Buller Pass

Winter is coming.

The mountains around Canmore have been getting regular dustings of snow for the past week, but none of it has been reaching the valley floor. It was time to move up to higher ground and enjoy it for ourselves.

I didn't realize how popular Buller Pass was amongst trail runners. We encountered 3 separate groups, one of which seemed like a youth cross country ski team with over a dozen members.

Really large waterfall pot

The trail is mostly flat with short uphill sections, so we made good time and got to the base of the final ascent in a bit under 2 hours. There was a considerable amount of snow on this slope, from boot-top to knee deep in some spots. The trail runners had slipped and slid up and down the trail, so it was quite obvious where to go.

A good place to observe larches

The wind was howling at the pass, but fortunately the temperature wasn't that low (maybe 2C or 3C), which made conditions bearable. We didn't linger long, however, as the snow being whipped around stung our faces.

Ribbon Lake and Mount Kidd

We were back at the car in under 5 hours, making for an enjoyable half day hike. Next time, I'd like to do the loop around to North Buller Pass.

http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/251741206/3101909