Mt Mann 707840 (The Battleship) Off-Trail hike on 4-Oct-2020

Our group left the Sentinel Day Use area at about 9:30 am and began by fording the rather chilly, knee deep, Highwood River to the start of the Cataract Creek trail. The fall colours were spectacular, and there were many photo stops as we made our way past narrow, rocky canyons, waterfalls, and rapids that would cause the toughest kayaker to sweat. We took the route described in Gillean Daffern’s, Kananaskis Country Trail Guide, which was a little longer the one described in earlier Ramblers trips, but offered a more gradual ascent with no bush whacking. The trail along Cataract Creek was an old logging road and in excellent condition, and there was a reasonably well defined trail for most of the route up the ridge. The summit lunch stop offered excellent views of the Highwood River meandering to the east. The cumulative elevation gain and distance were 652 m and 14.4 km respectively, which took a leisurely 6 hours. A delightful day, with great scenery and a balmy 22C. Thanks to Rosanne, Philip, Douglas, Inge, Joanne, Gary, Steve and Marianne for coming out. John c/s