September 15th, our last day at Lake O'Hara, had the best weather of the last three days.
Where to hike? We needed to be back in time for the 4:00 bus, so Joan and I chose All Souls Prospect and on to Opabin Plateau, rather than Wiwaxy Gap and on to Lake Oesa. We started by repeating Big Larches, but with a side trip to Mary Lake. All Souls Prospect is the triangular promontory in front of the line of peaks.
The waters of Mary Lake were reflective, green-tinted glass.
When climbing Big Larches we were favored with a pika viewing.
When not keeping lookout, the pikas were busy foraging, accumulating "haystacks" of fodder beneath the rocks for the winter months.
The All Souls alpine route branched off just before the Big Larches trail reached Schaeffer Lake.
After a few easy switchbacks the route became steep and rocky.
Sometimes it was necessary to look for the alpine blazes, two vertical yellow bars on a blue square, while at other times the path was obvious. But always up; our hiking poles were essential today.
At least the exertion kept Joan and me warm, for in the shade or at a breezy spot, with which All Souls is well endowed, it was very cold. The muddy patches bristled with long ice needles. We continued to climb.
Partway up there was a natural terrace, handy for catching the breath, adjusting boots,
and taking in the view.
Continuing on, Joan and I encountered a trail volunteer repainting alpine blazes. She was chilled, sitting on the ground with just her jacket and cap against the wind. We chatted briefly before she resumed administering fresh blue and yellow paint over faded markings. We were first to the cairn atop the Prospect, despite our deliberate pace.
Perhaps this was because we were headed counter-clockwise on the Alpine Circuit. If a hiker traverses the entire circle of alpine routes around Lake O'Hara in a day, with photographic proof at key locations including Wiwaxy Gap and All Souls, he/she can sign a register at the lodge and be awarded a pin. Most often this challenge is taken up in a clockwise direction to avoid going down from Wiwaxy Gap, making All Souls the final leg before descending to O'Hara. Looking over to Odaray Mountain.
Lake O'Hara, Wiwaxy Gap, Huber and part of Yukness Ledges.
Our solitude was brief. Peter arrived up from the Opabin Plateau, having come down from the (now defunct) Abbot Hut and across the Yukness Ledges. We marveled at his strength, and we took turns portrait-taking.
Four more arrived by the way we had come, and Joan and I had a "first lunch." It was much too cold -- my fingers were freezing -- to eat it all there. We hiked down the All Souls route towards the Opabin Plateau.
A closer look at Opabin Prospect across the way.
We stopped at the Rock Garden, a zone of tall slabs and boulders near Opabin, to finish our lunch, including the all-important Lake O'Hara cookies. A pika was sunning nearby.
The All Souls route reaches the West Opabin trail via a tall boulder waterfall from the Garden. In this photo Joan and I were partway down, and a trio at the junction were discussing. (Click on the image to enlarge.) Again the hiking poles were handy.
Looking back up from the junction.
As we started down the West Opabin trail, headed for the lodge and bus, we spotted a mountain goat browsing on a ledge below the All Souls route we'd just finished. The distance demanded binoculars.
We passed this duck on the shore of Lake O'Hara, perhaps a female, or non-breeding-plumage male, Barrow's Goldeneye.
Joan and I reached the lodge in time for a pit stop and the afternoon tea. We had greatly enjoyed our time at O'Hara, as always, despite some weather challenges. At 4:00 the bus took us 11 km to the parking area, and we drove down Kicking Horse Pass to Cathedral Mountain Lodge. Tomorrow would be our final day of hiking in Yoho National Park before shifting our activity to Kananaskis Country. Our goal: the Iceline.
Sure, the our last morning at Lake O'Hara was beautiful (again), but would it rain later in the day? Rain gear should always go into the day pack.
Joan and I set out for All Souls Prospect via the Big Larches. As we passed by the dock on Lake O'Hara, the water was so clear that the boats seemed to be floating on air.
This was the route as far as the base of the All Souls Prospect trail.
As before, we saw marmots
and a pika in the rocky section of Big Larches.
Then Joan and I embarked on the climb up to All Souls Prospect. We passed the minor bench where we'd stopped a few days earlier, but explored a large bench higher up. We're not at the top yet!
Around the corner was a good lookout over Lake O'Hara.
No time to sit down, though. We resumed climbing. I did pause to photograph this tree, grown into a slender bonsai molded by the wind and rocky soil rather than a pot and wires.
The All Souls trail isn't long but it is relentlessly uphill.
There are one or two spots crossing a rock band where many hikers, including yours truly, use hands as well as feet. If you're headed up and thus facing the mountain, it's not scary. Headed down and facing out, I take a deep breath to overcome any minor discomfort.
At the top we took in the view and fended off little beggars.
Here's a panorama looking north.
