Sunday: July 5 Quaite Valley Trail

Viewpoint from Razor Edge Hiking Trail

The Quaite Valley Trail looks innocuous on the Alberta map, but it made for one of the most memorable rides for this year. I got a late start today. Like 6:00PM late. It was Sunday and the earlier part of the day had been occupied with Mass and a big lunch at the Stoney Nakoda Shmitty's restaurant, where I had eaten earlier and found the food good enough for a return trip. I've been staying at the Ocgrow Reserve townhouse in Cochrane, which is not near Canmore and the TransCanada Trail. All of this, along with plans to progress just 8 miles today on the Quaite Valley and the Stoney Trails, I did not feel a sense of urgency to get going.

I had another day of beautiful sun and ideal temperatures, around 19 degrees C (66 degrees Fahrenheit).

The Trail travels across country from TransCanada Highway 1 to Barrier Lake which is situated next to Highway 40. In order to get back to the car, I could retrace my path, or take the highway route which is at least twice as far, but mostly flat and level. Branching off of the Quaite Valley Trail was a hiking trail called Razor Edge, which promised an exciting view over the Kananaskis River valley.

So the trail started from an elevation of 4300 feet along the Highway 1, and began ascending. No surprise there, most trails start with an ascent here in the Rockies. The ascent was mild enough that I was able to ride almost the entire way up to Jewel Pass which was an altitude of 5300 feet from which the Razor Edge Trail branches. Just taking my time, about halfway up I heard kid's voices. I came upon a wilderness campsite area where several families were setting up for the night. Once I arrived at the pass, I had to decide if I had enough time for the hike to the viewpoint. I think the time was around 7:30 PM. The hike was around a mile; most sane persons would probably skip the hike, considering the time of day. But hiking is my favorite activity for mountain vacations, and my knees said I could go ahead.

I made reasonable time along the hiking trail but it was almost 45 minutes to get to the viewpoint. I expected the viewpoint to be free of trees, but that it was not. I had to bushwhack maybe a 100 feet, while descending, to get to the edge of the cliff, and then awkwardly propped up, I took a couple pictures that you see on this page. Almost all of these photos have long shadows because it was nearing sunset. It had taken me awhile to get into position for the photos, and now I knew it was likely to grow somewhat dark before I finished the trail. I did have the option of returning to the car, but that would have forced me to travel up here again tomorrow. I liked the option of finishing out the Quaite Valley Trail, so that I could continue on the Kananaskis Trail tomorrow. Little did I know that it would be three hours back to civilization.

Viewpoint 1000 feet above the valley

You know what they say about making ASSUMptions. And while I should know better, I still finding myself getting caught by them. My assumption was that the Quaite Valley Trail would be similar on descent as it was on the ascent. Meaning, mostly rideable. And for about 5 minutes I was making good progress, but then came upon a section that I needed to walk. And soon I found myself walking almost all of the time. The descent turned out steeper and more rugged with numerous tree roots exposed on the trail. As darkness descended it became more difficult to make out the main trail as I was descending to Barrier Lake. My GPS device is invaluable for keeping me on trails in the dark, so I was never in a dangerous situation of becoming lost. Along the way down I remember coming upon a good sized waterfall that would've been nice to check out, but it was way too dark now to get a picture.

Eventually after walking the bike for maybe three miles, I arrived at the southern end of Barrier Lake, where I decided to use my bike lights. I was not 'out of the woods' yet. I needed to travel on the Stoney Trail along the lakeshore for a mile or so before finally arriving at Highway 40. Taillight was good. But when I took out my headlight from my pannier, I found that it was completely discharged! I had left home with a full charge on the rechargeable light, but obviously it had drained out while in my pannier over the past couple weeks. What to do? It was a completely dark night. We were in the waning phase of the moon, so no moonlight until after midnight.

Then I remembered the flashlight on my phone. While it was not ideal, it did provide enough light to show the Stoney Trail. So one hand on the handlebar and the other holding the phone, I was able to make slow progress. Again I ASSUMED this trail would be flat, along the lakeshore. For the most part it was flat and rideable, but twice I found myself wandering off the main trail and there were a few short steep hills along the way. Finally I emerged at the head of the lake, and soon came up to Highway 40.

Now I really had no choice on how to get to the car parked along Highway 1. I could've walked back to the car retracing my route. But only by the light of the phone, which would probably not last long enough. Or ride back on the highways. The distance on each of the two highways was comparable to the distance of the Quaite Valley Trail. The choice was obvious. Riding the two highways in complete darkness. I did have one respite. There was a truck stop on Highway 40 which was open 24 hours. Audrey and I had stopped there a couple of times. I hoped I could warm up there because the temps were much colder than expected, about 40 degrees. And I could buy a flashlight.

It was after 11:00 PM when I arrived at the truck stop, tired, cold, and famished. I bought some food and just rested for 45 minutes. I bought a good quality flashlight which was able to light my path for the rest of the way back to the car; about 5 miles. There was not much traffic at this time on TransCanada 1, mostly semis. I was riding the shoulder, well away from the travel lanes; but knights of the road they are, the truck drivers all moved over to the passing lane. I imagine they were wondering what a cyclist was doing out on the highway after midnight. Eventually I got back to the car, after 1:00 AM.

So in the future, when I look back along my trek on the TCT, this will be one of the most memorable days. I had made mistakes in starting so late, taking over an hour and a half hiking to the viewpoint, assuming the path down would be similar to the path up. However, this is part of the adventure of the TCT that I was hoping to experience. Experiences like this which I would not encounter if I was simply riding my bike along highways. The Quaite Valley Trail was my path out of the Rockies, and into the foothills. It put a cap on the mountain trails that had been my route for this season. While there were still challenging trails to come, the Rockies now were in my rearview mirror.