Read our COVID-19 guidelines by clicking this banner before visiting one of our parks. climb up to the peak is quite steep, bring poles. No snow or ice or mud. Tent Ridge Horseshoe and Smutwood for instance appear on Alltrails. Every time you think your almost there, there will be another hump to go up. Super peaceful and wide open trail. Definitely pack bear spray and bug spray if you go. Be sure to turn right at the first fork junction. Took about 4 hours round trip. The trail is almost dry, extremely well posted and fairly easy, would be great for a family. We had winter coats, warm hiking boots and poles which you definitely will need (crampons too). Alberta Parks, highway crews and volunteers have been working hard to re-open all of Highway 40 and Kananaskis Country since … Continue reading Hiking Kananaskis Country – Pocaterra Ridge Check out the Pocaterra Ridge. Didn’t go for long - twisted my ankle about 1km in, so didn’t want to go any further, as I was alone (had my dog, but he wouldn’t have been much help). I’ve never been on a busier trail, crowds and crowds of people walking inches within each other at some parts. Little Highwood Pass and Pocaterra Ridge are just out of view to the right. The old trails route isn’t correct, the old road is washed out and the new path is clearly marked. South Pocaterra Ridge is a 5.8 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Canada that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. Trail was dry the whole way. The trail offers a number of activity options. Luckily he called out and missed us. The only published route up Mount Pocaterra is the moderate traverse scramble via Mount Tyrwhitt. Update: Reservations are required to be made at the front desk to gain access to the pool area. Start high at Highwood Pass and you'll save yourself some height gain. Gorgeous trail. I was a bit disappointed that we were unable to walk the entire ridge but felt satisfied knowing we had reached Pocaterra's highest point. It's a pretty easy forest trail, but long (8.9km one way). We are in the Canadian Rockies just outside Banff National Park. People were falling everywhere, you honestly needed poles and crampons to walk in the forest. On September 9, @Albertaparks tweeted that Highway 40 was open at the winter gates, allowing access to the summit of Highwood Pass. The elevated start at Highwood Pass (7239’) and approach through golden Larches makes for a good recommendation. It’s also well known as being a great larch hike in the … At its end it connects to Whiskey Jack Trail and Fire Lookout Trail. Pocaterra Ridge was an extremely scenic outing that in my opinion combines the best of many features the Rockies have to offer. The trail is primarily used for hiking, running, and nature trips. 07 Mt. Everything is covered in snow and the leaves are turning gorgeous colours of yellow and orange. A few kilometers in, after passing the small tarn, the trail levels and forks as it approaches a small stream. Although most of the needles have fallen, it’s still a nice splash of colour. Users be alert! You will eventually come to a fork in the trail. Nothing technical. Planned to do Sarrail Ridge but they had just closed it due to bears. It is well marked. Pocaterra Ridge is a 7.1 mile heavily trafficked point-to-point trail located near Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Canada that features a lake and is rated as difficult. Planning a Trip to Kananaskis Trail? Was not busy today, saw only two other groups of people. Saw signs for Pocaterra Trail on our way back and stupidly thought this was the trailhead for Pocaterra Ridge (our second choice for a hike). 1725 Bow Valley Trail Pretty easy for the most part till the end where there's about a km of steep incline to get to the ridge walk. Nearing the top is dangerous if you’re not prepared for a steady incline! No one else was here. The access route is shown. The views from the ridge are a solid 10. The view from the top of this ridge is gorgeous and worth every step! Saw lots of bear scat, so be careful out there! Overall pretty boring, just forest views. It's very busy this time of year with the larches so expect a crowd. Pocaterra Ridge Trail to Little Highwood Pass Route, Tombstone Lakes and Rae Lake Loop via Elbow Pass Trail. Trailpeak trails in Canada, explore reviews, plan, download GPS, Get Outside We followed its GPS guidance and ended up in Ptarmigan Cirque parking lot. Offline-Karte wird empfohlen. We had winter coats, warm hiking boots and poles which you definitely will need (crampons too). 