Larix Lake

Ever since the month of June, Dan Durston and I had tried to connect and plan a packrafting trip together but we kept having schedule conflicts. Finally, at the end of September, we agreed on tackling a late season packrafting adventure down the Simpson River after I had told him that this river had a good paddling potential from what I had seen on my scouting trip along it a month earlier. Being located on the British Columbia side of the Continental Divide and flowing at lower elevation, we were both pretty sure that it would be snow free despite the recent snow falls in Banff.

What I always liked about Dan (Youtube Channel: DanDurston) is that he always finds a way to take a simple adventure and spice it up a little bit and turn it into something way more interesting. This time was no different. After discussing about our hike in the Simpson River Valley, it would’ve been easy to simply follow the established trail along the river up to the Surprise Creek junction and from there, continue on a decommissioned trail up to where the river was more suitable for paddling (flatter). But it didn’t take long for Dan to come up with an ambitious (and exciting) route that would start at the Sunshine Village Ski Resort in Banff National Park, take us across the Sunshine Meadows (and crossing into British Columbia) at 7700′ of altitude before climbing down a ridge on the other side of the Continental Divide into the Simpson Valley 3000′ below. We expected some snow up in the meadows and on our way down the ridge but the valley should have been clear of snow.

The ridge we decided to use.

The blue line represents our planned itinerary on the water.

Dan and I were ready for a cold night near the river and on the last weekend of October, we met early in the morning at the Simpson River Trailhead to leave one car parked there and shuttled back to the Sunshine Village parking lot. It was still completely dark outside but driving along Highway 93 in Kootenay National Park on our way to Banff, it became clear enough for us to confirm that there was no snow on the ground. Perfect!

It was a different story in Banff. While the Trans-Canada Highway showed no traces of snow, the parking lot was at 5500′, a full 1000′ higher than the highway. At this point, it became clear that bringing our snowshoes was not an option.

The road leading to the base of the mountain is steep, strenuous and 6KM long. To our surprise, there were a few Sunshine Village trucks in the parking lot and it seemed like some of them were driving up the road once in a while (it’s a gated road, only accessible to the resort workers). Without wasting a second, we seized the opportunity and got on the road just as a truck seemed to be heading up. I think we walked for not even 5 minutes before waving at the driver who happily told us to hop in his pick-up truck. He was a security guard for the resort and told us they were getting ready to open on the next weekend, hence why so many people were on site. The ride lasted only 10 minutes and saved us precious time and effort.

He dropped us at the Village and wished us good luck on our attempt at crossing over the Divide.

And just like that, we started the climb up the ski hill. The lower portion was easier to navigate as the snowcat had made a few runs, leaving us with only a few inches of fluffy snow.

But we had to snowshoe way past the ski boundaries and soon enough we were breaking a trail in 3-feet of snow. Even with snowshoes on, it felt like we were post-holing for almost a foot at every step.

We alternated once in a while as being the leader at the front was extremely tiring. But the views made it a little easier to suffer!

We were not following a trail but knew our general direction of travel. We would stop every few hundred feet to analyze the terrain and pick what seemed like the easiest way to reach the top of our ridge.

The Monarch Mountain, located across the Simpson Valley, was getting bigger and bigger as we got closer to the Divide. We still had a few treed patches to negotiate before getting there tough. Some spots were denser than others but we always managed to find a way to make it through.

And finally, after a few hours of snowshoeing, we were at the ridge line. The view was MIND BLOWING! I am a real winter lover and this, for sure, had to be the most spectacular winter view I had ever witnessed in the Canadian Rockies. I was so absorbed by the view that it took me a while to realize that the valley below was actually covered with snow. Damn!

The Simpson River Valley from above. Our ridge was on the left.

Just to make the experience a little bit more interesting, the wind was picking up and a few flurries filled the entire valley. The temperature was now -15°C and my feet were completely frozen.

The ridge was difficult to navigate with the snow. It was full of pointy and sharp rocks hidden under a few inches of snow. We both removed our snowshoes and were now down-climbing wearing only our trail-running shoes.

A thousand feet drop on my right.

The next two pictures clearly show the ridge line all the way down to the valley. Dan was at the front, climbing down with the agility of a mountain goat, trying to find the best route as staying on top of the ridge was hard because of two cliffs we had to go around. He was then coming back up a little to report on his findings. The conditions were less than ideal.

I was feeling a little bit less comfortable when we had to deal with what appeared to be the last steep section. A 30º sloped gully had to be crossed to reach the trees, where we would be safer and less exposed. We managed to cross the first section, but I had a hard time keeping a strong footing in the slippery snow. My toes were numb and very close to suffer from frostbites as I was not moving fast enough to keep them warm. Dan and I were tucked between a tree and a rock ledge when I expressed my concerns for what was next. The last portion of the gully was way wider and it was so steep and exposed that it would’ve been pretty much game over in the event of a slip. The amount of snow and the slippery conditions had made this descent impossible for now. Dan was very respectful of my decision to turn around. At this point, I had to take care of my toes as soon as possible. Crossing the first gully again would have been hard as I couldn’t feel my feet at all. I had brought a climbing rope and Dan climbed back up and secured it around a solid tree. I was able to use it to make my way back up to him safely. I warmed my toes back up with my bare hands and back on the top of the ridge, we both agreed that going back down to the car was not an option. We still wanted to camp somewhere despite the cold and the snow.

That’s what a very steep slope looks like!

We walked in deep snow for a while after stopping for a quick lunch. I was physically and mentally exhausted. This first winter trip proved to be very demanding on my body! Looking at the map, Larix Lake was just a few kilometers from the ridge and we made our way there. We found a descent flat spot to pitch our shelters and spent the night around a nice and comforting campfire. The night was cold but we were both equipped properly to handle the cold. We woke up to a chilly -22°C after a very night of sleep buried under two warm down quilts. It had snowed a little overnight. The hardest part was to pack all our gear while trying to stay warm. We made our way around Larix Lake and back to the Sunshine Meadows. It was a tough hike and Dan proved once again that his level of fitness was perfect to tackle this traverse and he was leading the way, breaking trail almost all morning long. We made our way back to the car after a solid 4-hour hike.

Our camp at Larix Lake.

After driving back to the Simpson River to get Dan’s car, we were astonished to see how the Simpson Valley was indeed snow-free! It actually confirmed all the suppositions we had made that we would be good to go at 4000′ of elevation. If it wasn’t for the huge amount of snow on the top of the ridge, we would have been able to go down and make this adventure a success. I won’t be calling this overnight at Larix Lake a failure though and I am confident that we will give this route a second attempt next summer (and hopefully succeed!).

The drive back home was beautiful, as usual. I had a lot of time to reflect back on a few things. First of all, I was a little out of shape or perhaps, I had underestimated the amount of fitness required to break trail in deep snow. That’s something I will definitely work on in the next few weeks. Also, there are some skills I will need to acquire before planning these kind of adventures. I will take a mountaineering course in the spring time and this will help me to navigate steeper terrain in winter conditions. I will now take a little break from the mountains, in preparation for the winter camping season approaching. With an avalanche training course scheduled in January, I will be ready to head out safely deep into the backcountry to enjoy what winter has to offer.