Outdoor Video Magazine

Located near Nordegg, Alberta in the Canadian Rockies.

Length: ~43km
Time: 3/4 Days
Book: David Thompson Highway - A Hiking Guide
Min/Max Elevation: 1365m-2700m
Date done: August 24th 2006
Effort: V. High
Rating: 9.5/10
Scariness: 1.5/3
Maps:

Wow. What a hike. This has a fair bit of elevation gain (around 1800m) in total if you do the side trips. But you get to the top of 2 mountains over 2600m, you see two fantastic gorgeous turquoise mountain lakes perfect for fly fishing, and you’re probably the only person in the area that didn’t helicopter in! It is kind of a half-circle route requiring two cars/hitchhike…but this means backtracking is kept to a minimum. You approach Landslide Lake initially from the South over a high pass (more exciting then approaching via Cline River valley), and you leave Landslide Lake/Lake of the Falls via the Cline River route.

Day 1
Start from the Landslide Lake parking area 1km west of Whirlpool Point on Highway 11. This is just west of Abraham Lake, which is west of Nordegg, which is west of Rocky Mountain House which is in Alberta! Ok I’ll stop. The trail initially climbs very gradually through some deciduous forest. It soons steepens though, and the trail quickly becomes a relentless climb that offers great views back over the Saskatchewan valley. As you approach the treeline, the trail crosses a stream and then continues to climb through scree and talus. Here the trail becomes indistinct and you can take what ever path you fancy up the final hard slog to the pass at ????m. At this point we decided to dump our heavy packs, have some lunch and then head up the peak to the west. This actually only takes around 15mins to the top from the pass and is well worth it for the views. It is a tiny bit of scrambling but nothing exposed at all.

Returning to the trail, you now have to cross the barren rocky landscape to the otherside of the pass. Luckily this is flat. When you reach the otherside you have your first view down to landslide lake. Fantastic. Pick your own route down the scree and descend quickly down to the valley bottom where you can rejoin the trail along the righthand side of the stream. It’s then not too far to the shores of landslide lake where you can find your camping spot either at the South or North end of the lake. I would recommmend going right to the north end where there is a nice little site with a view down the lake. Fishing time.

Day 2
The day starts with a nice gradual descent along side a beautiful mossy stream to the junction with the Lake of the Falls trails. Here you bear left over the stream (west) and follow the trail that passes through some nice camping spots. The first part of this trail is flat along by the river, but after a couple of kilometers it starts to rise with increasing steepness away from the river. Around the top of the climb, there is a nice view left to a large waterfall through the trees. You then drop steeply to cross the steam, and immediately rise again in a short but very very steep climb. Once you reach the top it’s plain sailing all the way down to Lake of the Falls. You pass through a gorgeous valley, surrounded by nice peaks….accompanied by the sound of HELICOPTERS. Yes, when we were there helicopters fly low and loud over the trail about every 30mins. They are doing tours to the Columbia Icefields, and taking in and picking up fishermen from Lake of the Falls.

Upon reaching the lake, you realise it was all worth it. It’s a fantastic colour, and in a fantastic setting. Lush green trees and meadows around, big cliffs (we saw a mountain goat here) and it’s full of fish. There are some nice camping spots here, and it was sorely tempting to stay the night here. However we stuck to our original plan and pressed onwards. We continued to the far end of the lake, following the stream right back to the end of the valley. It’s a gradual climb through a lovely alpine valley, however nearer the end of the valley it becomes very rocky and tough walking. The headwalls of the valley on all 3 sides provide an excellent setting though, giving a feeling of isolation compared to the busy, noisy lake of the falls. Climbing the scree to the pass at the end of the valley is tricky business. It’s unstable, steep, and takes a lot longer than it looks. Upon reaching the pass you have a gorgeous view down the Saskatchewan valley again.

Continue to climb to the left (east) over the first peak. The hiking is easy, the gradient OK, and the views remain stupendous. The ridge is not exposed. From the top of the first peak you can see for miles around, and streching directly in front of you is the inviting ridge to the next summit. At this point we descended to the saddle inbetween the two peaks, and pitched tent. Surprisingly we found a perfectly flat spot among the rocks. Camping at 2600m with no-one around, and a view reaching all the way to Abraham Lake in the distance was very special. You are one of the higher peaks around and view really is 360degrees. We enjoyed a perfect sunrise and sunset. I wouldn’t recommend camping here in bad weather though…you would become a perfect lightning conductor.

Day 3
We started the day with a trip of to the summit of the first peak (that we already climbed) for sunrise. Wow. Then we packed up the tent and headed along the easy ridge up to the more northerly and higher peak. From here you can see down to Lake of the Falls, and the view is still amazing. Then we headed back down to the saddle where we camped, picked up our stuff and descended the mountain side due West. Exactly what it says not to in the book. But the going is not too bad, loose talus that is awkward on the ankles but makes for a quicker descent than retracing steps all the way. Once back down to Lake of the Falls, it’s time for a long tiring hike all the way back out. At the junction with the Landslide Lake trail turn left, and take the trail that eventually joins the Cline River and leads back to Highway 11 on the shores of Abraham Lake. There are nice camp spots all the way along here if you don’t feel like making it out in one day. On reaching the highway it’s time to hitchike back to your car, or drive back in the sensibly left shuttle car you placed here beforehand.