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Mount Lady MacDonald Canmore, Alberta.

Years ago I took a cross country trip that would change my life forever.  On a warm summer morning in May of 2000, a friend and I pack up a red Chevy pick-up truck and said goodbye to friends and family.  Our four day journey would take us from Southern Ontario to the Rocky Mountains in Alberta. So many books have been written on this kind of journey but it is best understood if you do it yourself.  From the trees and rocks of Northern Ontario to the flat plains of Saskatchewan onto the mountains of Alberta, it is a once in a life time trip you will never forget.  Many years have passed since my first journey across Canada however; I have always made it my mission to return at least once a year.  One of my favourite scrambles to climb is definitely Mount Lady MacDonald in Canmore, Alberta.

From the bottom to the top this beauty has an elevation gain of 1200 meters and trust me you work very hard to get there.  An extremely fit individual could more than likely tackle this route in about 3-4 hours top to bottom.  For a well fit person I would suggest about 5-6 and for those taking in all the sites and pleasure spots, give a good 7-8.5.  Lady MacDonald is located on the North side of the Trans Canada highway in Canmore beside Cougar Creek. Parking is available at the base of the hike.  I would advise any climber to bring lots of water and in the summer a good lathering of sunscreen lotion.

The scramble begins with a steep hill climb lasting about 10 minutes followed by a steady wind thought spread out trees and fallen debris.  About half way up the mountain is when you get your first real view of how high you have actually climbed! The viewpoint is from around 550-600 feet and overlooks the canyons and sheer drops of the mountains north east side down into the valley.

After pushing on past the mid way point, it becomes mostly a feat of endurance.  High ridges and deep mountain slashes challenge you to keep those calves pumping!  You will encounter a few switchbacks on your path but nothing too confusing.  Most of the trail is well packed down.  However, if you do feel like you have taken a wrong turn, stop and back track.  It is never a good idea to push forward into the unknown even if you are experienced or inexperienced, bad move.  The last leg of the scramble is a giant push up the south side decaying wall face. After you have made it this far you will start to notice a large building on the summit. This was in fact suppose to be a teahouse where hikers could stop to warm up and enjoy an amazing view however, the building was never finished and now is pretty much so people can write stories about how they have seen it.  A helicopter landing pad is also there to greet you at the top.  For those feeling like they have a little more left I the tank, there is one more push of about 100 feet to the top of left over ridge which millions of years ago use to be attached to Lady MacDonald.  Some say it in fact is the true summit.

After spending a few hours at the top of the mountain it is now time to come down.  The scramble down I felt was actually much easier than the way up.  I would suggest a good jog down the mountain as it seems for some reason to take away a lot of the negative force you feel when you are going slower, that is just my opinion though.

So now that you have reached bottom what to do?  I would suggest driving into the town of Canmore, about five minutes, and getting your self refreshment at the micro brewery The Grizzly Paw.  They also sell awesome burgers and chicken wings!