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Finally stopping that crazy suffering that is ice, climbing to concentrate on great ski tours!
3523 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2005 : 10:39 PM
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Having just completed the trip from highway 11 just east of the Sask Crossing to Jasper townsite, I'd give the trail conditions I ran into...
The section up Owen Gorge over Michelle Lakes is in "good" condition considering it really isn't a maintained trail. Some route fiding is required, but it's not difficult.
From Pinto Lake to Cataract Pass there is a ford of the Cataract Creek where it meets the Cline River. The water level is high-ish, but the ford isn't difficult. Don't ford the Cline (obvious, I hope) as it's pretty dangerous. I have heard of hikers following the horse track and trying to ford the Cline.
Up the Cataract Creek to the Cataract Pass is a bit of a slog with some wet areas and no shortage of mosquitoes. There was some deadfall clambering, especially atthe southern point right before and crossing the creek. As you get close to the pass the views get great. There is a good camp spot at the base of the pass.
From the Cataract Pass to Nigel Pass is straightforward. Stay on the east side of the valley and you'll manage to stay dry. The boulder field slows you down and some cairns should be knocked down as they lead you astray, but it's not bad otherwise. You can see where the mountain let go and it's kinda neat. The bugs were bad here, but managable. Where the trail meets the creek near the boulder field the bugs were pretty bad. Glad we didn't come down the night before to camp on the little flats there.
Entering the Brazeau Loop at Nigel Pass, we descended into the valley in the pouring rain so the trail was muddy, and looked like it was okay on dry days with some muddy stretches. The mosquitoes at Boulder Creek and Four Point were horrendous. We were to camp at Four Point but would have been confined to the tent the bugs were so bad. We random camped on the way up to the Jonas Pass and the bugs were improved. The trail conditions got better too as the trail was muddy lower in the valley. Don't tell the wardens about our campspot.
From the Jonas Pass over Jonas Shoulder the trail was in decent shape and we had good weather on the shoulder, thank goodness. With few bugs on the shoulder compared to our previous locales, we "faffed" away on the shoulder for a while.
Coming down into Jonas Cutoff the trail got muddy again and the bugs came back in spades. We skipped lunch at Cutoff Camp thanks to clouds of the little buggers. Waterfalls was marginally better.
The "Poboktan Connector" was in okay shape with some muddy patches but travel was easy to Avalanche Camp. Bugs were better but deet was still needed at regular intervals. The trail was in better shape with the occasional muddy section.
The trail up to the Maligne Pass was in good shape and on the pass the bugs were few (FAT marmots though!) and so we ate there. We were back to being alone with very few folks (2) found the entire trip along the Maligne Pass trail.
Towards Mary Vaux the trail turns to crap with lots of mud. Mud, mud and more mud. Then it began to POUR and we had real fun then. After Mary Vaux, to Mary Schaffer, it's hit and miss. Mudddy sections with the occasional clearing of overgrown willow. Yuck.
We camped at Schaffer just as a horrific electrical storm rolled in. We woke the next morning to better skies and the cold clear morning kept the bugs at bay. However, the trail was a mud bog towards Trapper Creek. Some knee-deep fords kept us from drying out. Parks Canada could do some bridge repairs as they keep saying the fees are for trail maintenance. Sure.
We built a raging fire at Trapper Creek and spent the night drying out. We awoke to serious sub-zero temps and frozen tent poles. But, the cold meant a break from the mosquitoes. We hiked on the pavement over to the restaurant at Maligne Lake and enjoyed four huge plates of pastries, hot coffee and cold milk. Nice!
The Skyline was muddier than I've seen in August but nothing compared to the Maligne Pass. It's like a super-highway compared to most of the trails/non-trails we'd been on for the last week. The Skyline usually means fewer bugs, too. Usually.
Snowbowl was it's usual POS camp thanks to barely any water and bog-fuelled mosquitoes. Little Shovel should have been our stop but that would have meant a short day. Most of days weren't all that long thanks to my Dad's 66 year old legs.
We'd planned to go only from Snowbowl to Curator the next day and give Dad a chance to rest for the better part of a day. We got to the base of the Notch at 11:00AM. The trail from Snowbowl to Curator was in good shape. What would we do? Cripes!
We headed for Tekarra and arived there later in the afternoon. The Notch was in good shape, no snow except for the usual small permanent bit. Tekarra was full so we trucked on to Signal.
Bad! Signal Camp had the WORST mosquitoes of our entire trip. Clouds of them and barely deterred by deet. We got the tent up as fast as possible (we'd eaten at Tekarra where the bugs weren't too bad) and headed for bed. We figured an early start for the trailhead would mean fewer bugs in the cold/cool of the morning. Wrong! It was warm and the bugs were horrific. We skipped breakfast and raced down the Fire Road in little more than an hour!
Anyone arriving in Jasper hoping to grab a hot shower at the laundromat should be warned that they're under renos. The public showers are at the Activity Centre and cost $3.00. We showered and got to Becker's in time for their All-You-Can-Eat buffet breakfast, served daily until 11:00AM ($12.95) They lost money on us!
I'm not at home yet (not until the 22nd) so no pics until then... |
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Anchorage, Alaska
USA
1340 Posts |
Posted - 08/11/2005 : 07:37 AM
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"Don't tell the wardens about our campspot"... you just posted it on the internet!
Still, good to hear about Skyline. I'll be sleeping in little shovel campground tomorrow night! That's a HELL of a trek you did... I did Brazeau Lake just recently and yeah, the bugs are bad. You get blackflies taking a bite out you too, if you're close to the river. How did you like those creek crossings on Jonas Pass? What pieces of crap!
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I'm on holidays! |
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Finally stopping that crazy suffering that is ice, climbing to concentrate on great ski tours!
3523 Posts |
Posted - 08/11/2005 : 08:27 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by northernalberta
"Don't tell the wardens about our campspot"... you just posted it on the internet!... How did you like those creek crossings on Jonas Pass? What pieces of crap!
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I'm on holidays!
I know! What are the wardens going to do now? Too late, suckers...
The creek crossings on the Jonas Pass trail are a bit of a PITA, but nothing dangerous for those wondering. I carry light sandals and had to use them a few times to keep my boots dry. The fords on the Maligne Pass are less frequent but colder and deeper. At least the Maligne River is bridged this year.
Given the high water in many places I was surprised at how little water there was at Tekarra on the Skyline. Enough for drinking/cooking, but if you're hoping for a bit of a soak, that's tough.
Overall, trail maintenance by Parks is pretty poor. We fought deadfall on Maligne Pass (old!), broken/missing bridges and some overgrown stretches. |
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Trail Conditions for White-Goat/Jasper...
