And what a wonderful weekend it was. I knew I wanted to get to the mountains this past weekend for a little rejuvenation. There’s a crazy week on the horizon, also known as the holiday visit home, so the fresh mountain air did me some good.
Bragg Creek is a quaint little place that was hit quite hard by the floods. And even though the landscape has changed, it’s remains as beautiful as ever, especially when the snow has fallen and the sun makes everything glisten. On Saturday, I headed out with a few friends to cross-country ski at West Bragg Creek. Many of us were beginners, so the goal was just to get out there and have fun. We slowly got a basic handle on the technique, and although the tracks weren’t professionally set like I’ve been used to, the conditions were amazing for skiing. I learned that I need to work on my comfort zone when tackling the hills on cross-country skis as I had several moments of panic. In due time, of course.
The next day, I was back in West Bragg to hike the Snowshoe Trail. We opted not to use snowshoes, and luckily the trail was packed down to make hiking easy. The trail was a short 5 km loop, but since I haven’t been hiking in weeks, it was the ideal distance. After both outings, we ate at the Cinnamon Spoon, which seems to be the remaining coffee shop in Bragg Creek. Unfortunately the cosy coffee place with the awesome hot chocolate closed down recently :(. Let’s hope that the businesses in the area continue to recover okay.
The weekend made me realize: there are no excuses not to get out of the city, even in the winter. (I guess inclement weather is an excuse…). I may not love the winter, but I love doing activities in the winter. Especially the ones that have me exploring the great outdoors.
Oh, and I saw a pair of moose! Just hanging out. NBD.
So I finally went snowboarding this season. On Saturday, Robbie and I headed out to Sunshine Village to hit the slopes. I decided earlier this year that I would make a committed effort to snowboard instead of ski (which is a much more comfortable activity for me). With XC skiing in the schedule, snowboarding would be a welcomed change. I also own snowboarding equipment, so I figured I should really give it a go.
Thankfully the runs weren’t too busy, and I had lots of time to practice. Of course, there were many falls, and turning continues to be the biggest issue for me, but overall I felt quite comfortable on the snowboard. For having only gone twice last year, this was quite a surprise! Luckily there will be many more visits to the mountains, and my hope by the end of the season is to descend a green run while manoeuvring from heel to toe without falling. I think it’s doable.
Last year I tried cross-country skiing for the first time. I really enjoyed it, and although I didn’t get out to cross-country ski that often last year, I was determined to make a change for the current winter season. A few weeks ago I purchased a set of wax-able skis from Lifesport in Kensington and I’ve been itching to test them out. Last night I waxed up my skis (thanks Youtube for the instruction!), and was ready to go for today. I met up with friends Adriane and Lauren and we were off to Cascade Valley in Banff.
I’m slowly starting to enjoy the winter. It’s been coldish, but I’ve already been out for two hikes. The first was Tunnel Mountain, and then on Monday, Robbie and I took a quick drive to Canmore to hike the Grassi Lakes trail. We left Calgary late and started the hike around 3 pm, but by 4:10, we were back at the car. I loved that the sun was out (albeit setting), and that we had great views of Canmore as we ascended. Walking past the icy waterfall was a nice touch before watching the sun set behind the mountains surrounding Grassi Lake. With all of the cross-country skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing planned, will it be possible to add more hikes?? Of course it will. Of course.
Last weekend, the snow came to Calgary. It was one of those weekends where I stayed around the city. I knew that this weekend… the long weekend… a visit to the mountains was necessary. I get really antsy when I haven’t visited the mountains in quite some time, and for me, ‘some time’ is more than a week! So Robbie, Tushna, Shari and I headed out to Banff today ready to climb something. It was cold but the sun was shining, and the weather was ideal for a winter outing. We didn’t want anything too strenuous, so we opted for a quick hike up Tunnel Mountain. Tunnel Mountain will always have great memories for me (Os!), and for not a lot of effort, there are beautiful views of Mount Rundle, the Bow Valley, and the town of Banff. The path was snowy and a bit icy at times, but the spikes helped with the grip. It got me thinking- if there are ever days where I need to do a winter hike up a mountain, Tunnel Mountain is a good ‘go-to’. I’m hoping that this marks a bit of a change. October and November are always very difficult months, from motivation to mood. But getting out to the mountains felt so great and definitely made me more excited about the winter activities to come.
HIKES & HAMSTRINGS 