Official Trail Guides
Exploring the Lakes and Trails of Kananaskis
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Important! Remember to check these Links regarding Trail Reports and BEAR ACTIVITY (wildsmart.ca, trailex.org) when planning your activity.
The Website
What started out as a journal of my favorite backcountry trails somehow evolved into this website, it's intended purpose now to serve as a general guide for anyone interested in exploring the Lakes and Mountain Bike Trails of Kananaskis Country.
I've chronicled what I consider to be some of the best backcountry trails and destinations Kananaskis has to offer, ranging from moderate hikes to long arduous Mountain Bike trips, all of which can be done in a day depending on your ability and level of endurance. These can also be expanded upon to include Backpacking and Backcountry Camping, and I talk about some of the ways in which you can combine these and other trails for extended excursions. Captain John Palliser, an early explorer of the valley, identified the area by taking the name of a local Indian who had overcome some remarkable circumstances. Palliser had written that he had heard of an Indian named Kananaskis, "giving account of a most wonderful recovery from the blow of an axe to the head - which stunned, but failed to kill him." Palliser subsequently named two lakes, two passes and a river Kananaskis; hence the "meeting of the waters" is the most frequently used translation of Kananaskis.
- www.Kananaskisvalley.comNot all of my choices will be considered "Hardcore" enough for some, and for others the uphill climbs or rapid descents of these trails might be more than they bargained for, but in my opinion the trips covered here provide everything the average weekend warrior is looking for.
Hopefully by using this website as an online resource you can experience some of the highlights of Kananaskis Country without an assortment of maps and trail guides, giving you a chance to gain some first hand insight into how magnificent this majestic wilderness really is. And if this only serves to whet your appetite for more detailed information on these and many other destinations, the recommended sources for furthering your experience are "Kananaskis Country trail guide" by Gillaen Daffern, and "Backcountry Biking in the Canadian Rockies" by Doug Eastcott & Gerhardt Lepp.
Please use the CONTACT form to comment on the site and make suggestions. If you would like to know more about how you can assist in the preservation of Kananaskis Country, then please visit the Friends Of Kananaskis where you can make donations or take on an active role in one of their volunteer programs.
The Journey
It was the summer of 1992, and as soon as I steered the car onto highway eight I could feel the despair of rush hour traffic melt away as Calgary began it's fade from sight in the rear view mirror.
Only hours earlier I'd decided to borrow some camping equipment and make my escape to Kananaskis Country, a region still foreign to me other than the winters when I used to ski at Nakiska or Fortress Mountain.
Sliding past Bragg Creek and on to hwy 66, the excitement was taking root as the wilderness began to envelop me and the mountains loomed ever larger, and although this was just a spur of the moment camping weekend I couldn't help but feel I was being lured in to some greater adventure.
Settling into Little Elbow campground I soon realized I hadn't brought an axe to chop firewood with, and when the coleman stove proved inoperable I chose to remain steadfast, even as things progressed to where I found myself at the mercy of a torrential downpour lasting most of the night. As I lay hungry and shivering in a wet sleeping bag fighting the urge to pack up and go home, I had little or no idea that this auspicious beginning would eventually become an obsession consuming every available weekend as I traipsed through the Elbow and Sheep River valleys, Canmore and the Spray valley, Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, and the Highwood-Cataract Creek area.
"The Journey" would last ten years and became a metaphor for my own soul searching, a spiritual catharsis laced with moments of deja vu ... perhaps I had once been a Stoney Indian wandering these valleys long ago ...
Kananaskis
(a 2 minute history)
Before being discovered by Europeans in the mid 1800's, the area was inhabited by Stoney Indians (so named because they used hot stones to cook their meat) who carved paths through the alpine and roamed these valleys hunting Elk, Deer and Bighorn Sheep. Kananaskis, translated to mean "meeting of the waters", was named after one of these local Indians by British explorer John Palliser who led an expedition to the region in 1857.
At the turn of the century the discovery of huge coal seams eventually led to mining in the Ribbon Creek area in the 1940's, and a townsite named Kovach (after district Ranger Joe Kovach) was established at the base of Mt. Allan where miners and their families lived. When operations ceased in 1952 it became a ghostown and remained so until the buildings were demolished in 1969.
By the 1970's Provinvcial Premier Peter Lougheed spearheaded a plan to create recreational and protected wilderness areas in a portion of the Rocky Mountains, for the appreciation of all Albertans and generations to come while also preserving the environment. In 1978 the established territory officially became known as Kananaskis Country.
The Mission
After managing to survive that first camping weekend in the Elbow River Valley, I began compiling a list of all the high mountain lakes scattered throughout K-country. The goal would be to visit them all on a quest that would incorporate backpacking, mountain biking, backcountry camping, and high mountain lake fishing. Of the 36 lakes plotted, I would visit 24 of them, revisiting many several times over a six year period before my love of Mountain Biking intervened. The focus had shifted to where I was now seeking out trails with technical challenges suited to the dynamic of bombing down steep single track. This is familiar territory for a large Mountain Biking contingent in Calgary, who on any given weeknight between May and October can be seen gathering at Station Flats or Powderface for an evening assault on the Mountain.
Subsequently, the Quest would have to wait.
Epilogue
As of 2002 I was confronted with some physical challenges of a different nature, one of Life's unforeseen obstacles making it unlikely I'll return to these backcountry pursuits ... at least not in the way I'd grown accustomed. By creating this website I had hoped to relive the experiences one more time and gain a sense of closure from it, because this had become much more than a hobby over the years. It was an integral part of my life.
I'll ponder the freedom I felt standing on a headwall overlooking the grandeur of this unique and amazing land, counting myself lucky to have had the oppurtunity to live in that moment.
My spirit will remain until the day I can return, perhaps in another lifetime ... and there will be the strangest feeling I've been here before.
Jeffrey Burns
08/25/05
