Hike Into Willmore Wilderness: Conclusion

It was now Wednesday. After the terrific storm of the night before and the warnings we had received from other travellers about the weather possibly turning, we decided that we would
pack up our camp and move back up the Mountain Trail to the campground at Seep Creek. This would put us about 10km closer to the trail head.  Once we got there we would set up camp, spend the night and when we awoke the following morning we would evaluate the weather. If it was nice I would go on a solo hike with one of the dogs up the Seep Creek trail while Harold remained behind with the other dog whose feet were not fairing so well. If the weather was bad we decided we would just pack up camp and head back to the cars. It seemed pointless to sit in the rain all day Thursday just so we could go to bed wet and hike out on Friday.
We packed up and headed out shortly before noon. The trip was mostly uneventful. We again crossed the various creeks. We stopped again at the patrol cabin where we ran into another group of hunters on their way out on horse back. This group also had a chuck wagon. They were pretty friendly folks.
We took a break at Carson Creek campground, which is well used by outfitters and the like. It was empty while we were there but I had no doubt that it would see lots of activity over the next few weeks.
We met one fellow on his way out to hunt carrying just a backpack and a rifle. He said his pack was about 50 pounds. If he shot something his plan was he would butcher the sheep out there. Then he would stash his camping gear and walk the 20 or so km back to his vehicle with the carcass. He would then have to walk back the 20km to get his gear and then walk back to his vehicle again. He said he was used to it as he was a pretty avid hunter and a “young buck”. We wished him well and then we parted ways.
We reached Seep Creek campground. I wasn’t too impressed by this camp as it was in the trees which blocked any good views of the surrounding area. The creek was a fair walk away as well. Again the clouds were threatening. One minute it was raining the next the sun was out. the weather just could not make up its mind. We spent the evening chatting and eating, alternating between sitting by the fire pit (without a fire) and ducking for cover under the tarps. When darkness fell the clouds cleared off and the stars came out. I decided it was too early to sleep so gathered up what dry wood I could find and built a fire. We sat around for a bit then turned in.
At 3 am I was awakened by the sounds of rain on my tarp. Fed up with it all I secretly hoped it would continue so we could pack up and leave. The rest of my night was snatches of broken sleep. At one point I heard a rustling around the camp site. As I peered into the darkness with my headlamp I caught the reflection of animal eyes. It was one of the dogs who had decided to go for a walk. Once I discovered it was  the dog, I actually relaxed enough to get a few winks when I was awoken again by Harold looking for where his dog had gotten to. He then wandered off into the woods to answer the call of nature. Next time I awoke it was to the sound of Harold who had apparently gotten disoriented in the dark. I had seen his headlamp flickering around in the woods a couple of times but had just assumed he was going about his business.
Eventually 5:30am rolled around. In the gloom of morning and amid the rain, I decided to get up, put on my rain gear and have breakfast. I made some coffee.We decided we were heading home. In between showers we packed up our bags and hit the trail just as the clouds cleared off. We rolled our eyes in the sunlight and decided “Screw it, we’re leaving”.
It was actually good we did pack up when we did because not long after the clouds rolled in and a steady stream of rain fell on us the whole way back. This compounded with the muddy trail chewed up well by horse hooves
and another couple of river crossings, made for a wet slog back. Fortunately, when you know that at the end of the trail there are dry clothes and a truck with a heater your spirits stay pretty high even for 8 or 10 km.
 We got back to the vehicles about 11 am. I had a bag with some dry clothes, deodorant and running shoes. I changed quickly in the outhouse. The parking lot was full of horse trailers and vehicles. As I pulled out the Fish and Game officers were pulling in with their horse trailer. They would be in the area for a while keeping tabs on the hunters.
At Highway 40 Harold and I parted ways, he back to Edmonton and myself to Grande Prairie. I planned a stop in Grande Cache for some Chinese food but when I got there found the restaurant had just closed after the lunch hour. I found a steak house and pigged out on a cheeseburger and onion rings followed by a slice of cheesecake.
I would regret that decision later that night as I awoke in my own bed and ran to the bathroom to spend a few minutes dry heaving. It takes a bit for the stomach to re-acclimatize after eating processed / dried food I guess. While I sat in the chair recovering I flicked on the TV. On PBS there was a show called “Night of the Grizzlies” about some bear attacks that happened in a park in Montana in the 60’s.

