Mount Bourgeau

Mount Bourgeau was another of those hikes which I had not been able to complete previously. I had tried in July but turned back for a variety of reasons, one of them being that the summit was completely encased in clouds that day.

The forecast for today was cold (high of 5C) but clear, so I figured this might be my last chance until next year.

"Harvey" is such an ordinary name ... I can never remember it

The hike to the summit of Mount Bourgeau is 12km (one way) with 1350m of elevation gain and a couple of scrambly bits, although those bits are quite small and manageable. Most of the trail up to Bourgeau Lake is in the forest, and the grade is very gentle (I ran down).

First hiker of the day gets to ruin the fresh snow

As I was first to start (another group arrived in the parking lot as I was about to leave), I broke trail in the upper portions beyond Lake Bourgeau, where the snow covered the trail. Fortunately, it's pretty obvious where to go.

Mount Brett (2938m)

Harvey Lake and Mount Assiniboine

As the Copeland book says, Bourgeau Lake is the least of the interesting destinations along this path. I didn't even take a photo of it.

A bit further on, from Harvey Pass, one can see Mount Assiniboine. And from the summit of Mount Bourgeau, you can see ... well, it almost feels as though you can see EVERYTHING.

Mount Bourgeau (the summit is on the rounded dome of scree)

How many mountains can you recognize?

In the above panorama, you can see all of the following:

1. Mount Assiniboine
2. Sunshine ski resort
3. Mount Temple
4. Monarch Ramparts and Healy Pass
5. Summits from the Bugaboos (although I couldn't point them out)

These are all places I had been to before, or plan to go to, so there is a lot of meaning behind the scenery.

Cosmic Ray Road, leading up the backside of Sulfur Mountain

My mother and I had tried to hike up Sulfur Mountain via Cosmic Ray Road one year, but turned back due to it being very cold. It's not the most exciting hike, but it's doable in the shoulder season.

Not what you'd usually expect at the summit of a mountain

The weather station at the summit of Mount Bourgeau is a bit extravagant. It's actually large enough to accomodate a person inside, and there's a lot of instruments as well. I was thankful for it as it gave me shelter from the unrelenting wind. Plus, the weathervanes (I call them "wind roosters") let me know when the wind changed direction and I needed to sit on a different side of the weather station.