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Powell River, bc
Canada
2536 Posts |
Posted - 08/09/2012 : 6:47 PM
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On this morning I actually slept in till almost 7!! I decided that this should be my rest day,since I was on the 8:30 bus to Lake O'hara the next morning :) I took my time,had a leisurely breakfast with my buddy :) SO CUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think he must have been a baby
to be so absolutely friendly............I could have just brought him home :) I've named him Felix :)
     
Where to go today??? I thought about going to twin falls,but it seemed too far for a "rest day". Perhaps a trip around Emerald Lake.
I've driven up there before,but never had the time or company to explore further,so that's where I headed. The colour of that lake is so beautiful :) Funny how it's such a gong show in the parking lot,but within 5 minutes,you get to be on your own again :)
            
I started to make my way around the lake,it was as beautiful as I remember,but there were so many people in the lake in those bright red canoes,yelling and having fun,but disturbing my sense of tranquility.........I'll have to do something else.....then I came to this sign :)
 
Why not? Of I go across the alluvial fan,big word LOL!!! It was really interesting and pretty,and it was right about the time I realized I forgot my sunscreen (spf 110!),oh no!!! Good thing I had my newer better hat ;) I also found mother natures original sunscreen :)
 
I thought it was just SO fetching non?? LOL!!
It was HOT!!! heat is not something I deal with too well,no wonder I usually come up here in Sept. I was delighted to see two rangers,one on a bike the other on a quad,doing some trail work :) I also ran into some ladies doing a plant study :) Our tax dollars at work for something worthwhile for a change :) It was a lazy day,and my progress was incredibly slow,but I was happy :) I kept seeing little creatures everywhere,flowers,mountains.......perfect :) I thought I would just go to the bottom of these falls and soak my feet,cool down a bit and head back.........sure sure!! Something big died here :( Wonder if it was an elk? There were no bones at all....weird.
               
These large timbers were laying haphazardly everywhere,and you could tell how much water must have been flowing thru here in the spring!!
  
I carried on,getting hotter by the minute,not a breath of wind to be had. On I go,now I'm going up switchbacks,but I can see that I am going to get really close to this waterfall......perfect :) Wrong............I keep thinking I'll get there,but the trail leads away,around,up...but I can hear it,so I keep going. Finally,I get to this spot,and I can't get in the water without probably killing myself,but there's finally a breeze,and the view is nice. I sit and have a snack,listening to the water crashing down...I LOVE water :)
         
But where is all this water coming from?? I gotta see don't I? Up the switchbacks I go,the view just get's better and better :) I could now hear another waterfall.......but where is it? All I can see is these,which I think used to be waterfalls,but are clearly dry today.
  
I have to see,I have to see!! I keep trudging up and up,and boy I'm glad I did!! My reward was coming into view!! Nice!! It's like another Takakkaw,just a little smaller :) COOL!!!
    
I decide this is as far as I'm going,not the original flat 5 km around the lake as planned,on my rest day lol.. It was another great day :) I retraced my steps back down,and out,pleased to see my towel is unstolen again :)
            
I had talked to the guy at the Whiskey Jack hostel the day before,and I was thinking of staying there for one night before lake O'hara,so I could get a shower.....I needed a shower!!! I headed back towards Yoho Valley rd. only to find it closed! My shower!!
Turns out a bus driver got his bus good and stuck on the switchbacks up to Takakkaw Falls shortly after I got out that morning,and they now had two tow trucks trying to "unstick" him! It was 6:30 pm by then,and they said it would be at least another hour or two!
I decided to see if I could buy a shower at the Kicking Horse campground,which was full by the way..........YES!!!! $2.50 later,and I had me the longest shower on record lol!!! Sure felt good to be clean again :) By this time it was like 9:00 pm,so I decided to just go crash in the Wapta Lake lot,worked last year,why not,then no rushing to get there in the morning! Lake Ohara,here I come :)
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Vancouver, BC
Canada
606 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 01:22 AM
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This is like a novel in sequels. Are we going to get a happy ending? 
btw if you continued and did high-line traverse from Yoho Pass to Burgess Pass this is one of most rewarding loop hikes in Yoho. The only drawback is that descent from Burgess down to Emerald Lake is steep, but this is small price to pay for views you have for couple of hours while hiking under Wapta Mountain.
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Jasper, ab
Canada
1029 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 07:34 AM
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| As always, I really enjoyed your three trip reports and all your photos. I am also happy to not read that you rolled into a raging river or slid down the side of a mountain or that you got yourself lost. No pictures of bleeding limbs, sweet. I'm glad that you had a great time. |
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Powell River, BC
373 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 09:55 AM
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| That leaf nose guard is very fetching! |
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Powell River, bc
Canada
2536 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 12:58 PM
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Zeljkok,trust me,I will get all these hikes done sooner or later.........if I won the lottery,I'd just hike forever :)
Lobo,Hahaha!!! I replaced the hat see!! This one is better too,but I still miss the old one.......just saying ;)
Susie,OMG,I didn't realize that was such a bad shot LOL!!!! I was eating something...wow,that's awfull lol!!!!! |
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Calgary, Alberta
Andorra
3795 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 4:17 PM
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| The chipmunks and grounds squirrels at these places are frequently fed by tourists, so it's not that they are friendly so much as they know where their food comes from. |
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Powell River, bc
Canada
2536 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 4:53 PM
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| Rachel,I know that,it's just the illusion I prefer to hang on to :) I didn't feed him at all,but he just kept hanging with me,so cute:) As cute as the sea lions here are,they just don't hang you know ;) |
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Calgary, Alberta
Andorra
3795 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 5:55 PM
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I've had the ones in the Yoho area try to crawl into my backpack to steal my snacks. And I've seen people bitten when their hand didn't contain food.
But I'm with you on the cuteness. |
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| piika
Intermediate Member
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Burnaby, BC
Canada
734 Posts |
Posted - 08/10/2012 : 10:10 PM
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Lovely flower shots
I wondered about that switchback on the road when I was up there...sure looked like an accident waiting to happen! |
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Road trip part 3 Emerald Lake rest day Aug1-2012
