Spencer Creek Hike

Where:

• Spencer Creek

 

When:

• November 24, 2018

Who:

• Ed, Jace, Geoff, Lynn, Craig, Dave, Lorna, Ian, Chris, Finn, Winnie, Noel

Trailhead:

• a 20-minute drive (12 km) up the Smith Dorrien (Spray Lakes) road from Canmore
• you can also access it from the Kananaskis Lakes Road
• the trail is not marked and is between West Wind Pass and Sparrowhawk
• there is a creek bed, and the trail can be spotted on the left-hand side heading into the trees

Degree of difficulty:

• 579 meters elevation
• 10 km round trip out to the end of the valley and back on the same trail
• 3-4 hours total time on the trail
• about 350 meters up the trail it crosses the High Rockies biking trail, so you have to be careful not to make a wrong turn onto that path which some folks, including some of our gang, have done in the past
• moderate climb most of the way with no excessively steep sections
• the path is quite narrow in places that are high above the creek bed, so you need to be careful with your footing especially in the winter
• the trail can be hard to navigate in the winter if there are no fresh tracks in front, so you need to stay close to the creek and watch for the pink tape trail markers
• the snow was initially fairly well packed down, so we all started in boots with metal grippers however it got deep as we got near the meadow at the top, and the three folks that brought snowshoes looked like geniuses

Interesting notes:

• we had a nice sunny day however the height of the mountains around the narrow valley averted the sun from getting to us until near the end when we got below the valley walls
• this hike offers great views in the valley of Mt. Lougheed and Mt. Sparrowhawk as well as back across Spray Lakes to Mt. Nestor
• we ran into a mountain sheep, and it’s child, on the way up the narrow road past the Nordic Center and momma decided to step out in front of us to make sure we knew who was the boss before her and her young one hopped over the guardrail
• this trail is not in any guidebooks that I am aware of, but there are some descriptions on the internet