Crossing McDougall Creek on the Evan-Thomas trail
Friday skiing part 2: Here are the photos from what I have started calling the Evan-Thomas loop which is 7K in distance.
Evan-Thomas trail
Starting at Evan-Thomas trailhead, the skiing is very pleasant and the 50-metre elevation gain to the end of the grooming at 1.7K is almost imperceptible. Lots of hikers use this trail, so expect to see footprints all over the place. Yesterday I had unblemished tracks, but the trail was just groomed earlier in the day. A family had just finished hiking the trail but fortunately they stayed out of the ski tracks.
The grooming ends on Evan-Thomas and the snowshoe trail begins
From there, you go for 200 metres on a narrow snowshoe trail and cross a very pretty McDougall Creek.
The snowshoe trail ends with a steep descent and turns abruptly at the Evan-Thomas bridge. You should remove your skis and walk down the final 50-metres to the E-T bridge where Wedge Connector starts.
Wedge Connector
The conditions on Wedge Connector are fantastic. You can also ski this trail by starting at Wedge Pond. I didn’t go all the way to the pond, rather I turned right onto the Bill Milne trail which was also in excellent shape.
Bill Milne trail
This section of the Bill Milne trail is a lot of fun with some small hills and easy turns down to the highway where you need to remove your skis and resume skiing on the other side.
Bill Milne trail near the Wedge Connector junction
The Bill Milne trail runs through Mt Kidd RV Park, then crosses another bridge and soon you’ll be back at the spot where you need to cross the road and go back to your vehicle in the Evan-Thomas parking lot. Alternatively, you can continue skiing on the Bill Milne trail.
Environment Canada has posted a snowfall warning for Canmore and Kananaskis(including Bragg Creek), but not for Banff or Lake Louise. As I write this at 12 noon on Saturday, it has just started snowing in Canmore and I can see the spruce trees swaying in the wind. The forecast is calling for 2-4 cm today and a further 2-4 cm tonight. The temperature is -11°C and is not expected to get any warmer. The wind chill is -20.
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