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Day 2 Egypt Lake Epic Banff NP

Pharaoh Lake.

Day 2: Pharaoh Creek Campground to Egypt Lake Campground, 8.7 km, 407 m Elevation Gain, 307 m Elevation Loss, 2 hrs 56 minutes.

The plan today was to hike to Egypt Lake CG with a side trip to Pharaoh Lake and Black Rock Lake. It is only about 5 km from Pharaoh Creek CG to Egypt Lake CG. I decided to visit the two lakes prior to arriving at Egypt Lake CG to minimize the distance that Volcano had to walk. It would meant a stiff climb for me with a full pack but I was saving Volcano for the next two days, which would be the toughest.

We got out of the tent at 7:30 am. A light rain overnight had left everything wet and soggy. We headed over to the bear lockers to retrieve our food. I put the water on for my coffee and fed Volcano. The picnic table was wet, making breakfast a stand up affair.

Volcano staying warm in her fleece jacket.
Logan Bread for breakfast, love my coffee cup, has a plastic insert, so I can make two coffees at once.

We were up early, and since we did not have a big day planned I took the opportunity to try and dry out the condensation that had settled on the inside of the tent. One challenge with a single walled tent is that condensation will build up on the inside and you will want to get the tent dry at some point. Many hikers pull their tent out at lunch time when it is warmer and dry the tent.

Volcano waiting while the tent dries out, the moon is visible on top of a tree in the background.

I got tired of waiting for the tent to completely dry so I packed up and we hit the trail just as the sun was coming over the horizon at 9:15 am; no one else in the campground had stirred.

Campsite all tidied up.
Trail heading out of camp, Volcano setting a strong pace.

The trail rose an easy 90 m over 4.4 km to the junction with the trails to access Lake Pharaoh and Black Rock Lake. It was a pleasant way to start the morning. Volcano was fresh and eager as we got started.

Bridge over pretty creek.
There was a few obstacles on the trail.
Pharaoh Creek meanders through a meadow below the two peaks (both named Pharaoh Peak). The lakes are nestled into the right of both peaks.

I am always scanning the trail for signs of animal activity–ok, mostly bears. The only evidence of animals I saw on this day was elk tracks in the mud.

No bear prints, just ungulate.

The trail continued to weave in and out of the trees on east side of Pharaoh Creek. We crossed the creek after about 3.5 km and the views opened up to a low range of mountains to our east which topped out at Healy Pass Peak.

No bridge, no worries for Volcano.
Heading across the valley.
View from the west side of the valley. Pharaoh Creek is in the distance, the small stream below us is the drainage from Pharaoh Lake.

We crossed over a small bridge after about 10 minutes and came to the junction with the trail to the lakes above us. We had covered the 4.5 km from the campground in 1hr 10 min.

The creek is small, but quite deep, nice bridge.
Nice sign, no distances. We are headed up.

The trail quickly headed up, gaining 125 m in 0.6 km. I did meet people who had visited the lakes but you could tell from condition of the trail that it was not well traveled. The trail did not unitize switchbacks just went straight up. Once we the trail got steep Volcano fell behind and I took the lead. It took about 20 minutes to arrive at Pharaoh Lake.

A weathered, helpful sign.
The trail is not well defined.
Could be slippy in the rain.
Trail has flattened out, Volcano back to the lead.
Volcano and a panorama of Pharaoh Lake.
Isn’t she just a wonder puppy!

We scrambled over some rockfall from Pharaoh Peak and found a flat place to have a snack and enjoy the view. Then we headed off to explore Black Rock Lake.

An interesting panorama of Pharaoh Lake. Our lunch spot was on the left.

The old sign had said it was 3/4 of a mile to Black Rock Lake but my Viewranger app said just a shade over 1 km, which is pretty close. Black Rock Lake sits 90 m above Pharaoh Lake. The trail is well graded and it never got very steep. We scooted around the east side of Pharoah Lake and had to rock hope over a creek. It was then a nice walk through the woods before coming to the creek draining Black Rock Lake. As we followed the creek to the lake, the flower display was amazing.

Nice sign, no distances.
Trail around the east side of Pharaoh Lake.
I really want to know how the trees got bent.
The creek draining Black Rock Lake.
Volcano enjoying the flowers.
Welcome to Black Rock Lake.

