It's been awhile since we've been out to the mountains as a family, so when our friends Kate and Dan expressed interest in wanting to go for a hike, and then admitted that they'd never even been out to Bragg Creek, despite having lived in Calgary for over 5 years, we quickly made plans to go for a hike together on Saturday.
Our original plan had been to hike Fullerton Loop, an easy 7km hike, with wide trails and perfect for families. Of course, since it's been such a mild winter in Calgary, it's easy to forget that it's still winter in the mountains, and within minutes of setting out on the trail, we were met with extremely icy paths. Even though there wasn't a ton of snow, the snow that's there is hidden from the sun and the milder temperatures have turned what's left into ice. We passed several hikers at the start who were turning back and warned us that the conditions didn't get better, and where there wasn't ice, there were big sloughs. And then other hikers we spoke with in the parking lot said all the other trails around there were the same story.
It was a bit discouraging, as I was really looking forward to getting in the hike and exercise, but rather than packing up and calling it quits altogether, we drove a bit further down the road to Elbow Falls. Elbow Falls isn't really a hike, but it's a beautiful area and it was the first place we explored when we initially moved to Calgary last year, so we knew our friends needed to see it.
The highway is closed right after the Elbow Falls turnoff for the winter season, so after walking along the river for a bit, we took to the highway! It was pretty cool to walk along the road and take in the views. It's not everyday you can (safely) get a picture standing on the yellow line of an otherwise busy highway!
Fullerton Loop - we'll be back for you in a few months!
Local folks - any favourite hikes in the Bragg Creek/Kanaskis area?
Tell me something fun you did this weekend!
Linking up with Her Heartland Soul for Weekend Snapshots!
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