store my skis and snowshoes and try a well-reviewed pair of Hillsound Trail Crampon Ultras. For serious hiking on snowpacked...
The Canadian Hiker’s & Backpacker’s Handbook
When Ben Gadd asked me to write the Foreword to The Canadian Hiker's & Backpacker's Handbook back in 2008, I was surprised and a bit taken aback. Wasn't there already a wealth of "how-to" books about hiking and backpacking on the market? And backpacking was...
Coping with gridlock in Banff
Planning a trip to Banff this summer? Prepare for gridlock. Canada, the Canadian Rockies, and particularly Banff, are everywhere you look these days. On the cover of the December-January issue of National Geographic Traveler and as the subject of a flattering feature...
Canadian Rockies: A hiker’s bucket list
As co-author of the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide, when I was making a bucket list hikes for myself, I realized I have hiked every day hike trail in the mountain parks at least once. Many readers assume Bart Robinson and I have hiked all the trails in the Canadian...
Jasper’s backcountry trail crisis
Washed out bridges that aren’t replaced. Deteriorating backcountry campsites with grotty outhouses. Landslides and fires wiping out sections of trails, some permanently. Tracks over alpine passes awash and churned into muddy soup. Numerous trails decommissioned...
Park wardens: past and present
When we published the 2nd edition of the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide in 1978, Jim Thorsell provided the cover photo of two park wardens in wool knickers packing from Floe Lake to Numa Pass (below). When Jim revisited Floe Lake last month, he discovered two very...
A case for park trailminders
The recent citation issued to a civilian trailminder in Kootenay Park has brought national attention to a question I've been asking for quite sometime. Why is it that provincial parks, lands & forest agencies, and municipalities can work with volunteer groups to...