Author: Lupe

Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 129: Centennial Trail near Fort Meade (5-22-15)

Lupe’s uncle Joe and cousin Dusty from Arvada, CO arrived in town late Thursday evening prior to Memorial Day weekend.  Naturally, Joe, Dusty, Lupe & SPHP wanted to start the weekend off right with an outing the very next day.  A 70% chance of rain was in the forecast, so rather than go up into the higher Black Hills, Joe suggested a hike he is fond of which he refers to as “The Ponderosa”.  The Ponderosa hike starts at the Alkali Creek trailhead on the Centennial Trail No. 89 just a few miles SE of Sturgis, SD, and goes N from there up a pine-covered ridge and back down again onto a more open ridge.  This area is on the very NE edge of the Black Hills.

However, upon reaching the Alkali Creek trailhead, Joe changed his mind and suggested doing a part of the Centennial Trail a bit farther to the N.  After driving a couple of miles farther N, the G6 was abandoned at the Fort Meade National Cemetery.  Lupe and Dusty served as advanced scouts along the Centennial Trail heading N from there.  Joe and Dusty had never been on this part of the Centennial Trail, although Lupe and SPHP had.  From the cemetery, it was a 0.5 mile heading N generally downhill through pine and scrub oak forest to the Fort Meade trailhead.  Lupe and Dusty sniffed around what remained of the foundations from some old buildings along the way, and generally had a good time roaming around.

Just N of the Fort Meade trailhead, the Centennial Trail crosses Hwy 34 less than a mile E of Sturgis.  From there the trail heads N into the trees along Bear Butte Creek, across a wooden bridge, and then heads up onto a barren exposed ridge.  Once up on the ridge, the Centennial Trail turns and heads ENE in the direction of Bear Butte (4,422 ft.), which is in clear view a few miles away.

Up on the ridge there was a S breeze blowing.  It was unseasonably cool out, somewhere in the 50’s although it was near mid-day.  The sky was all overcast, and the clouds were especially dark back to the W towards the Black Hills.  The ponderosa pines growing on the hills made them look quite dark in contrast to the lighter green of the prairie.  It really was very pleasant out in the cool breeze, shaded by the clouds.  N of the ridge was open ranch land dotted by little stock ponds.  It has been wet recently, so the stock ponds were full.

The Centennial Trail eventually leaves the ridge to go down into a lower area between the ridge and Bear Butte Lake.  Joe, Dusty, Lupe and SPHP went partway down the ridge before stopping at some low rocks sticking up out of the prairie.  Using rocks for stools during a short rest break, Joe and SPHP ate energy bars while admiring the scene.  Lupe and Dusty had water and Taste of the Wild.  Dusty doesn’t normally get Taste of the Wild and was pretty enthusiastic about it.  Dusty was prepared to devour the entire supply on the spot, but SPHP rationed it out.

Lupe & Dusty up on the ridge a few miles SW of Bear Butte. The 111 mile long Centennial Trail starts at the top of Bear Butte, and runs S through the Black Hills to Wind Cave National Park.

When the rest break was over, Joe was ready to head back.  Everyone had just as  good a time on the return trip to the S as before.  Lupe and Dusty investigated everything along the way again, and at one point both dogs ran far off down the ridge before racing back to arrive breathless and panting hard.  Despite the forecast, the rain held off.  For Lupe and SPHP, it had been a pretty short trip, barely enough to qualify as one of Lupe’s expeditions, but it was a pleasant time spent with good company.

Lupe was thrilled with this expedition.  After spending most of the first few weeks of May indoors due to inclement weather and waiting many days for SPHP to finish up on some work that had a deadline, Lupe finally got to spend some time sniffing, exploring, running and roaming around again.

The fun wasn’t done yet either.  Lupe got to spend the evening with her Uncle Joe, Aunt Andrea, Grandma Kitty, Cousin Dusty and SPHP at her grandma’s house at the edge of the big canyon.  Hamburgers and chocolate ice cream were on the menu.  A very satisfied dingo spent the late evening snoozing on the plush carpet at Grandma’s house while the rain finally started outside.