According to Graeme Poole in his book “Classic Hikes of the Canadian Rockies,” the naming of the area originated when the surveyors of the 1922 Interprovincial Boundary Survey thought that Scarab Lake looked like the Egyptian beetle when viewed from above. Notable exceptions are Black Rock Lake, Haiduk Lake and Whistling Pass. Black Rock Lake is named for the dark lichen that covers the cliffs. Haiduk is Polish word for describing someone from the forest and later expanded to describe irregular infantry formed from peasants. Whistling Pass is named for the loud warnings emitted by the resident marmots.

Black Rock Lake.
Panorama of Black Rock Lake.

We hung around only for a few minutes at Black Rock Lake before heading back to the main trail to finish our hike to Egypt Lake CG. The entire side trip took 1 hr 35 min and covered 3.7 km.

Pretty flowers.
Volcano checking out one of the small pools of water that populate a small meadow.
Pharaoh Peak over Pharaoh Lake.
Volcano having rock hopped back over the creek.
Looking east from under Pharaoh Peak, from left to right behind the trees Monarch Ramparts, in the distance The Monarch standing tall at 2904 m, then The Sphinx and Scarab Peak.
The Sphinx which rises out of Egypt Lake, with Scarab Peak peaking out from behind.

Once we were on the main trail, it was only 600 m to Egypt Lake CG, it was just after 12 pm. We came past the food area first, then to a small meadow with several campsites. Next we came to the back country shelter. The majority of the campsites where just past the shelter.

Coming up to the junction with the Healy Pass Trail. The Warden Cabin in back was along the Healy Pass trail in the valley beside Pharaoh Creek.
Welcome to Egypt Lake.
Can get just about anywhere from this intersection.

Since we had arrived very early in the day, we had a very good pick of campsites. I chose one with an amazing view of Pharaoh Peak.

This looks like a good spot.
Volcano enjoying the view of Pharaoh Peak.
Sleepy girl, hiding from the mosquitoes.
Frosty Paws taking in the view, I think the campsite was pretty good.

I had the tent set up quickly. We then enjoyed a 2 hour mid afternoon nap while hiding from the mosquitoes. The short day made time for exploring so we headed out to check out Egypt Lake at around 2:30 pm. It is only about a 15 minutes walk to the lake. We rejoined the main trail, turned left, and followed the trail that would take us up Whispering Pass and onto Balls Pass Junction. After 0.5 km we came to a Junction for Egypt Lake. We turned left and after negotiating past a small pond we crested over a small rise to Egypt Lake, total distance was 0.85 km.

Small pond under Pharaoh Peak.
Have to get past all the dead fall and up the other side.
Welcome to Egypt Lake.

Egypt Lake is in a very pretty setting. The wind was whipping the waves around so I decided I would be coming back early in the morning to take photos.

Egypt Lake and The Sphinx.
Another view.
Photos are better with a puppy.
The Sphinx from a small pond that Egypt Lake drains into.

We hung around the lake for 20 minutes before heading back to camp. Volcano took a longing look up towards Whispering Pass

To the left is the way to Whispering Pass and Balls Pass Junction, to the right is back to the campground. Lots of flowers.

Went to the food storage area at about 5 pm to start get Volcano’s dinner. It was still too early for me to eat. The water source is down at Pharaoh Creek near the Patrol Cabin. It was a bit of a walk.

Bear lockers.

On the way back to the tent, Volcano had a bowel movement. In the past I have just rolled the poo away from the trail. Leave No Trace has been updated to encourage people to carry the solid waste of their pets out of the backcountry. So I collected the poo and triple bagged it.

That belongs to her.

After a bit more relaxing at camp I thought at 6 pm that it was time for dinner. We headed back over to the food storage area. We passed by some campers who were obviously visiting from Europe. Volcano elicited many ohhs and ahhs as we passed by. There was a large family of three generations at dinner. They had two boys of about 6 and 8 years old, plus dad, uncle and grandparents. They had come from Balls Pass Junction. Not sure how far they had come or where going, but it was impressive. The people who I shared my table with had stayed at Egypt Lake CG for two days. This had allowed them to visit the lakes I had visited, plus Scarab and Mummy Lakes. I learned to be more careful with my camera at dinner. One of the people had collected water in a collapsible bucket like the one I had used in Grand Canyon in 2016. The bucket tipped flooding water across the table and soaking my camera. Luckily one of the men quickly grabbed my camera, so no harm done.

