This trail climbs about 1500 feet to an overlook on the shoulder of Castle Mountain, not all the way to the summit. The trail is almost 5 miles round-trip. We all had come down with a pretty bad cold at this point, so the pace was pretty mellow. Temperatures were again in the 20s, with clouds and flurries down low but sunshine up high. The trail was well packed down, but we did not see anybody. Our spikes were again nice to have on the steeper sections.
After hiking, we poked around a bit in town.
The Whyte Museum is worth an hour or two. I especially enjoyed learning about the history of mountain guiding in the Canadian Rockies. Evidently the Swiss had a total lock on the profession until 1909 when, gasp, an Austrian was allowed to guide. The first Canadian guide started sometime years after that (I have forgotten the year).
Below is a photo of a photo of Diny Harrison on display in the museum. I have not met her, but she was listed on Mustang’s website this winter as one of their guides.
After hiking, we poked around a bit in town.
The Whyte Museum is worth an hour or two. I especially enjoyed learning about the history of mountain guiding in the Canadian Rockies. Evidently the Swiss had a total lock on the profession until 1909 when, gasp, an Austrian was allowed to guide. The first Canadian guide started sometime years after that (I have forgotten the year).
Below is a photo of a photo of Diny Harrison on display in the museum. I have not met her, but she was listed on Mustang’s website this winter as one of their guides.