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January 14, 2023 In Outdoor Edventures

Lillian Lake Hike

Where:

  • Lillian Lake

 

When:

  • January 14, 2023

 

Who:

  • Ed, Dave, Rod, Bauer, Oak, Lisa, Peter, Erin, Kardy, Brenda

 

Trailhead:

  • a little over an hour drive from Calgary and a 45-minute drive from Canmore
  • heading south on Highway 40 for 33 km, the parking lot is on the right-hand side of the road

 

 

Degree of difficulty:

  • 610 meters elevation
  • 13.6 km round trip
  • the hike took us four hours
  • this is a moderate hike for most of the way other than one long hill just before the lake
  • at the end of the trail, there is a short hill back up to the parking lot that is a grind

 

 

Interesting notes:

  • this was a monumental day as Erin supplemented Oak’s traditional Fireball with some Screwball Whiskey
  • speaking of Whiskey, Oak had a Whiskey Jack eating out of his hand at Lillian Lake
  • the initial forested part of the trail crosses several bridges along Galatea Creek where you witness the massive destruction from the 2013 flood
  • there are some nice waterfalls and pools of water along the creek although most of them were frozen over
  • there was a beautiful ice falls about three-quarters of the way up to the lake
  • the trail offers views of Limestone Mountain, Mount Kidd, The Tower, Mount Galatea, and Fortress Ridge
  • this trail can also be used to access Lost Lake (no trail marking, so I didn’t see where it cuts off into this trail) and Guinn Pass/Ribbon Lake (the turnoff was moved from near Lillian Lake to just before Lower Galatea Lake)
  • there is a campground at Lillian Lake with 17 campsites
  • keep an eye out for the unique letter P-shaped tree (for Peter) on your descent near the end of the hike

 

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