Volcano relaxing after her dinner.
Backcountry classic dinner.
The green building is the backcountry shelter, the tents off to the right are where the Europeans where staying.

We headed back to the tent at about 7 pm. I read for a while then at 8:30 pm took Volcano for a little before-bed walk. Lights out about 9 pm. I did wake up to take photos at 11:30 pm of Pharaoh Peak.

Frosty was left guarding the tent.
Panorama of the ridge leading to Healy Pass Peak.
Good Night from Egypt Lake Campground.

Day 3 Egypt Lake Epic

Egypt Lake Epic Home

bootwreckers

Day 3 of our 2021 Labour Day Weekend trip through Day 3 of our 2021 Labour Day Weekend trip through the Egypt Lake area, Banff NP.

This day took us from the campground at Balls Pass Junction over Whistling Pass, with a detour up Pharaoh Peak, which wasn't without some drama.

Lunch was another side trip to Scarab Lake followed by an excursion to Egypt Lake.

Our final destination was Pharaoh Creek Campground. After a lovely evening the Milky Way came out to play.

Read the summary at www.Bootwreckers.com, link in bio.

Photo 1 - moody morning at Balls Pass Junction

Photo 2 - golden meadows as we approach Haiduk Lake

Photo 3 - making our way up Whistling Pass

Photo 4 - heading up Pharaoh Peak, and it really was this steep

Photo 5 - looking over Mummy and Scarab Lakes from the Pharaoh Peak.

Photo 6 - group shot on the way down

Photo 7 - at Egypt Lake

Photo 8 - Frosty Paws guarding the tent

Photo 9 - the Milky Way

Video - scree skiing down Pharaoh Peak

Another great day on the trail with @sio.mellors

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks #teamzpacks
Day 2 of our Labour Day weekend trip through the E Day 2 of our Labour Day weekend trip through the Egypt Lake area, Banff NP is up on Bootwreckers, see link in bio.

The day was sunny and the skies were blue, it was simply an amazing day to be on the trail.

Out day started out retracing our steps from th previous evening back to Shadow Lake.

After lingering to take in the stunning view at the lake we had an easy hike to our campsite at Balls Pass Junction.

After setting up the tent and having lunch we headed up the short but steep trail to Ball Pass. Ball Pass is in mu opinion one of th premier viewpoints in Banff NP. 

After exploring Ball Pass we returned back to the campground and enjoyed a well earned stream chilled beer and a nap.

Clouds rolled in later in the day but it only lightly rained.

Was not the biggest mileage day on the trail but was proof that a great day on the trail.
Photo 1 - Siobhan looking at Mt Ball and it's Glacier from Ball Pass
Photo 2 - Siobhan checking directions
Photo 3 - Shadow Lake and Mt Ball
Photo 4 - Siobhan on bridge crossing outlet of Shadow Lake
Photo 5 - dried  strawberries on the trail
Photo 6 - heading up Ball Pass
Photo 7 - Siobhan looking over the valley from Ball Pass
Photo 8 - heading down from Ball Pass
Photo 9 - our reward for a good day on the trail
Photo 10 - finding peace and tranquility in the backcountry 

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks
Day 1 of our amazing trip through the Egypt Lake a Day 1 of our amazing trip through the Egypt Lake area Labour Day Weekend, 2021 now posted up on our blog, link in bio. Another Grand adventure with one of my kids, @sio.mellors.

Our four day trip started at the Vista Lake Trailhead on Hwy 93 South. Up and over Gibbon Pass to camp at Shadow Lake Campground on day 1.

Day 2 was a short hike to Balls Pass Junction CG, then after a short break off to explore Ball Pass, in my opinion one of the best vistas anywhere.

Day 3 we hiked over Whistling Pass on the way to Pharaoh Creek CG, with a scramble up Pharaoh Peak, lunch at Scarab Lake, and a visit to Egypt Lake on the way.

Day 4 was hiking over Healy Pass and out to the Sunshine Village parking lot where our car had been moved to.

Lots of stories from this adventure,  was a lot of fun to revisit and write.