To the south the trail to the Opabin Plateau was clearly seen, stage right.
We set off for Opabin.
There were meadows of rocks to go through near the Opabin end of the All Souls alpine route.
From here we could see a group, including some of the folks from our Odaray Grandview hike, taking a breather as they tackle Yukness Col, the saddle between the two peaks of Yukness Mountain, across the valley and higher up. They are the bumps at lower left. Click on the image to enlarge.
The east end of the trail consists of a staircase of boulders, with some big steps in places. This photo looks back, as if we were just setting out on the All Souls route.
We headed across the plateau and went a few yards along the Prospect trail, to a promontory overlooking the cascades. Here we had lunch. The bump in the middle of the valley hosts the Highline trail.
The intrepid Yukness Col hikers had reached their goal by the time we finished eating.
Joan and I crossed the cataracts and started up the Highline trail.
We met more marmots; in season the Opabin Plateau is Marmot City.
From the Highline Joan and I could look back at our lunch spot, the bluff just beyond the stream, and All Souls Prospect, near center top of the photo.
A squirrel had harvested this mushroom and then abandoned it at the side of the trail. Usually the 'shroom is toted up to the notch of a tree to dry out.
We also had a hummingbird zoom by, and spotted a mountain goat hiding from a rock fall across the plateau, under Mount Schäffer. After heading down to Lake O'Hara on the East Opabin trail, we decided to take the long way around to the lodge and spotted these mergansers.
At one point on the lakeshore trail a wooden footbridge crosses the outflow from the Seven Veils Falls. A couple of the veils are visible in the background.
At 4:00 the lodge bus took us and other departing guests 11 km to the parking area, where a staff member emerged from the women's restroom. She'd taken shelter after spotting a black bear cub -- where was Mama Bear? -- about five minutes before. We retrieved our car and drove down Kicking Horse Pass to Cathedral Mountain Lodge, just a few minutes away. We were sticking close to the town of Field because tomorrow, after several years of schedule conflicts, Joan and I will take the guided hike to the Mt. Stephen trilobite beds, a UNESCO World Heritage site that's off-limits except on guided hikes.
July 29th was our last day at Lake O'Hara, but our afternoon bus didn't leave until 4:00. Knuckles and Pierre were eager to take another, albeit shorter, hike.
Along the shore of Lake O'Hara a hermit thrush had caught breakfast.
The morning started out promising but quickly clouded over and began to sprinkle as we climbed the West Opabin trail, headed for All Souls' Prospect. That's the kind of week it was. The mountain goats were grazing yet again on the flanks of Mount Schäffer.
The rain intensified as we began the boulder-strewn stairsteps where All Souls' splits from West Opabin. Soon we reached the section of All Souls' trail that had been rerouted this year; the steepest, slipperiest, and most overtaxed section near Opabin had been replaced with a more gradual ascent. This photo looks back from the trail towards the Opabin Plateau, nestled between the peaks.
At one point we were almost directly above the mountain goats. (This picture was taken with zoom, of course.)
All Souls' Prospect offers a great panorama, but catches the wind and does not encourage hikers to linger overlong. Click on the image to enlarge.
A young couple, just visible in the look-back photo above, caught up to us. They had been married one year, with a wedding gift of one set of parents' slot for Lake O'Hara this year. They started down a couple of minutes before we did, as clouds began to spill over McArthur Pass.
When we were about halfway down a gale blew in with horizontal rain and a wicked wind chill. Conditions were better by the time Joan and I reached the junction with the Big Larches trail, but rather than linger outdoors any longer, we decided to return to the lodge for afternoon tea. In this picture the goodies have not yet been set out, but we were content to sit in a dry, warm place until the snacks appeared.
The weather was greatly improved when it was time to board the bus.
On the 11 km drive down to the parking area we heard a remarkable story about over-reliance on electronic devices and the ensuing selective blindness. The ranger ("warden" in Canada-speak) had unlocked the fire road gate that morning to drive up to the warden's cabin. After moving her truck but before she could re-lock the gate a man drove past all the Parking and No Access signs and proceeded all the way up the closed road to the lodge. He was to meet someone "at Lake O'Hara" and his GPS told him to keep going. Needless to say he was ordered back down the road. A mystery was also resolved. The night before we had heard helicopter noise, but couldn't see anything through our cabin window. It turns out that a couple had walked in for a day visit to Lake O'Hara, and then one had injured an ankle. They missed the parks bus back down, had no campground reservations, and couldn't walk out. Ouch! I expect the helicopter ride wasn't cheap. We went on to spend the night at Cathedral Mountain Lodge, not far away. There was another heavy shower during dinner, followed by the return of the sun. We repacked to prepare for tomorrow's adventure, which we knew would include a drive we had not yet taken in the Canadian Rockies. There was also to be a spur-of-the-moment extension.
