It was a chilly +1C at the trailhead but we soon warmed up on the first climb to a fine view of the snowy mountains from the ridgetop. The ascent was punctuated by gunshots with the fall hunting season in full swing. We traversed the ridge and bushwacked through the hollow to climb to the trail on the next ridge. Most participants had doffed their coats by this point. After the descent off the ridge we made the final climb to Mesa Butte, now dubbed the Mesa Grind on a trail sign. This was a great place for an extended snack break at around 11am:


Snack stop on Mesa Butte

The trail through the mesa-top forest is now well defined and the descent from there is better than the old eroded road. It was a little muddy along the pipeline road before we headed off-trail up to the hill to the east, which became the designated lunch spot. It was very pleasant in the sunshine and the forecast strong winds around noon never materialized. After some serious lazing around we headed off down the open south slope:


Heading down from the extra hill on the Mesa Butte loop

The return along the old road and pipeline right-of-way was a mix of dry conditions and muddy cow trail- some boot cleaning required! Thanks everybody for an enjoyable fall foothills hike. Participants: Ron C/S/P, Bill (photo), Laszlo, Ricardo, Susan, Brenda, Aldis, David, Bill, Jeannette, Jane, Philip, Rosanne, Gordon & Jenny.

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