Day 10 – Kananaski Village, Alberta

Day 10 – Kananaski Village, Alberta

Today the intense PT begins! We woke up at 0700 hrs. and jogged over to the open field that we discovered yesterday. We did a lot of stretching, and some running. We also did a lot of pushups. You know why we did pushups? I quote Billy: “You do pushups to get strong shoulders. You need strong shoulders to hold all that responsibility.” Truer words have never been said.

Anyways, after PT, we took an impromptu scenic tour…well, more of a walk than a tour, on the paths around the lodge. On them you can see all of the surrounding mountains. They all have really cool names like The Wedge! (It seemed to jut out of the mountain range.)

We brought the cooler and some canned food up to our rooms, and ate a quick breakfast of sandwiches and crackers. Then came the intense hiking.

Hiking…was simply…grueling. We were out for about 8 hours! But…the mountainside! And the rivers! And the adjacent foliage…It was well worth the climb. The mountains, as many of us remarked looked so far away that they almost looked like they were cut and pasted there; just rising out of the blue sky. In all honesty, it seemed like a movie backdrop; too good to be real.

During the hike, we crossed a few bridges. It spanned different points of the same river. Ribbon Creek was purely mesmerizing. The rocks, creating small, white-foam rapids, spitting up droplets of water if you get a chance to climb, or jump, or somehow managing to get to the river’s centre, were compelling. The closer you got to the centre, the easier it was to run your hands through the crisp, cold water. The water was so clean and clear; however, the pathway there was not always so apparent. Sometimes, they were even a bit…dangerous. But it was fun searching for your own way, and the sense of accomplishment when you do.

Needless to say, we took a whole lot of pictures. If you were there, you would know exactly what I mean. A picture can only capture the essence of it but…just read on, and I’ll do my best to bring it to life for you.

Then it was lunchtime!
…We forgot to pack food…So we had whatever little food Vingi had brought along. Just a few chips and cheesies for everybody. Some people didn’t even eat! But we really should’ve remembered to pack the food…

We began the ascent up to the Coal Mine on the Hidden Trail. It was an arduous mission. It was all uphill except for a few almost flat sections. Going uphill was the hard part. We hiked upwards for about 2 hours; uphill on rocky, root-choked terrain. It really messed with your head. But none of us gave up! We kept pushing on! Imagine running on and on and on, and not being able to see the end, your destination, so all you can do is keep running. Imagine being as out of breath as you could possibly be…then imagine breathing in the clean mountain air; cool and refreshing…But of course, you’re exhausted, so you can’t appreciate the full beauty of it. We weren’t running, but the slow hike was, like I said, completely uphill.

During the climb up to the Coal Mine, we passed many berry bushes, sometimes completely surrounding us. These red berries…are the ones bears just adore eating. And we also found fresh bear scat. So we were always on the lookout for them. (We still do want to see a bear!) (Vivian would like me to mention that we also found coyote droppings…and I would like to comment that we found dog ones too!)

After what seemed like an eternity of tiresome hiking, there was a break in the trees, and light! That meant that we had reached the end of the climb! (Or so we thought.) We discovered the reason why the place was dubbed ‘The Coal Mine’. We were walking on coal; small pieces of the sooty substance.

The aforementioned climb didn’t end there. We turned our heads to Mount Allen. It was hard to miss, as we were actually climbing up the side of this mountain. And with its eye-catching bright yellow flowers, and tall, flowing grasses, we were compelled to go there.

It was an extremely steep climb. Steeper than the rest of the trail. But, like I’ve been endlessly saying, it was worth it. The view! The view! You can see all of the mountains, and you’re the epicenter of it all! It was exactly like the Sound of Music, like Switzerland. (Except, I’m telling you, you can’t cross a mountain with 6 young kids, and garbed in dresses and day clothes!) The lilac-coloured bluebells (or at least, lookalikes) were in pristine condition.

Sitting down on the side of the mountain was so peaceful. I thought the badlands were peaceful, but this was even more serene than your inner peace. One could meditate up there! Lying back in the flora, the wide expanse of the open sky, and sparse cloud-cover lazily floats past you. The Rocky Mountains watch over you, and stand sentinel to your quiet observations. The grasses, with their elegant long stems, bend and sway in the cool breeze. The hum of the bees travelling from flower to flower and the hushed conversation of your companions fill your ears as you close your eyes, and just relish in the moment as the warm sun peeks out from behind the clouds.

As we were heading back down the mountain (Yes, we had to leave that beauty behind…*Cries*), an unexpected incident occurred. (Insert dramatic music here.) Are you not feeling some form of déjà vu by now? Vivian got a horrible stomach ache, face contorted in agony and all. That was not a drill people! That was not a drill! We reacted just as efficiently as the staged one. We quickly distributed her belongings, and stayed calm as Billy examined her.

It turns out that she was just really hungry…We learned the hard way to remember to pack our lunches. (Where would we be without moms that do that?) Next time we will definitely remember to bring the food along. Viv’s fine now, so it’s all good. :D

But we made it down the Hidden Trail—it was easier going down than up—and our team split up into two groups, one stayed with Vivian, and the other group went back to get the car.

It took them close to 45 minutes to walk back whereas it took us a few hours collectively to hike it! I guess it was because we stopped so many times, and that we were really worried about Vivian. Because they came back pretty quickly in the Sprinter…and with lots and lots of food! Needless to say, we gobbled it all down. (And Vitamin water for Vivian :D)

We were going to have steak again to celebrate our accomplishment, but the restaurant was closed. So we went back into our stocks of food, and had oodles of instant noodles!!!

We went swimming later. The lodge’s pool didn’t have a water slide…but it had a Jacuzzi—that had a flap that led to the outdoor Jacuzzi! It was so nice! We went back inside and jumped into the pool. It was cool and refreshing, and greatly reminded me of Ribbon Creek…except nowhere as pretty, and pure. :3

We even wet into…the SAUNA!!! Fun times, fun times…(We love your jumping jacks Maggers!!! :D)

We’re going to be leaving this Five Star lodge tomorrow…and we’re going to be camping out starting from tomorrow as well! (Little birdies told me…wait, there aren’t any little birdies…The little voices in my head are telling me that we may go to Lake Louise tomorrow…xD)

Stay tuned, our dear followers!:)