I was glad I hadn’t seen it prior to my hiking trip.

Hike Into Willmore Wilderness Part Four

Once again we awoke to clear blue skies. I got up and ate the last bagel I had packed so it sort of marked the passing of time. I had brought along three bagels as part of my food supply and ate one each morning toasted over my MSR Pocket Rocket stove. Along with this I was having a package of instant oatmeal and some instant coffee. I enjoy starting the day off with a good breakfast. Generally when I'm hiking I have a hot breakfast and a hot supper.
Lunch is not really an official event. I like to refer to it as second breakfast or elevensies in honor of Lord of the Rings! During the day we are usually on the move so I graze on dehydrate fruit, granola bars and chocolate bars. All-Bran bars were also a staple of my diet for this week of hiking. I decided on this trip to forgo trail mix. I was diagnosed with diverticulitis earlier this year. Apparently it is aggravated further by things like nuts and seeds. Last year a bout of stomach cramps landed me in the emergency ward the night before I was to go on a three day hike. In the back of my mind I was worried about a recurrence on this trip which would have been compounded further if we were several kilometres in the bush. Thankfully I had no stomach problems. Trail mix is a good weight to calories ratio however I am not taking a chance on stomach troubles.

The plan for the day (Tuesday) was to hike to Eagle's Nest Pass and take in some of the sights. Harold said there wasn't much to see overall, but we would go anyway just to follow the Mountain Trail further into Willmore Wilderness. The trail went through the pass which was basically a couple of rock faces and then a long descent to Rock Creek where there was a small campsite where we rested. It was still early in the day so we decided to walk further along the trail until we came into a large open valley where the Starlight Range bordered to the west. We stopped here and rested again for a bit.

As we were sitting there a couple of horseback riders approached from the direction we had just come. It was a guy and his daughter on their way further into the park. Sheep hunting season was going to be starting on Saturday and they were on their way in to set up camp and scope some possible hunting sites. They were pretty friendly and they rode on. We were ready to turn back and make the hike back through the pass to camp.

As we came through the pass a rainstorm blew in, not too intense but enough to make us don our raincoats. The rain was soon over however. We ran into four more hunters on horseback as we got closer to our camp. They didn't seem as talkative so we just let them pass. By the time we gotr to camp the sun was out and hot. I washed up in the creek again and cooked up a Mister Noodles for supper along with the last of my beef jerky.
Throughout the week we had been sort of neighbors with a couple and their dog. They weren't camped with us but they were somewhere close by. As we sat by our fire the man came over and asked us if anyone had been in our camp at all. We said we didn't think so as everything was in order when we got back. He said it looked as though someone had been in theirs while they were out day hiking. There were horse prints around the site and someone had unzipped their tent door and left it open. Unfortunately when the rain had blown in earlier that day it had gotten into their tent and their stuff was wet. I thought that was very unusual to happen way out here. Most people you would think would be respectful of each other's property. You need to have a lot of trust in your fellow hikers and so on as generally you leave your camp set up when you go on your day trips. There is no place to simply lock up your gear!
Once again a thunderstorm blew in about 9pm. This was by far the most intense. A couple of mounds of hail several inches high built up at the corners of my shelter and the lightning so loud you could swear it was striking only a few metres from the camp.
The nightly bouts with nature's awesome power were becoming a little tiresome. Nothing left to do again but turn in for the night. The guy we had spoken to earlier in the shadow of the Starlight Range had told us the weather was going to turn for the worse by the end of the week.
Regardless, this was our last night at this camp as we had decided we would make our way back toward Seep Creek the following day and do a day hike from there on Thursday before heading back to the trail head on Friday.

