Winter Escape with Friends and a Campfire Lunch in The Canadian Rockies 📷
Had a great weekend out in the deep snow in kananaski Country and got to enjoy this time with 4 friends, half cross-country skiing with me and half on snow shoes. In order to go nearly the same speed, I thought I would lead us out a creek bed I've hiked before towards a canyon, where us on skiis would be seriously slowed up by the powder and downed trees.
If the snow is deep and with the cold spell we've had the last month, the water will be very safe to spend the day on.
Note: Click on any images to view larger versions.
Sunrise
We started out fairly early, just after sunrise, it was about -13°C all day, since the temperature doesn't change much in a canyon area or along the rivers.
I love how crystaline the snow was, since it frosted up extra overnight, making it really sparkle in the morning sun.
We had some amazing snow conditions and lots of fresh powder to track through. Not much other than a few animal tracks out here. The snow ranged from about 20cm to 40cm in depth so we took took turns laying track out in front of the snow shoers.
Campfire Lunch
We went about 7km to the start of the canyon, which was completely impassable on skiis (snow shoes would have worked had we all had them), but that was about far enough, since we had 7km return as well. We stopped for a small bush fire, and we had kicked back, pulled off our boots, heated up our socks and enjoyed some hot soup for lunch, among other snacks.
The small fire worked great, we burnt it to ashes, dispersed the little ash all around and left not a track after covering everything in snow as well.
Thirsty?
What can I say, when someone dares me to stick my tongue to a frozen ice flow, I'm still pretty darn young at heart. hmmmm.
Powder
On the way back, we shot some cool photos with the powder in the sun, a couple here and the sequenced gif below.
Its never enough to just cross country ski, we have to see if we can jump, limbo, duck through, glide over and add all kinds of obstacles. This log was no exception, my buddy wanted to learn to approach it, and side roll over and keep going. Didn't pretty well, I'd say.... haha
Despite the cold temps, creeks have their obstacles. Between all of us, we probably broke through the ice at various breather holes in about 20 places, but this one was the largest and my buddy here dropped about 50cm through the ice on a huge slab that gave way. Luckily he didn't get wet in the freezing water underneath, that is always the risk when its cold out.
And finally, just a couple more shots on the way out.
Someone had left this bone on a root growing out of the rocks. We figured its witch craft. haha
Past Winter Photo Sets
I hope you enjoyed this trip report and photographs. If you are new, please follow and check out some of my other recent winter photography sets:
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For a snow baby like me, this post is worth a million Steem! Thanks for sharing the passion and beauty of our very beautiful Canadian winters. Namaste :)
Thanks eric, ya looking forward to your trip reports as well.
Amazing! Beautiful snow pictures and wonderful sunrise! I like them all!
Awesome Post and awesome Pics, this one gets a ReSteem!
Nice post @unipsycho, looks like so much fun!!! One question: what was that hanging on the branch in the last photo, some kind of animal bone?
Yup, it was a bone. Or as we deciphers, it was an ancient witch craft relic used to call down the valley walls on the river trolls that protected the creek centuries ago. lol
Very nice pictures!
Thanks so much boodhisattva, it was a ton of fun taking these!
just WOW at these photos
Thanks so much, I'll post another set sometime of the scenery on this trip, I wanted to focus on the fun that was had with friends in this post. Some days you just don't expect to get a lot of photos and then I load em into the computer and go what?? 150 pics? WOW is what I'm thinking then too! Thanks again.
Take care of your tongue. It's part of you. :)) Enjoyed a lot! See you again! :D
haha, I might have even left a bit of it out there on that ice. ..... nah, it was fine. I do agree though, it is my favorite muscle and so very important when it comes to another favorite thing, food.
:))))))) Good @unipsycho :))))
Amazing pictures!!!! I envy you and would like to trade the greyish weather of those days with yours ^^
That is my favorite thing about winters and the area where I live in general. 250 days a year of sun. Just awesome!
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Amazing.