We’ve put together a video with highlights from our trip through Section C of the Great Divide Trail (GDT) in 2021. We will be putting out more videos in the future, so be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel.
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Dayhike: Turtle Mountain, Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, 2019
Another daylong adventure I took boys on while we lived in Southern Alberta was Turtle Mountain. It sounds innocuous if you aren’t from the area, but if you are there is another connotation entirely.
View from the top of Turtle Mountain – you can see the slide at the bottom of the photo with the highway passing through it (2019) Turtle Mountain, when you are driving through the Crowsnest Pass is unmissable. Why? Because the side of the mountain sheared off in 1903, crashing down onto the coal mining town of Frank, burying it and the railroad under millions of tons of rock and killing as many as 90 people. To this day, it feels like you are driving through a rock quarry as the entire foot of the valley is covered in boulders.
There is a trail on this mountain though. If you drive west up the valley past the slide, you come to a town called Coleman, and if you drive into town and bear to the southeast, you will find a trailhead. The hike is 7 km return, up and back, with about 900m to the top of the remaining peak.
I elected to take my twins up there. In retrospect, probably ill-advised, as I did not realize how nervous I would be with them near (less than 5m) away from the sheer cliff that is the slide face. They were good boys though, they listened and never went really close.
The view of Coleman after some altitude gains (2019) 
One of the cracks in the mountain (2019) 
The boys found a windbreak shelter to hide in (2019) The hike up was steady, with views of the town behind us. The trail mostly stays on the side of the mountain away from the slide, and does get steeper and more exposed as we got close to the top. What I found particularly interesting… or possibly unnerving, was that when we got to that zone, we wove amongst cracks in the stone that sometimes descended a couple meters down.
I was able to see firsthand how the slide happened – snow and ice had built up in some of these cracks, and with the spring thaw, ice has an interesting characteristic. Water decreases in volume as it cools to 4 degrees Celsius, but below 4 it actually begins to expand – this is what gives ice its buoyancy. Unfortunately, this freezing and thawing cycle can be so dramatic it can fracture rock. So one day the ice got too deep and expanded a little too much with a freeze cycle, and broke the mountain.
A notch in the rock looking down on the slide area (2019) So this hike is great for geology lessons, and for incredible views of the slide and the pass. I heartily recommend it for a dayhike, even with kids!
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Dayhike: Table Mountain, Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, 2018
Looking east from the top of Table Mountain (2018) Before the longer trips, our children were young. We had neither the types of jobs nor the ambition of some of these homeschooling families who I have heard about hiking the big trails in the USA. But passion for hiking was not going to be denied. So, I sought out hikes in the Rockies I could do with my sons as they grew up. One of the earliest I discovered was Table Mountain, just behind Pincher Creek in southern Alberta.
Perched on the south side of the pass entrance with commanding views of the transition from Rockies to foothills to plains, I was excited to get up there. I had heard of others who took kids up, so I figured it was attainable. Turns out I was in for some surprises.
The trail starts from Beaver Mines Lake Campground. It starts out fairly nicely, then begins some steep undulations as you get your start around the back shoulder of the peak. The draw that the trail follows has a little creek at the bottom but you aren’t really near it until you reach the “good parts”. A couple of kms in they start! The trail becomes more of a scramble as you ascend some very rocky areas to get to a winding switchback over scree. Some people descend by sliding down the scree. I do not recommend scree shortcuts uphill! It’s hard enough!
The boys ascend. Steep parts ahead! (2012) 
The dead tree once gave shade… (2012) After ascending the very steep bit (for quite some time) the trail becomes a more gradual ascent and very dry. Bring water, you’ll be hot and need it. A cool skeleton of a tree hangs over the trail as the only memory of a time when this path had shade. Finally, as you come over the lip to the table area, you will see low scrubby trees in bunches and a couple of makeshift rocky walls to hide behind if you come up on blustery days. I am pretty sure on the second trip I spotted a bear den in the scrubby trees… I didn’t crawl in to check.
The first ascent I took my three oldest boys when they were still in single digits (2012). They complained of course on the steep bits but it made good memories. The second ascent several years later (2018) I took my youngest (twins) and a teenage friend of the family. We ascended in the afternoon, and got some stunning pictures from the top of the sun making its way closer to the line of mountains to the west. But the biggest treat was the descent: when we made it past the steep bit, the remainder of the descent was pointed right at the sunset and made for some of the best photos I have ever taken.
Almost to the top… (2012) All in all, I really liked the mix of terrain and the challenge that the trail gives – enough to make you earn the summit but not enough to stop you. Bring adventurous children who are up for a challenge – this hike isn’t for city kids! But even if you don’t have little folks, it’s a great spot for anyone. I seem to recall a marriage proposal on one of our hikes up here!
The Twins enjoying a sunset on the way down (2018). This isn’t even the best shot I took. Distance: 10.6km return
Elevation Gain: 828m