Hike Into Willmore Wilderness Part Three

Monday morning greeted us to clear blue skies and our main goal of the day was to hike up to an unnamed lake on the ridge line above our camp. I taped up my blistered foot with some gauze and duct tape and put on a fresh pair of thick socks over top a pair of lighter ones. We would be leaving our gear at camp and travelling with light packs with only a few essentials (rain gear, snacks, water, first aid etc.).
The trail was well used by both humans and horses and the climb took us about an hour through the trees. There were countless varieties of mushrooms along the way and I took a lot of pictures. I am really interested in plant identification but I am only just getting into it. As far as mushrooms go I know absolutely nothing. I never even realized how many varieties there were until this trip! There were many I have never seen before.

We eventually broke out of the trees on to a plateau that looked toward the scree slope descending from Cathedral Mountain. From this angle we got our first glimpse of the lake that was down in a valley. There was a stream flowing over a waterfall that descended toward the lake. We skirted the ridge line that rose between the slope down to the lake on one side and on the other an alpine meadow stretched toward the base of the scree slope. We stopped to drink out of the creek and eat some food all the while taking in the magnificent view of Cathedral Mountain. In front of us the lake stretched and beyond that were more mountains in the distance.
One of the things I like to do after a good hike is lay down in the grass and let the sun beat down on me. This inevitably leads to the nap monster creeping up and so I took the opportunity to doze for a little bit.

The wind started to get a little cool so I decided to go for a walk. I followed the ridge line up for a while to get some better angles of the the lake and the valley. We had toyed with the idea of hiking down to the lake but I wasn't too keen on the idea as my foot was still a little tender. I was quite happy to take in the views. From my vantage point I could look back across the meadow toward the foot of Cathedral Mountain. A person could follow that along and get right to the base no problem. At least that's how it looked. Experience tells me that some of those easy looking routes are not so easy once you start trying to actually do them.I scanned the mountainsides looking for signs of mountain goats or big horns but saw nothing. A few falling rocks attracted my attention but nothing came of it. I did see a marmot running about on the slopes.

Dark clouds started coming over the mountain top so I made my way back to where Harold was still dozing and suggested we should head back before getting caught in the rain. Just then thunder boomed around us again. We made our way back down to camp. The rain never came until about 7 when another terrific storm blew in, this one more intense than the night before and a little hail mixed in.
Looking back I think this day hike was the highlight of the week. It was a pleasant hike and the views from the top were just reward for the effort put in. It just goes to show that: Yes, places such as Jasper and Banff offer fantastic scenery but there are so many places with equally stunning vistas.
You just have to be willing to look for them!

Book Review: Men For The Mountains

"Men for the Mountains" by Sid Marty is a recollection of his days as a warden in Canada's national parks. Sid gets his first summer gig as a patrolman. He learns the hard way about the ins and outs of horseback riding in some of the more memorable and hilarious stories from the book. He is given an area of responsibility in Yoho National Park. He lives in a small cabin heated by a wood stove and draws water from a nearby stream. As the years progress he eventually gets on as a full time warden and the book is filled with  stories about his dealings with bears, camp cooks and horses. There is a very interesting chapter on what it takes to fight a fire on a mountainside in Jasper National Park using volunteers composed mainly of hippies and Vietnam era draft dodgers. It really is amazing to see the methods that are required to bring a fire under control under such extreme circumstances and the type of men it takes to see the job through.

Throughout, there is a constant theme that the warden should not be in the townsite sitting in an office but should instead be out in the park, patrolling the back country, maintaining the trails and keeping tabs on the wildlife and the people who choose to interact with that environment. There are other stories he tells of wardens in the early days of the Park Service. Ones that spent winters holed up in patrol cabins waiting out blizzards in mountain passes. Another of a warden who falls off his horse and survives several days under a tree as grizzly bears prowl about waiting for him to die. The stories depict the life of the pre-centralization wardens. No one gets into that type job for the money, it is purely for the love of nature and the lifestyle.