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Day 3 GDT Section C – 2020

Lake Magog and Mt Assiniboine (3400 m).

August 13th, Big Springs CG to Lake Magog CG, 18 km, 760 m elevation gain, 330 m elevation loss, 7 hrs (all distances and elevation are as per the guide book, Viewranger App will vary), Section C Segment 16.

Day 2 had been a very trying day, but thankfully Day 3 was relatively short so we slept in and took our time moving once we got up. My feet were very sore. I was able to walk to get our food from from the bear bins (no bear hanging this time, go Parks Canada) since I could wear my flip flops around camp and they did not rub on any of my blisters. I was unsure of how far I was going to be able to walk today. We discussed different options including me heading back to Mt Shark parking lot and leaving the hike to rejoin after a few days rest at Sunshine Village. Emily was not happy about splitting up but she was determined to continue on to Mt Assiniboine where we were to spend two nights. I experimented with different layers of padding in my shoes. I tried a spare pair of socks to provide some extra cushioning on my heels and declared myself fit to continue with the hike. I would reevaluate once we arrived at Marvel Lake on whether I would continue to Mt Assiniboine. Once past Marvel Lake I was closer to camping at Assiniboine then to Mt Shark parking lot, and we did have a zero day coming up tomorrow when I would have an opportunity to rest my feet.

Our lovely campsite. Big Springs is a very pleasant little campground.
Extra padding. Would hike like this until Floe Lake.

To compound my discomfort I suffered some sort of reaction to my neoprene knee sock that I hike in. When I woke up my right knee was covered in zits/pimples on the side and all around the back. While not painful the zits went right across the back where the knee bends and was very annoying. I decided to discontinued using the knee sock. This was quite a change as the knee sock is something I had been using for several years and had never had a problem with it. My knee responded just fine without the additional support of the knee sock and I did not resume using on subsequent hikes throughout the fall.

Emily sums up her feelings about the morning.

The father/daughter duo had arrived before us last night. We gave them some of blister tape hoping it would help. We passed them on the trail after a couple of km’s and the daughter had already taken off her shoes and was walking in her sandals. They were going to pass by Mt Assiniboine and stay at Lake Og. We did not see them again on the trip and figured they exited at Sunshine Villiage. They had talked about rejoining the trail at the Rockwall in Kootenay but it really was not looking very good for them. We were packed up and out of the campground at 9:45 am.

All cleaned up.
Keeping spirits high to start the day.

While my feet were sore we did set off at a good pace down the trail. According the ViewRanger App we were traveling at a steady 5+ kph. Our quick pace was halted when I ran into another former student of mine. This student was a recent grad having crossed the stage in the schools Covid outdoor graduation ceremony in June. She was working at the lodge at Mt Assiniboine and was on her way home after having wild camped near Lake Gloria the previous night. We spent a good 25 minutes chatting before saying our goodbyes.

Emily’s note: You can’t go anywhere with this guy. Middle of the goddamn backcountry and it’s like a mom in a grocery store running into the neighbours. It feels like he knows every person under thirty from the Bow Valley.

Chance meeting.

Off down the trial again. I was feeling OK but not great. We arrived at Marvel Lake CG at 11:10 am. The naming of the campground is one of my pet peeves with Parks Canada; it takes about 20 minutes to get from the campground to Marvel Lake. I feel if you name the campground after a certain feature that feature should be visible from the campground. We continued through the campground and hiked straight past Marvel Lake. On our trip to Mt Assiniboine in 2019 we stopped and had a lovely breakfast by a mirror smooth Marvel Lake. This time the water was choppy and the sky a little cloudy so there was not much motivation to stop. While my feet hurt it was a dull constant pain and not nearly enough to warrant turning back so without making a conscious decision I committed to continuing on with the hike.

Marvel Lake CG. Guess some people were having fires. There are very few Parks Canada back country campgrounds that allow for fires.
Nice little bridge.
A choppy and gloomy Marvel Lake. The peak in the distance is Eon Mt (3310 m).

It is 1.5 km from Marvel Lake to the Bryant Creek Junction where we would turn left and steadily gain altitude as we walk the length of Marvel Lake. We soon ran into our first group coming from Assiniboine. They were a large group who had stopped for a break and spread across the trail making it inconvenient to pass by with any sort of distancing. We stopped for lunch in a shady spot in amongst some trees. We hauled ourselves up the slope so that people could pass by with comfort. Lunch was a little less than half an hour. We continued on our way and arrived at the junction to Wonder Pass at 1:45 pm.

Emily’s note: As we were walking along this stretch we got to talking—about copyright law, I think—and as dad started to tell a story about some musicians who did a tribute song, I got the strangest sense of deja vu. When I mentioned it to dad we reflected back and eventually realized we’d had nearly the exact same conversation the last time we’d hiked through there. I guess the trail triggered some subconscious memories to spark that conversation, even though we hadn’t consciously remembered it! Weird stuff.

