Dolomite Circuit

Planning ski trips is tricky business when you book dates months in advance. Emily and Trevor had claimed the weekend of Dec 14/15th with us in Roger's Pass almost a year ago, but we weren't able to book the hut. The plan was to camp up in the pass in our trailer which would be a good compromise. As the weekend drew closer however, plans changed yet again. Kyle was going to be away for work with his truck and I was not interested in borrowing a truck to pull the trailer up to the pass on my own. It also hadn't been snowing much in the pass so that plan went out the window. Researching Alberta snow conditions from India, Em and Trev and booked the Rampart Hostel on the Icefields Parkway instead.

Fresh off the plane after a year on the road, Emily and Trevor were ready to ski. We met at a very reasonable time at the petro-can to drive out to the mountains with their friend Scott in tow. On the drive, Emily called her dad to wish him a happy birthday. She hadn't told her parents they were home due to an elaborate plot to surprise Trevor's parents for their 60th birthdays two nights before. Suffering from jet lag and culture shock, the pair was pretty excited to forego real world activities such as unpacking and sleep for a few more days by disappearing into the wilderness.

Views from the road at Crowfoot Glades

Off-Roading in the Ghost

Sometimes driving in the Ghost is easy, and sometimes you spend all day winching yourself out of snow drifts. In early December, Kyle and I made an attempt to drive out to This House of Sky for a day of ice climbing. We left before dawn and drove out to Waiparous. It was icy and slow going. By  the time we hit the turn off, we had a feeling it might be a slow drive into the North Ghost.

Driving out to the Ghost