A gorgeous Saturday in Alberta only means one thing – time to head to the mountains. Mother Nature was definitely on my side Saturday as I tackled Wasootch Ridge in Kananaskis with the sun beaming down with a slight breeze.
I have wanted to do this hike for a quite some time. I was thrilled to make it my first big hike/run of the year. In fact I am even more excited to announce I am going to hike/run/crawl 20 peaks in 2020 for my own personal challenge. In my last blog post I wrote about how I wanted to find something fun to do. Well this is it. More about this later but now I want to talk about Wasootch Ridge.
My friend Barry joined me early Saturday morning to tackle the ridge. Only a few cars took up space in the parking lot but as expected it was all way over capacity when we returned hours later.
The trailhead is just off the parking lot. There are a few trails so be sure to take the trail that leads straight up because it is an unofficial trail, which means there are no markers. It’s near a picnic table. Out and back, it’s 14.5 kilometres with about 1,100 metres in elevation. So get ready to hike.
I had my poles because my legs were feeling a little rough from Prairie, the day before. They are definitely helpful at some parts of these hikes. When we were running down, I tripped over one of my poles and landed pretty hard so not fun.
The first two kilometres of climbing were tough but believe me they are worth it. Eventually the climbing comes to an end (well never really to an end) as we reached the woods then along the ridges. It was so quiet that we could hear quite clearly the conversations behind us.
There were so many places to just stop and marvel at the beauty. All along the ridges, you have stunning views for days of the mountain peaks from all angles. We met many people on the way down who didn’t go on to the summit but claimed another spot for the day.
Barry and I decided to scramble over the rocks as opposed to bypassing the scramble in a more direct, lower route. We reached the scramble part around the five-kilometre mark.
We took our sweet time moving over the rocks. Although I have done only a handful of scrambles, at no point did I feel anxious or afraid. Maybe it would have been a different story if I was alone. Barry told me he had turned around last year at the scramble because he was alone.
There was one spot though that was a little sketchy. You can see in the photo (below) that we are figuring out how to navigate this piece of rock. The three people went down before us. Then I went. I had a little trouble because I missed a step, and one of the guys helped me place my feet. Then the four of us ensured Barry made it okay before we continued on.
One of the guys said, “yay, we didn’t make the news today.” Teamwork. I really, really enjoyed the climbing over the rocks. I felt like a kid. I only wished I didn’t wear shorts. My legs are pretty banged up and scratched.
After we finally made it to the summit, we stopped to have a bite to eat before heading down the bypass route. There were probably 15 people on top with us. We could see the many, many hikers making their way to the summit.
I have to tell you this was a great start to my hiking season in the mountains. This hike does not disappoint. It was super challenging to keep moving as I just wanted to stop and take in the amazing views. Add this one to your list for 2020.
Directions
If you’re starting from Calgary take Hwy 1 for about 70 kms before taking the exit to Hwy 40 for about 17 kms. You will pass the Barrier Lake Information Centre and the Barrier Lake Dam. Keep your eyes pealed as you look for the road sign Wasootch with a picnic table on the left – less than five minutes. If you reach the Wasootch Creek, you have gone too far. Drive down this road to the day use area.
Have you ever hiked Wasootch Ridge? What’s on your hiking list this year? I would love to hear from you in the comments below.