4.5 km along the lake then a 3.3 km stiff climb up to Wonder Pass.
This tells of a bad day for someone and a good day for someone else.
Making our way along Marvel Lake. The sky is clearing up.
Marvel Pass is a seldom used trail that takes you into wild country behind the mountains that surround Marvel Lake. We were heading up Wonder Pass: 400m of elevation in just over 3 km.

The hike up Wonder Pass is quite steep at first but the trail utilizes switchbacks to lessen the grade. Halfway to the pass the trail levels out and leaves the forest and entering the high alpine. Wonder Pass is very wide which helps make you feel very small which adds to the sense of “wonder” at where you are. Maybe that is why they named it Wonder Pass. There are a couple of trails that branch off and lead to amazing viewpoints over the valley with Marvel Lake. If you continue just beyond Marvel Lake you would come to Lake Gloria an amazing example of an turquoise alpine lake. We had explored one of the viewpoints on our previous visit so we decided we would minimize our hiking time and save our feet so we kept onward to the pass.

While in the trees the trail is steep.
Trail beginning to level off. Emily leaning on her pole, from Zpacks of course.
All smiles as we leave the trees.
Emily looking around as she heads up Wonder Pass.

Emily’s note: The last time we were here dad caught a glimpse of a lynx disappearing into the trees, so this time I had my head on a swivel looking for animals. No luck. I am cursed to always miss the cool wildlife.

Flowers on the pass.
The view from Wonder Pass is simply spectacular.

We had some fun with the camera with Emily taking overly dramatic photos of me arriving at the pass. It was just after 3 pm and we had an easy downhill hike remaining to Lake Magog, then a short hike onto the campground, our home for the next two nights.

Emily’s note: Dad was still pretty tired at this point, but I was finally feeling strong as we crested the pass. When Day 1 was so tough I’d worried that I’d lost my hiker legs, so I was elated that they were definitely back as I went flying up Wonder Pass. Guess that’s the perk to not having to do the additional 13km jog.

My arrival at Wonder Pass.
Wonder pass.

The descent to Lake Magog was a quick 3 km walk that took us down 190 m. The landscape quickly changed from the treeless meadows of the alpine back to the sub alpine and a lovely larch forest. As you close in on the Naiset Huts, BC Parks have constructed a number of boardwalks over fragile areas to minimize the impact of the high traffic the trails see from all the people staying at the various types of accommodations in the area.

The wildflowers welcoming us to Mt Assiniboine.
Boardwalks.
The red roofs of the Naiset Huts.

It took us 6 hrs and 15 minutest to hike the 17 km from Big Springs CG to Lake Magog and a view of Mt Assiniboine. Sore feet and all, it was so worth it.

Arriving at Lake Magog. Mt Assiniboine (3618 m) at centre, flanked by Mt Magog (3095 m) on the left and Wedge Peak (3030 m) on the right.
Lake Magog and Mt Assiniboine.
Someone happy to arrive.

We spent 15 minutes sitting on a log taking in the view of Mt Assiniboine while snacking on chocolate.

Taking in the view. Frosty is peeved that she is facing the wrong way.

It was still just over a 1 km walk from the log to the Lake Magog CG. We arrived at the campground at 4:45 pm. The message board at the entrance has some special instructions concerning Covid. The campground is quite long, perched on a hill, a glacial terrace, at the north west end of Lake Magog. The campsites are grouped sort of like in small “pods”. We continued along the main path and up a small hill and found a pod with just one occupied site. I set up camp at an empty site while Emily went off and investigated the rest of the campground. I had a nice little chat with the campers of the occupied site. They were staying for a few days and were heading off to do some more exploring.

Emily wondering what is covered up by the duct tape.
Covid specific instructions.

Emily came back and insisted that we move to a different site which was located very close to the entrance of the campground. We moved to the new site and set up camp and quickly started to inspect our sore feet.

The state of my feet.
Emily airing out her feet.
Emily wishing we had stronger bug spray.
Wildlife.
Our campsite.

We did not have a direct view of Mt Assiniboine from our campsite, but it was just a short walk to a grand view.

Mt Assiniboine.

It was 6:45 pm by the time we sat down to make dinner. It was again too late and not warm enough to break open the beer, maybe tomorrow. The dining area was encircled by trees but had a nice window providing a mountain views.

Our kitchen and dining room.
The view was acceptable.
The Backpackers Pantry is the empty bag I used to re-hydrate my homemade meal in the ziploc. Looks like I was having kale rotini. Simple reminder on my camera bag “Enjoy”.
In the bag waiting for the water to boil.
On the left Emily was having canneloni with ricotta on the right is my kale rotini. Both meals got a mark of 11 out of 10.
My Dora the Explorer toothbrush. Has been on every trip since I took it on our trip to Mt Kilimanjaro.
Good night from Mt Assiniboine Provincial Park.

Day 4 GDT Section C 2020

GDT Section C 2020 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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