Journal cyan's Journal: Hikes '09
So, having conquered the breadth of Liechtenstein (all 10km of it) by hiking, I decided to do the same to a somewhat larger country: Great Britain.
Hadrian's Wall was built around Emperor Hadrian's time, and demarcated the northern boundary of the Roman Empire. The wall spans about 134km from Britain's eastern seaboard to the west, and is still largely intact through most of the route. This plays very well to my fascination with borders and interesting hikes in general.
My hike starts on September 12, and ends September 19. That gives me seven days, at about 20km per day, to hike the length. After I'm done, it will mark the second sovereign country I've walked its breadth from east to west.
Walking days are as long as 25km (about five hours) or as short as 13km (three hours). The most I've ever hiked in a single day is about 40km (from Hof, along the old East German border, to the Czech Republic). But, never the less, I decided to go on as many "training hikes" as possible in July and August to prepare myself for seven days straight of walking.
So, I bought an annual Parks Canada pass, which gives me unlimited access to any national park in Canada.
The first series of hikes I went on were in Elk Island National Park. These were a series of very short runs, about 3.5km each for a total of about 10km. The first hike took me around some old beaver ponds, since abandoned by the beavers in the 1980's. No doubt this was due to the human activity in the area. The second hike was more interesting, taking me along the shores of Astotin Lake, a few bogs, and forest. These were not challenging hikes at all, so I hiked some more around the Astotin recreational area. There were plenty of people on all of these trails, and the weather was warm.
During the Heritage Day long weekend, I went to Drumheller. The temperature was about 32 degrees; decidedly more hot than it would be in Northern England in September. A few little walks took me around the Tyrell museum area and Midland Provincial Park for a total of 5km. Again, these were not challenging. I thought I might have some time to visit the museum, since I hadn't been there since I was a kid, but the lineup out the door discouraged me from attempting that.
I had reserved a campsite at Dinosaur Provincial Park, and the hikes there were far more interesting and challenging. It's amazing how different the badlands landscape really is. I hiked up along the wall of the Red Deer Valley, down into the valley again, then around a ring road that brought me to a series of different hikes. Two of these hikes showed off dinosaur bones still in place, a quarry where dozens of dinosaur remains were recovered and put on display the world over, and the gorgeous badlands landscape. The total hiked in the park was 10km, for a total of about 15km that day (between Drumheller and Dinosaur Park).
That night was the night of the ferocious thunderstorm front that killed a woman in Big Valley, and a little girl in Calgary. The temperature dropped ten degrees in under an hour, and the lightning was constant. I was also eaten alive by mosquitoes while I slept.
After stopping in at Brooks to buy some much-needed insect repellent, I made my way to Waterton National Park. I parked in the town site and decided to take another unique 'border' hike: a stroll to the 49th Parallel. This hike took me 7km from the Waterton town site, to the 49th Parallel, and then back along the same trail. This was a challenging trail thanks to the severe grade up and down the side of a few mountains. The hike brought breathtaking views of Waterton Lake.
It took about an hour and a half to reach the border, clear cut along its length. There were two border stones there, marking the Convention of 1818 and the Treaty of 1846. The US Department of Homeland Security had a very stern sign up, warning that all visitors remaining overnight must check in at a ranger station 7km further south. There was also a dock on the US side, stretching out into Boundary Bay. It was on this dock that I decided to rest before hiking back.
After a few minutes, a black bear and her cub decided to meander on over (on the Canadian side), near the border stones. They didn't know I was there, so I started to make a racket on the dock. This surprised the mother bear, who took off back up the trail on the Canadian side. That left me in the rather uncomfortable predicament of having to hike back up the trail by myself with a black bear and her cub in the area.
As a compromise, I decided to wait until one of three things happened: it became three o'clock, a boat offered to pick me up, or another group stopped by and I could join them going northbound. As it turned out, just before three, a couple stopped in (along with their pet dog), and I accompanied them on the way back.
Dogs have an incredible sense of smell, and it was no surprise when we reached the point where the bear crossed, that the dog had to be practically dragged by its leash to continue on. We couldn't see any sign of the bear, of course, but the dog could sure smell it. We also ran into another hiker on the way back, who let us know about another black bear further up. Waterton Park is just packed full of 'em.
Oh, and this couple was from Pincher Creek, so that made for some nice conversation on the way back.
So, to the United States and back; about 14km.
Yesterday, it was back to Elk Island Park for a 13km hike around Moss Lake. There was practically nobody on the trail, except for one group stopped for lunch in the middle of the trail. At one point, there were quite a few bear droppings on the trail, which surprised me. Because of that, I started making more racket than usual, which I think surprised the group having lunch. At one point, there was a bit of a 'meaty' smell on the trail: whether from something dead, a bear hidden in the brush, or otherwise
I did the entire loop without having to stop more than 60 seconds, in 2.25 hours. I could easily do the loop again, and only had a little blister on my foot from the trouble.
My longest walk during the Hadrian's Wall hike will be 25km, over mostly flat terrain. When you consider that there will be plenty of things to stop and see on the trip, I feel like I'm more than ready for the hike. The only unknown question is, will I be able to endure seven days straight of hiking?
Come September 12, I guess I'll find out.
