“They” say good friends are hard to find.

Then I am extraordinarily blessed, because I have some GREAT friends! I can’t even say for sure when we all became close friends. It just seemed to happen over time I think, but I guess we all got to know each other better through fitness. We participated in some of the same triathlons and running races, and we all live within 10 minutes of each other. But today I think I really figured out what makes a great friend….

…They say they will follow you wherever you go.

Within reason.

But up the side of a mountain in thigh deep snow, for sure.

How The Day Started

With the forecast for today being close to double digits, we all agreed we needed to get out for a hike. With a month of -30C temperatures and holiday busyness, we had not been on a hike for quite a while.

The plan was Waterton…. but with the large amount of snow we have had followed by warm temperatures, Waterton had an avalanche that closed trails and they had also closed Akamina Parkway due to avalanche dangers.

We decided to head into the Crowsnest Pass, as one of the trails I have done many times is very sheltered from wind and just a great easy to moderate hike.

With our snowshoes and Yaktraks in the trunk, we pulled up to what I consider the start of the hike….at the very bottom.

Take the Snowshoes or Leave Them?

We all love our snow shoes, but they can be a little cumbersome if not needed. I assured my friends, as we started the hike through knee-deep snow, that our Yaktraks would be sufficient….after all, I had seen some Instagram posts that I assumed were of this trail, that said the trail was hard packed and good for fat biking.

So we left our snowshoes in the car.

I have to be honest….every single time I have said we wouldn’t need our snowshoes….we needed our snow shoes.

Today was no different.

I was convinced that the bikers must just start further up the mountain, as there is different starting points. I wasn’t completely wrong…we did eventually find a firmer trail. But we first had to navigate some switchbacks that had a nice hard crust….that we only broke through every 3-4 steps.

Once we were on the more packed trail, we made some good time and gave our lungs and legs a decent workout.

The Fork in the Trail

The truth is, I am directionally challenged. I have no idea why my friends ever trust me when I say “We should go this way”. Seriously.

The trail looks a lot different with snow covering it. That’s my excuse.

A fork in the trail, and I decided to take the trail less traveled. I was pretty sure it had less switch backs. I wasn’t wrong…but in hindsight, it just led to a view point. Once I realized this, it seemed like a long way back to the main trail, and I was pretty sure we could join up with the main trail “just up the mountain”.

So, straight up the mountain we went, through thigh deep snow, with no snow shoes, and hidden fallen trees with sharp broken branches hidden on the forest floor.

After a few minutes of this, someone suggested maybe I look at my Trailforks map to see if we were even headed in the right direction and how far away we were. Lol, I think they maybe need to prompt me to look at my map sooner next time. I don’t always think of it on my own…

We only had about 200m more to hike straight up the mountain in the beautiful deep snow, and then straight up the service road we ran into, to get to “the bench”. The bench is my favorite stopping place while mountain biking, because it gives me a chance to suck some air into my lungs and lower my heart rate.

That bench never looked better than today!! We were all relieved to get there, so we stopped for something to eat and to rest. We then decided what to do next.

Change of Plans

Our original plan was to do the full 12km loop. With shoes that were filled with snow, and starting to get chilled, we decided we had worked hard enough for the day and it was time to head down the mountain instead of completing our original plan.

 

Lucky for us, the mountain we were climbing is a ski hill….and the bench is right on the edge of the ski hill. This area didn’t seem to be open, but was nicely packed and groomed, so we took the easy way down the ski hill…one of us gleefully sliding down on her behind, and the rest of us making sure our Yaktraks gripped with each step.

Once we had made our way down to the lodge, we switched over from the ski hill to the ice covered road, and continued picking our way down.

How Our Hike Ended

When we got back to the vehicle, the preppers changed into their dry socks and shoes, and the rest of us kept our squishy wool socks and hiking boots on.

Next stop before home was our favorite coffee shop in Blairmore, The Cherry on Top Bakery and Koffie Shop, for sustenance on the hour drive home.

When we got home, there was another 10-15 minutes of chatting, because we had not talked since our group lunch on Tuesday and only about 4 hours to chat while we were hiking and driving. We had lots to catch up on and world problems to solve.

And this is how I know that I am blessed with great friends.