Back To Canada: Sherbrooke Lake

The next day, July 14th, was a transition day, but Joan and I spent the first half checking out a few things in Canmore before departing. We returned to Uprising for coffee and pastry, then walked past the old RCMP building and the knock-your-eyes-out peonies there. Continuing south and east, we walked through the Spring Creek development along the boardwalk, and then crossed the bridge for a quick inspection of the ongoing development anchored by the Malcolm Hotel. It's astonishing how much money seems to be pouring into this town!

 

Our next step was the Thursday market (farm goods, art, and more). It had been in downtown Canmore for a long time, but with the conversion of that area to either no autos, or paid parking, the market is now held at the civic/event center, called Elevation Place. Here's a map with the high points of our walk highlighted in red. (Click on the image to enlarge.)

We purchased some fruit and pastries at the market for our travel lunch, and then returned to Val & Bob's place to bid them farewell and load our luggage in the car.

 

The goal of our afternoon hike was Sherbrooke Lake, which we had last visited in 2016. Since then, a barrier had been built to prevent eastbound traffic on the Trans-Canada from attempting to cross westbound traffic to reach the parking area.

Further, a sturdy, gated chain-link fence stretched around the back of the parking area, deterring wildlife from a death-defying crossing of the Trans-Canada. Here we consumed our goodies from Canmore, and then set out, an uphill climb. After the initial rise, the routes to Sherbrooke Lake and Paget Lookout diverge. We'd visited Paget Lookout in 2012, but were in the mood for a less strenuous walk today. Lots of other people were on these trails, a sharp comparison to our Centennial Ridge hike the day before.

The final approach to Sherbrooke was muddy in spots, due to the late spring melt, but manageable. Here's a look back as we approached the lake.

Several other groups had reached the waters first and taken the best viewing spots. Joan and I continued up the trail, which parallels the lake. It took a while to find a decent spot for a sit.

I haven't used the Deep Dream Generator for a while ...

The mountains on the far side still had some snow cornices.

The trail, in a less maintained condition, hikes on to Niles Meadows. For us it was time to turn around.

 

It being a late spring, there were still flowers to identify. Here's a western meadow rue, which is a dioecious species, where male and female flowers are found on separate plants. This is a male.

It was a short but steep drive down Kicking Horse Pass to our overnight stay, at Cathedral Mountain Lodge. The next day we'll drive back up the pass to begin our visit to Lake O'Hara.