Photo 1 - evening as Shadow Lake

Photo 2 - pre-hike happy team photo

Photo 3 - Arnica Lake, where we had lunch

Photo 4 - the yellow of Larches starting to come in

Photo 5 - the golden meadows of th high alpine at Gibbon Pass

Photo 6 - view all the way to Mt Assiniboine from Gibbon Pass, about 70 km away

Photo 8 - mushrooms in the undergrowth as we approach Shadow Lake CG

Photo 9 - Frosty guarding our campsite

Photo 10 - still smiling at the end of th day at Shadow Lake

#parkscanada #parks
#shadowlake #banffalberta #banffnationalpark #banffcanada #banff #backpacking #camping #lake #egyptlake #Egyptlake  #backcountry #family #familytime #familytime❤️
The trip summaries for Days 10, 11 and 12 from ou The trip summaries  for Days 10, 11 and 12 from our 2021 GDT Section E hike is now up on www.Bootwreckers.com, see link in bio

We had a great end to the trip. Day 9 was a short day from our wild camp on the Bald Hills to Evelyn Crk Campground. Day 10 was a spectacular hike up over Little and Big Shovel Passes to the iconic Jasper Skyline Trail. Camping at Signal Campground. 

Day 11 was an easy walk into Jasper.

The trip was an amazing experience over 11 days, I met and hiked with many people but big props to my kid, who for some reason keeps hiking with me.

Photo 1 - end of hike, looking off into the distance, across th Athabasca River at Cairngorm Mt. 

Photo 2 - morning Bald Hills

Photo 3 - campsite Evelyn Crk CG

Photo 4 - Reading before bed

Photo 5 - fresh bear print on the trail

Photo 6 - Little Shovel Pass

Photo 7 - Snowbowl

Photo 8 - Last grind up to the Notch

Photo 9 - looking east from the Skyline down through Excelsior Creek

Photo 10 At campsite Signal Campground 

See trip reports on our blog, link in bio.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks #teamzpacks #zpacks #duplex #sectionhike #sectionhiker
Day 7 and 8 on our GDT trip from last summer. Day Day 7 and 8 on our GDT trip from last summer.

Day 7 was from Waterfalls CG to a meadow in the Six Passes Route. Was a wet, moist day. Numerous creek crossings. Left the main GDT route at Maligne Pass and went off trail into the Six Passes. 

Spent the first night in an amazing meadow. With rain in the forecast we did 5 passes and the ridge walk in one day.

In one word the day was "Epic" . Was a spectacular journey. Huge day, 23 km and over 1500m up and down. So happy we did it, but we were so relieved to put in the tent somewhere flat.

Picture 1) the view of the Six Passes Route from the top of the first pass

Picture 2) me getting ready to leave Waterfalls CG

Picture 3) crossing a creek on a wet log

Picture 4) camping Six Passes

Picture 5) hiking Six Passes

Picture 6) sunrise pass # 2

Picture 7) it's a rocky climb

Picture 8) mmmm chocolate 

Picture 9) the final ascent on the ridge

Picture 10) happy to be home for the evening

See trip reports on our blog, link in bio.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks #teamzpacks #zpacks #duplex #sectionhike #sectionhiker
First 5 days of my 11 day 2021 Great Divide Trail First 5 days of my 11 day 2021 Great Divide Trail Hike Section E is up on Bootwreckers, see link in bio.

Includes the 2 days I did on Section D but aborted due to smoke.

Picture 1) Camp on Owen Creek
Picture 2) Camp at Lower Michelle Lake
Picture 3) Pinto Pass
Picture 4) hiking up Cataract Creek
Picture 5) Smokey sunrise over the Brazeau River

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks #teamzpacks #zpacks #duplex #sectionhike #sectionhiker
Fun trip out to the Ink Pots in Banff NP on Decemb Fun trip out to the Ink Pots in Banff NP on December 31st.

Was very cold, -30C, but bluebird skies overhead.

Did a little snowshoeing in the meadow.

Saw almost no one above the upper falls at Johnson Canyon.

Fun adventure.

Happy New Year everyone.

#outside, #outsidethebox, #liveoutdoors, #liveoutsidethebox #naturephotography, #naturelovers,  #retiredhusky, #rescuer
#parkscanada #banffnationalpark #banffalberta #banffcanada
#sunstar #sun #lake #sunrise #alpin #scenery #reflectionphotography #reflections #sceneryphotography
Day 6 Section E Great Divide Trail Hike 2021 (Part Day 6 Section E Great Divide Trail Hike 2021 (Part 1)

Fun day on the trail heading from Four Points CG to Waterfalls CG. 