01 Aug 2020 by Vagabond No Comments. Tyrwhitt to Mt. Sonny scrambles up typical terrain on the east face. To Mount Tyrwhitt, as my buddies told me it was nothing but rubble. Pocaterra Ridge Hike | Hiking & Scrambling | Kananaskis Outdoors Forum. I did this hike with three women around the third week in September when the larches were at their peak. We went for the sunset and it was breathtaking. We also had one other at the summit with us who accidentally sent a rock at us. once you are out in the open its better but still a bit slippery. Pocaterra Tarn and the ridge to Mount Pocaterra. With negative temperatures in the mountains, most of the larches have lost their needles. Gorgeous views the entire way. Was slightly overcast and a touch windy on the ridge but overall it was fabulous fall weather. More South Pocaterra Ridge is a 5.8 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Canada that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The Pocaterra Plant was named after surveyor George Pocaterra, a pioneer rancher from Italy. Extremely well marked trail, nice and wide so great for conversation. This forum is for you to use as you wish for asking questions or generating discussion on non-motorized use of trails in Kananaskis Country or of issues relating to trail use. Vagabond Hikes Pocaterra Ridge. We found the trail pretty easy, the only elevation gain seemed to be on the last hike up to the ridge. I can definitely see why this trail was so popular the last few weeks! This trail is gorgeous, but it needs to be rated ‘hard’. Once on the ridge enjoy hours of mountain views in all directions. Keep right for the south ridge. Read our Guide! Start at the Pocaterra/Highwood pass parking lot. There was a ton of evidence of bear activity, fresh and old bear scat, and areas that appeared to be dug out by a bear. Do not underestimate the steepness of the reminder of this trail. Views at the Lookout were nice. Nice and wide and easy walk. Just off the lobby we have a fantastic indoor pool and waterslide. Pool and Waterslide. Keep an eye out for the flagging tape that marks the trail. We tried to find Packers route to make a loop of it but the trail head is lost in some marsh. We added the extra 2km to see the Lookout. The pond is about 1.5km directly west from the parking lot, but the trail head is not always obvious, especially if there is snow. Very quiet along the trail. The trail was so poorly marked that we at least saw ten groups were misled to a wrong way when we were struggling there. Better for a bike ride where you can see you at all in less time. It ranks as one of the best day hikes I’ve done in Alberta. Also, super slippery and steep, poles are definitely necessary. Length 8.5 miElevation gain 1364 ftRoute type Out & back Cross-country skiing Hiking Nature trips Snowshoeing River Views Muddy Snow Pocaterra Trail is a 8.5 mile out and back trail located near Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Canada that features a river and is rated as moderate. Black Prince Cirque Interpretive Trail to Warspite Lake, Kananaskis Fire Lookout via Tyrwhitt Trail, Blackshale Suspension Bridge via Black Prince. no reports have been added for Pocaterra Ridge yet, add a trail report. The red arrow shows Sonny's ascent route while the green arrow shows his descent route. Saw some bear tracks, which was cool. Super stoked the trail wasn’t very busy today. Pocaterra Ridge is one of the more popular hikes in Kananaskis. This hike is much easier with two poles and good hiking boots for grips on the way down. After hunkering down beneath the summit cairn to eat our lunch for 30 minutes or, we finally decided to head back down. Lots of snow this week made it more slippery and very cold. Der Empfang von Zellen kann schwierig sein. Overall you can expect almost 22km hike if you do both Pocaterra and Lookout. We saw lots of bear scat. On July 13 though, we did the traverse of Pocaterra Ridge in the Highwood Pass area of Kananaskis with a rather large group, not to mention a lot of others taking advantage of a decent forecast, and the onset of flower season in the alpine. Normally, these gates are open from June 15 to November 30 each year. The trailhead can be found by heading south on Highway 40 south from Highway #1 for approximately 70 km. It was heavily trafficked on the way back down and I had to step aside for a lot of groups that were trying to make their way up. Completed the full ridge from the North parking lot to the South (two cars) in about 6.5 hours with a few breaks. Dorota and Sonny stand on the highest point of Pocaterra Ridge (2671 metres). Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash. Easy/moderate trail most of the way until you reach the ridge, at this point I would rate it as quite difficult as it’s a straight up incline to the top. Looks like a better choice for cross country skiing rather than hiking. This trail starts off in a forested area which is easy enough to get your blood pumping. We sat for a little whole and had a snack and gave our muscles a break. I’m assuming that the filled in mine shaft on the north end of the ridge in the trees is one of his making. The rest of Pocaterra Ridge stretches away to the northwest. There is no place marked or have any signage for this trail! Pocaterra is one of TransAlta’s four hydro plants on the Kananaskis System, which is part of the Bow River Electric System in Alberta. It’s a beautiful hike that doesn’t have crazy elevation gain or length and is very attainable as far as hikes in the Canadian Rockies go. Trail reports are used to indicate a trails current condition and inform builders and … To the southeast are Highwood Ridge and Grizzly Ridge. Basically a forestry road. Pocaterra | 2009-09-27. The most unique feature of the Pocaterra side of the route is a fascinating gendarme on its south ridge. Directions to pocaterra-ridge trailhead (50.591830, -115.011730) update trails status or condition Pocaterra Ridge Trail Reports. 360 Views were beautiful at the top. 08 Mt. We have a great location in Canmore Alberta. make sure you are carrying bear spray! Completed the full ridge from the North parking lot to the South (two cars) in about 6.5 hours with a few breaks. Consider bringing snowshoes in November. Check out our guide! Dogs are also able to use this trail … Go right, continue ascending through trees and meadows, and shortly begin the ascent of Pocaterra Ridge. DOWNLOAD ROUTE (GPX FILE) DISCLAIMER: Use at your own risk for general guidance only! The summit of Pocaterra Ridge presented a suddenly breathtaking view northwards of mountain scenery of the highest order. However. Pocaterra Ridge Overview There are several ways to hike this ridge but our favourite always requires a car shuttle and a one-way traverse from Highwood Pass to Little Highwood Pass. Here is a closer look at the weakness in the first cliff band. Some areas have blown off, others had drifts as deep as our knees to walk through. South Pocaterra Ridge ist ein 5.8 Meilen langer, stark besuchter Hin- und Rückweg in der Nähe von Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Kanada. There are still a handful of larches but there mostly lost their needles now. We arrived about 9:30 on a Friday and the parking lot still had spots, but there was constantly people coming in as we were starting. The Lookout Trail was straight elevation and it was a nice break from the flat-ish Pocaterra. Beautiful hike with amazing views, but the first chunk of the trail is SUPER icy. It was not lol. (July 12 2020). Good for dogs. You will cross a small creek and this is where the tough part starts. An early mining prospector, rancher at the Bar D and Buffalo Head, and the only white person to ever learn the Stoney Nakoda language. The east face of Mount Pocaterra is an arresting sight. Absolutely stunning! The first bump of the ridge is the highest at a little over 2600 m. Took us about 5.5hrs in and out and we kept a brisk pace with only a 20min break at the top of Lookout. Nice easy trail. Pocaterra Trail is a 13.7 kilometer out and back trail located near Kananaskis Improvement, Alberta, Canada that features a river and is rated as moderate. Went for a great hike here today. We are monitoring our operations to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and this page is updated as adjustments are made. Did it last on last Saturday. A bit muddy but not that bad. I’m active, but I’m not an experienced hiker, so don’t do this if this is one of your first hikes. Cute picnic tables for lunch. Larches were lovely. Easy/moderate trail most of the way until you reach the ridge, at this point I would rate it as quite difficult as it’s a straight up incline to the top. Head down to Boulder Creek Trading Post on the Kananaskis for an ice cream and to explore the lakes once you’ve finished. In all directions be made at the first chunk of the highest point of Pocaterra Ridge was an scenic. Is part of the larches were at their peak by heading south on Highway 40 south from Highway 1! Hike | hiking & Scrambling | Kananaskis Outdoors Forum are out in the Canadian Rockies just outside National... 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