Canadian Rockies Hiking Blog
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Technology on the trail
I was working for Parks Canada at Lake Louise in 1994 when a phone call arrived at the Visitor Centre. A climber on the summit of Mount Temple was calling in to say he was running late and wouldn’t be checking in from his climb until later in the evening. I suppose we...
Winter reading: A hiker’s library
Midwinter. Okay, call me a wuss, but when the daily temperature range is -15º to -30º, I spend less time outdoors and more time reading. And being a “professional” walker, I read a lot of travel writing. To be a good travel writer, one who explores culture, landscape...
Waterton’s Akamina Parkway reopens
The Akamina Parkway, which runs for 16 km from Waterton townsite to Cameron Lake in Waterton Lakes National Park, suffered serious damage from a major storm on June 19. Several washouts and roadbed collapses forced closure of the road for the remainder of the summer...
Rebuilding bridges in Banff
According to Banff National Park superintendent Dave McDonough, the record storm and flooding that hit the Canadian Rockies in June 2013 caused $19 million in damage to the park. Approximately half of that was to infrastructure, and much of that was the loss of 49...
Facebook: My favourite Canadian Rockies pages
I’m not a big social media fan. I don’t maintain a Facebook page or have a Twitter feed. But lately I’ve been checking out some Facebook pages linked to Parks Canada or created by local support groups. Without exception, I’ve discovered some great current news posted...
Mike from Frisco—Champion guidebook contributor
When Bart Robinson and I first published the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide, we wanted to provide information on all the known trails in the mountain parks. In addition to the primary day hikes and backpacks we surveyed and measured ourselves, we also collected snippets...
Christmas books for mountain folk
Books are always a good gift at Christmas time, and here are some suggestions for anyone on your list who loves mountains, and particularly the backcountry of the Canadian Rockies. My first two recommendations are classics, but still readily available throughout the...
Google Street View hits the trail in the Canadian Rockies
When my home on an obscure street in small-town British Columbia made it to Google Street View last year, I realized it was only a matter of time until we would be “clicking” our way down the trails in the Canadian Rockies. Sure enough, Parks Canada and Google Maps...
A Wild Year in Banff National Park
We don’t expect to see many animals when we're hiking in the Canadian Rockies. Ground squirrels, grey jays and, if we're on the right trail, maybe hoary marmots, pikas and ptarmigan. If we're looking for wildlife, the big sexy kind like bear, bighorn sheep, elk, moose...