The day started dry but damp from the rainfall overnight. As we left the Brazeau River valley and headed up to Jonas Pass the storm clouds blew in forcing us to get our wet weather gear on. 

I discovered shortly after that it is great to have gloves for hiking, but that they should be accessible, not buried somewhere in the pack.

The storm was quite fierce but luckily brief. We arrived at Jonas pass and were able to put our rain gear away.

The clouds would remain with for the duration of the hike adding some mood to the hike.

This was my second time hiking over Jonas Pass and Jonas Shoulder and both times it has rained.

We arrived at Jonas Shoulder. We took some time to enjoy the view and let off some steam. The rest of the hike would be downhill.

Happy Friday

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks
Waterfall on Owen Creek, Day 1 GDT Section E. Req Waterfall on Owen Creek, Day 1 GDT Section E.

Required a fun bit of scrambling to access.

Happy Friday

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #waterfalls #waterfall #naturephotography #naturephotography #nationalparks
Day 5 GDT 2021 Section E. This day was memorable Day 5 GDT 2021 Section E.

This day was memorable for a few reasons. First waking up to more smoke.

First photo is the sun rising over the mountains at 8:30am, shouldn't really be that red.

Doing the extra distance on day 4 meant that this day I had a 3.1 km hike from Boulder Crk CG to Four Points CG.

I could not extend the day as Emily was joining me on this day coming in from the Nigel Pass trailhead and the next campground on our route would be to far to reach on this day.

When I arrived at Four Points it was just before 8am! Must be my shortest day ever.

I spent the day reading and waiting for Emily. I heard her bear calling down the trail about a minute before she arrived.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing. Met some some people from Calgary who I had a mutual friend with, he used to be their cross country ski coach.

We went to bed reasonably early as we had a decent day ahead of us tomorrow.

The smoke was lifting as we went to bed. 

The last photo is Links' Happy Badass Bandana. Still miss my little hiking partner.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking
Day 4 Great Divide Trail Section E. Pinto Lakes to Day 4 Great Divide Trail Section E. Pinto Lakes to Boulder Creek CG.

Super fun day full of adventure and a lot of smoke. This was a big day, 32 km over Cataract Pass into the upper reaches of Bourgeau Creek in Jasper NP.

After the clear skies of my astrophotography in the middle of the night I got up at 5am, jst 3 hours after I put the camera away, to join my trail companions Jason and Bent for the day. 

The terrain was suppose to be rugged and the trail a little iffy so I thought it would be good to have some companions. As it was we got took two wrong turns in the first 15 minutes.

After several steam crossings, some with suspect bridge work, finally had to cross a wide stream and get wet feet. I had sandals, but my companions ploughed through so I figured I had to keep up.

I found a rock with ancient Indigenous petroglyphs. It is just off trail, but a good day and a half hike from any road.

We passed from Banff NP to Alberta Parks Wilderness area. There is wild camping in the Wilderness area, but good camping spots are hard to find.

I was going to stop for the day short of Cataract Pass, but it was so smokey I thought I would continue on.

We had lunch at the base of Cataract Pass. I used Frosty Paws as a table for my lunch.

It was such a big day I will conclude the trip in another post.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking
Milky Way and the Persaids Meteor Shower. Pinto La Milky Way and the Persaids Meteor Shower. Pinto Lake

On the night of day 3 I got up at 2am to take photos of the night sky. I was hoping to catch the Milky Way and I knew that the Perseids was going on, so hoping to see both.

I must have seen a good couple of dozen meteors during the hour I was awake.

I went to sleep in my hiking clothes because I knew I was getting up at 2am to take photos then we had a big day ahead of us so the breakfast wake up call was 5am!

I got so lucky with the pictures as in the couple's hours between returning to bed and getting up to start Day 4, the smoke rolled in.

Photo 1 is the Milky Way but no meteor. There are meteors in the following three photos.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #milkyway, #perseidmeteorshower #perseids #nightimephotography #astrophotography
Great Divide Trail Section E, Valley after first p Great Divide Trail Section E, Valley after first pass on the Six Passes route.

New post on www.Bootwreckers.com, preparation and plan for my GDT Section D and E hike for the summer of 2021 (see link in bio)

Learned a lot from last year,  still discovered some new things about hiking and camping.

