Friday, October 2, 2015

Mt. Assiniboine Hike -> Two Strangers, One Adventure

Parents always warn; “Don’t talk to strangers”. However, in the world of travel, strangers play a vital role for discovering new adventures. If meeting a man on a mountain trail and agreeing for him to join along on a multi-day hike alone in the Canadian backcountry sounds like an irresponsible life choice, maybe don’t continue reading.
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Still reading? Cool, we are on the same page. 

In a nutshell, yes. I met a guy while hiking in Leavenworth and within our first normal encounter over beers in Seattle, I agreed for him to venture into Canada with me to hike and explore for several nights. By the end of our adventure, I can’t imagine having done the trip without his company.

Before the word vomit starts spewing, a few basic answers for any readers curious about the Mt. Assiniboine Nublet Hike/Lodge/etc:

-      ->  Can you drive to the Mt. Assiniboine Lodge? NO – the lodge is in the valley itself and only accessible from hiking or helicopter

-       -> Are there many bears? YES – It is not uncommon for the campground to get shutdown from aggressive Grizzly Bear activity. Bring bear spray.

-       -> How far is the lodge? From the Mt. Shark Trailhead it was about 17 miles ONE WAY (6-8hrs)

-       -> Is it the most beautiful hike created on this beautiful green earth? You have no idea….

Those basic questions seemed insanely difficult to find answers to on the Internet so I hope that provides some clarity for any curious trekkers.

Time to give a more detailed description of my mountain man and my own adventure.

We drove about 7hrs from Spokane, WA to Canmore. Along the way, there is the Black Forest Schnitzel House that has an acoustic dome in the ceiling and provides way to much entertainment for two adult individuals. Just saying, check it out.

Anyways, we arrived in Canmore fairly late at night after following our GPS to what we thought was the Mt. Assiniboine lodge itself. Turns out the map actually lead to the Post Office since the Lodge only provides a PO Box for contact info. Mistake number one on our part. Therefore, our first night was spent sleeping in the back of my Jeep on a random Canmore side street.

Waking up mildly refreshed but mostly excited to be in the mountains, Jason (mountain man) and I walked a block to the Good Earth Coffeehouse for our daily morning injection of caffeine and breakfast (awesome coffee house with insanely nice service). We were given direction to the visitor center from our barista and were hoping to gain some insight on the days hike. At the visitor center itself, the worker knew nothing about the Nub or Nublet hike except how to get to the trailhead. However, the center was still a good resource for maps and we were able to ascertain directions to the trail parking lot.

The trailhead parking lot is about an 1:15hr away from Canmore via a scenic gravel road. There is also a topography map, brief description and several pit toilets. Our mistake number two we did not discover until later. The beginning of the hike was under the impression that the trail was 17-miles in total. However, only upon returning to Canmore at the end of the adventure did we discover that it was actually 17-miles EACH WAY. This made for an interesting hike.

The only company encountered during the hike in was a photographer and his gear mule. They highly encouraged doing the Wonder Pass instead of Assiniboine Pass. The selling points were that Wonder was more scenic, slightly longer, slightly steeper, golden larches and holds the yellow brick road. Upon eye contact and a head node, Jason and I were sold and diverged from our original route. In a brief, honest summary; we got our asses OWNED by that trail. Wonder Pass was breathtaking, but literally… it took the air from our lungs and entirely crushed our bodies and souls. (Maybe I’m being slightly dramatic, but you get the idea). A positive note is that there were plenty of streams for water filing points –Yay? However, Jason and I agree that although we don’t know what the other pass was like, we are still happy that we accomplished Wonder Pass and would recommend it to anyone hiking in.




Once at the lodge, it’s an understatement to say that we were simply tired. The idea of walking 500m was soul wrecking. The photographer previously mentioned had also informed us of some bear activity from the nights he stayed in the area. It was with a strong conviction that he encouraged renting a Naiset Hut for the night. Since our legs were shaking and neither of us are particularly fond of the idea of a bear wrecking our tent, we agreed to ask the lodge if there were any huts available. To our luck of being unplanned, spontaneous individuals – there was no vacancy.  Additionally, the campground was being closed due to the aggressive grizzly bear activity in the area. There was somebody out hanging up signs that the area was closed, yet we must’ve been ahead of the messengers because we passed no notice. Therefore, there was no open campground, huts or high end lodging options. Oops?

Rolling with the “fuck it” mentality, Jason and I set up camp near the burn pile in the woods by the huts and had a true “squatter” experience. Glorious.

Positives of squatting in a high grizzly bear activity area: Free camping in a beautiful, scenic and isolated area

Negatives of squatting in a high grizzly bear activity area: No sleep because every sound at night could be a grizzly bear coming to ripe your tent and body apart piece by piece

Between our overly active imaginations combined with endless natural sounds a below freezing temperature drop at night, neither of us got much sleep.

Nonetheless, we awoke the next morning and hiked to the picturesque viewpoint that was my prime motivation for this adventure: The Nublet. Roughly a mile each way, the trail was insanely muddy so bring hiking boots. However, at the top of the ridge the hiker is rewarded with an astonishing view of three turquoise lakes scattered like gems amongst golden larches all bowing to the might Mount Assiniboine.  Talk about some nature magic.  Words cannot express.






We combined the Nublet hike with our hike back to the trailhead and in total did 19miles the second day. All in all, what a wonderful adventure.

Over coffee and ice cream, Jason and I laughed at how misfortunate some of the scenarios were and yet how much fun it made the experience. We also compiled some things that we determined would’ve been a good idea to know ahead of time. From one spontaneous unplanned adventurer to another, here are a few tips and hints for hiking into Mt. Assiniboine and the Nublet:

-       -> Splurge and reserve the Naiset Huts instead of camping. They are $25 per night and worth it even just to get the sleep without having bear nightmares.

-      ->  There is a VERY nice kitchen facility for the guests and camper use at the lodge area, equipped with pots and pans and all. Also includes bear bins for free use.

-       -> Try and plan to stay for at least two nights. Hiking in is exhausting and the area is so beautiful that having a free day to play and enjoy the scenery you worked so hard to reach would be highly encouraged.

-       -> Jason’s lesson: Bring waterproof shoes/boots – that trail gets muddy!

-       -> You can helicopter in/out gear for $2.25/per lb

-       -> Don’t forget to bring your camera, this place is unreal

-       ->The lodge has the BEST hospitality ever

-       -> There is “tea time” from 4-5pm. If you arrive after and ask very nicely, they might sell you beer to go ;)

-       The lodge prepares meals but has limited space so make reservations if you are not planning on bringing in food

Hopefully this provides some answers for any curious hikers and travelers in the area. Although I’ve given some insight and guidelines, I want to encourage the spirit of adventure in spontaneity and flexibility. Be willing to diverge from your notes and explore a new path. You never know when you might meet a random mountain man and have an adventure of a lifetime.






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