Upper Kananaskis Lake loop Trail hike on 10-Jul-2020

It was a lovely mild day, sunny with slight breeze and not too many mosquitoes, just perfect for a stroll around the Upper Kananaskis Lake. We started at the White Spruce parking area, which was the right choice as there was one other vehicle there when we started at 10, and only two when we finished at 3:30. By comparison the Upper Lake parking complex was swamped by hundreds of cars and people and it would have been a major challenge just to find your party if parking there.

We did the loop counter clockwise. Luckily the breeze across the cold lake was light and we enjoyed good views on the "east coast" section.

View of the "east coast" of Upper Kananaskis Lake

Mt. Putnik from across the lake

On the "north coast" section we enjoyed a sunny lunch on the rocks of the Palliser Slide, with 360 degree views of the spectacular peaks all around.

Margo and George at lunch on the Palliser Slide

On the "west coast" section (which appropriately looks and feels like the "wet coast") we paused to view the Lower Kananaskis Falls.

Lower Kananaskis River Falls

On the "south coast" section we paused to view the Resurgences of Foch Creek. Here the creek, which has gone underground in the limestone karst, resurfaces in several springs, the most impressive of which pours out of the ground on top of a mound and runs in two directions.

Resurgence of Foch Creek runs out of mound in two directions

This is a popular trail, and the hiker traffic was steady, but it was never crowded and social distancing was easy. The undulating trail added up to over 400 metres of ascent over 16.8 km, not the posted 60 metres.

Carl, coordinator and scribe.