First post has to do with all aspects of preparation:
- Gear
- Food
- Training
- Itinerary 

The GDT - Where everyday is an adventure.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking
Day 3 of my trip on Great Divide Trail Section E. Day 3 of my trip on Great Divide Trail Section E.

Relatively easy day from Michelle Lakes to Pinto Lake, only over two passes.

I started traveling with two guys I met actually at Yoho a week back, Jason and Bent.

Of course Frosty was on trip, enjoying the early morning at Michelle Lakes.

The first Lake is Upper Michelle Lake.

The photo of me at the pass is at the unofficial names Michelle Pass. Then it was up to Pinto Pass.

I took a one last picture back to Michelle Pass. Last picture is at Pinto Lake.

Great day, only got a little lost.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #zpacks #teamzpacks
Jupiter and 4 little moons First try at astrophot Jupiter and 4 little moons

First try at astrophotography using my camera attached to a telescope, 8" Celeron

Pretty happy with results. Need to research settings for camera to get some colour on Jupiter, but for a first try pretty happy.

Taken from field near Two Jack Lake in Banff NP. Jupiter was over Mt Rundle.

#artofvisual #visualoflife #areyouawake  #earthfocus  #adventurethatislife #createscenery #earthexperience #primeshots #simplyadventure #goparks #wildernessculture #folkscenery #wondersofourplanet #amazingphotohunter #all2epic #milliondollarvisuals #sky_sultans #astrophotography #astronomy
Another photo of the waterfall at Michelle Lakes, Another photo of the waterfall at Michelle Lakes, Day 2 GDT Section E.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #sunstar
#waterfall
#waterfalls
Campsite at Lower Michelle Lakes, Day 2 GDT Sectio Campsite at Lower Michelle Lakes, Day 2 GDT Section E.

Scored the best campsite on the trip at Lower Michelle Lakes. Had more own personal waterfall. Frosty as always had the best spot.

Spent the day relaxing, reading and watching the helicopter activity. 

Started the next day hiking with Jason and Bent who camped by Upper Michelle Lakes and did not know about the waterfall.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking #zpacks #teamzpacks
Morning at Ball Pass Junction, west end of Haiduk Morning at Ball Pass Junction, west end of Haiduk Peak.  Day 3 of our hike around the Egypt Lake area. Thrilled with the colours of the morning sky.

We had some rain overnight, but not much. The clouds lifted off later in the morning. 

Another great day on the trail with @sio.mellors

#parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #sunset #shadowlake #Egyptlake #banffalberta #banffnationalpark #banffcanada
Evening at Shadow Lake, Banff NP. Super fun 4 day Evening at Shadow Lake, Banff NP.

Super fun 4 day hike with @sio.mellors thought the trails around Egypt Lake area.

Shadow Lake was our first evening and was a lovely place to watch the sunset.

 #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #sunset #shadowlake #Egyptlake #banffalberta #banffnationalpark #banffcanada #reflection #reflections
Day 1 Great Divide Trail Section E 2021, Saskatche Day 1 Great Divide Trail Section E 2021, Saskatchewan River Crossing to Upper Owens Creek.

First day of my 11 day hike from Sask River Crossing to Jasper. I was solo for the first 5 days before being joined my my daughter at Four Points CG.

This was only day I actuall slept on my own.

I left Sask River Crossing at 12:30pm followed an old road that intersected th GDT just past the park gates.

Hiked until about 6:30pm as I wanted to camp near tree line for a clear view of th nights sky. The sky was clear and the Perseids Meteor shower was on and did not disappoint 

Photo 1) my tent and the Milky Way

Photo 2) Me getting ready to  head out

Photo 3) view looking West along th north Saskatchewan River

Photo 4) water dropping into the canyon on Owens Creek

Photo 5) the slide that gave people grief earlier in the summer was passable at creek level

Photo 6) the confluence was a mess a hard going

Photo 7) nice waterfall after th confluence

Photo 8) little Canyon near upper reaches of th creek

Photo 9) dinner cooking in th kitchen

Photo 10) Frosty Paws, me and my tent

Was a great day out on th trail.

#greatdivide #greatdividetrail #gdt #parkscanada #parks #bcparks #trails #longdistancehike #longtrail #outdoors #outside #thruhike #hike #thruhiking #outside #backpacking
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