On the 5th Day of Hiking (Lake McArthur)

The weather looked uncertain from the get-go on Sept. 10th, leading Joan and me to start out wearing our rainpants, as they are awkward to don at the last minute. They also provide a windbreaking layer over thin hiking pants.

We headed for Lake McArthur via the Big Larches trail, postponing any attempt at higher destinations such as Wiwaxy Gap or All Souls Prospect for better weather. The Big Larches trail soon climbed steeply along the flank of a boulder slope that cascades down from Mt. Schaffer.

In July this rock field is a likely place to spot hoary marmots and pikas; however, in September, most marmots have begun hibernating. The weather today may have also been a factor. Nonetheless we did see a couple of pikas busy with their foraging, adding tasty vegetation to their winter stores. In this photo, the pika's head is blurred because he/she is busy yanking out the goodies.

Pikas are workaholics, and for good reason.

The trail then passed into the woods for which the trail is named. The core of one old stump provided shelter to growing mosses.

The Big Larches trail took us to Schaffer Lake and then to the McArthur Pass trail. Along the way we saw some fresh scat that looked very bear-like, and we began calling out "Yo Bear!" every few minutes as long as we were in the woods.

On arriving at Schaffer Lake we saw clouds billowing up into valley from the far side, and the air became misty wet with light showers alternating with times of cessation. Not at all like last September! We took the High Level trail to McArthur, walking through clouds. Then we reached the cairn marking our arrival in the valley of the lake.

Joan and I found a good spot on a rocky promontory to sit and eat our packed lunches, which always include three fabulous O'Hara cookies. We could see the lake but not the peaks surrounding it. Sometimes the far end of the lake was clouded in; the scene's mood changed often with the variable light.

Occasionally we could see the glacier at the far end. This photo was taken from the edge of the water.

We finished lunch in a persistent light rain, and decided to return expeditiously by the Low Level trail followed by our less-favored route, the Alpine Meadow to the Elizabeth Parker hut. On the Low Level trail, before it dove into McArthur Pass, we saw four ptarmigans. Their plumage was beginning to turn white in preparation for winter. With the drizzle and fog, I didn't take any photos. Well, there was this one.

No ptarmigans in this picture.

The rain now changed into a rain/snow mix, but favoring rain. We marched back to the cabin, and closer to O'Hara, the decrease in altitude converted the remaining snowflakes to rain, which slacked off by the lakeshore.

The snow is sticking not far up.

Joan and I were shocked to find it was now only 2:30!

It was time to find places to hang things to dry. There are never enough hooks to hang stuff after hours in the wet, at any place we've been. We must be messy.

After much draping of gear Joan noticed something on the smoke detector over the door to the bathroom. Binoculars confirmed that it was a brown bat.

Warm, cozy, and dozing.

Joan went to the lodge to summon help, and two staff guys soon arrived. Their contraption to hold the bat -- a cloth sack without a handle but a square opening -- couldn't be deployed against a vertical surface near the peak of the ceiling. They used a few folds of sack material as insulation while plucking the bat by hand off the smoke alarm. This all appeared to be business as usual; we were told there's a group of bats nesting in the eaves of the cabin housing the two lodge chefs. Still, we were relieved that we'd spotted the bat before retiring for the night!

Fingers crossed for tomorrow's weather. While we've been told that September is the best month for weather in the Canadian Rockies, that's an average. September, over the years, has been the wettest, driest, coldest, and hottest month we've experienced.