On the 12th Day of HIking (Consolation Lake)

September 17th was a transition day, but being allowed to leave our car in guest parking until 2pm, Joan and I were able to take a morning hike to the Consolation Lakes.

This was the morning view from our cabin's petite balcony. A couple of inches of fresh snow had replaced yesterday's melt.

The trail starts from the rockpile at the end of Moraine Lake, seen in this photo,

and then winds up the next valley. The route was slushy, sometimes muddy or harboring ponding meltwater. Trees often shed a load of snow, so although it wasn't precipitating, we had covered our daypacks. This hike was mixed uphill and rolling stretches, but with no long ultra-steep parts. We certainly weren't the only ones on the trail.

Stopping among the rocks on the north shore of the lower lake, I took a photo of this tree, a real "leaner."

Joan and I wished we could have gotten closer to the true lakeshore, but there was still much to admire. This was the view looking south towards the lower lake.

The upper lake was a bit more than a kilometer away. It's theoretically approachable by hiking down either side of the lower lake, but under these conditions that would take a long, slippery time.

Looking north down the outlet stream.

The return walk was tedious, our third day on slushy trails surrounded by trees. I was, however, getting better at skid-sliding down the gentler stretches.

Back at the lodge a modest but free lunch buffet for departing guests offered a hot, well-spiced soup and serviceable sandwiches.  Then Joan and I took a walk along Moraine Lake. Near the end of our stroll the sun appeared.

Some photographers had more patience than I did!

Photographers and fishers.

After waiting several minutes for a service vehicle parked in the lodge driveway to move, we departed, filling up on gas in Lake Louise before heading south/east on the TransCanada, bound for Mt. Engadine Lodge. Highway 762, which climbs from Canmore to the Spray Lakes valley, still had construction going on near the crest. This made it a one-lane road with lots of fallen/dismantled rock on the right, and equipment and a sheer drop on the left. Fortunately, this stretch was brief, and our wait for our turn wasn't long. The traffic regulating lights seemed to be on a five-minute cycle regardless of traffic.

Shortly after the construction zone we saw mountain sheep on the side of the road. Then, the next 16 km of road was full of potholes, but the final 20 weren't as bad. We turned into the Engadine driveway to see glamping tents under construction. Partially built structures on the right, tools and generators on the left, and cables across the driveway, but we could still drive in. However, the tents are close to the meadow; Joan and I hope they don't prevent the moose for which Engadine is famous from visiting in the future. We hadn't seen any last year, although possibly that was a snowy September phenomenon.

Booking Engadine, even nine or ten months in advance, has become frustrating. Our favorite room is the Moose, which is spacious and quiet, has good views, and offers an indoor route to the rest of the lodge. The Elk, on the ground floor underneath the Moose, isn't bad but does receive some kitchen noise, and there's a small dash outdoors to the lodge. But we couldn't get into either one on any days we could manage. So it became our first time in the Owl room, which is smaller but has two windows and connects indoors (as opposed to cabins or the future glamping tents).

Here, at a lower altitude than Lake O'Hara or Moraine Lake, there was less snow. We saw a marsh hawk flying low above the meadow, hunting for its next meal.

The view from the lodge deck.

Joan and I returned to the Owl room following a spectacular dinner (with no moose sightings). After taking notes on the day, etc., it was time for bed. For us. A serious flaw of the Owl room became apparent: it's situated over the common/fireplace room on the first floor, and at the head of the stairs. A boisterous conversation downstairs carried clearly into our room. Closing the hallway door and cramming towels into the gap beneath our door didn't help. The party didn't break up until almost 11.

We complained to the manager the next day, and he said that the staff is supposed to move people into a smaller room adjacent to the fireplace room by 10:00, which wouldn't broadcast noise upstairs. He would remind the staff of this. Joan let me know that if it was noisy again that night, I'd be going downstairs to hush the rowdies.

Meanwhile, we'll spend the day hiking to Buller Pass, a vigorous hike we hadn't taken since 2012. It was time.