Links:

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Centennial Trail No. 89 Map & Brochure

Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 149 – Centennial Trail No. 89: Fort Meade to Bear Butte Lake (12-19-15)

Next Trail Section South:

Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 241 – Centennial Trail No. 89: Alkali Creek to Fort Meade (12-10-18)

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Sherbrooke Lake, Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada (7-25-14)

It was 41°F and still totally overcast when Lupe and SPHP woke up in the G6.  It had rained a little during the night, but by now the pavement was mostly dry.  SPHP drove over to a picnic area near the N end of the Bow Parkway.  No one else was around yet.  While SPHP made a bit of breakfast, Lupe sniffed around.  There wasn’t too much for her to do since the squirrels weren’t even up yet.

On the drive over to the picnic ground, SPHP had seen new snow high up on the mountains.  Not so much to the E & S, but a fair amount to the N.  The gray skies, mountaintops lost in the clouds, and new snow made the mountains look beautiful, but also remote and vaguely threatening.

After breakfast, Lupe and SPHP drove over to Lake Louise Village so SPHP could mail a postcard.  While there, SPHP chanced to meet a 74 year old man from San Diego, CA.  He was friendly and talkative.  He was on a six month tour of the Canadian Rockies and the American West in a little motor home all by himself.

That sounded pretty awesome!  SPHP enjoyed chatting with him.  The man mentioned the hike to Sherbrooke Lake as a pretty nice one, and not too long.  It sounded like a good idea to SPHP on a cool, drippy, overcast day when the mountains were hidden in the clouds anyway.

Sherbrooke Lake from the SE shore, Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada
Sherbrooke Lake from the SE shore, Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada

Lupe and SPHP had actually planned to go to Sherbrooke Lake while in the Canadian Rockies back in 2013, but SPHP had not found the trailhead.  This time, with the help of a tip from the guy from San Diego, it wasn’t a problem.

From Lake Louise, Lupe and SPHP headed N and then W on the Trans-Canada Hwy No. 1 past the turn off for the Icefields Parkway Hwy No. 93.  After entering Yoho National Park, SPHP slowed down when Wapta Lake came into view on the S side of the highway.  On the N side of the highway across from the lake is the Great Divide Lodge.  SPHP turned into the big parking lot for the Great Divide Lodge.  It turned out the trailhead wasn’t there, but SPHP knew it had to be close by.

Getting back on Trans-Canada Hwy No. 1 and continuing W just 0.25 mile from the Great Divide Lodge, SPHP saw another turnoff on the N side of the highway.  There was no sign, but this was the correct turn for the Sherbrooke Lake trailhead.  The road went N up a little hill, and then curved E to end at the trailhead parking lot, which wasn’t far from the highway at all.  There were no other vehicles at the misty trailhead.  Low gray clouds were dripping light rain sporadically when Lupe set out on the trail to Sherbrooke Lake.

The trail goes through the forest the entire 3.1 km to Sherbrooke Lake.  Nearly all of the 165 m elevation gain occurs on the first part of the trail before it reaches a junction at 1.4 km with a trail to the lookout on Paget Peak (8,465 ft.).  Ordinarily, SPHP would have been tempted to check out Paget Peak, but it seemed pointless to climb up into the fog.  The last part of the trek to Sherbrooke Lake was a pleasant stroll through the dripping forest with little elevation change.  Lupe was pretty damp, but in good spirits when she reached Sherbrooke Lake along its SE shore.

A wet Lupe reaches the SE shore of Sherbrooke Lake in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada.
A damp Lupe reaches the SE shore of Sherbrooke Lake in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada.  Photo is looking N.

Under the overcast skies, Sherbrooke Lake was a light gray-green color.  The air was calm, and the lake was smooth with hardly a ripple on its surface.  The trail continued another 1.4 km along the E shore of the lake to the far N end.

Everything was sopping wet, as Lupe and SPHP headed N along the lakeshore trail.  Little streams crossed the trail on their way down into the lake.  Small birds were perched up in the trees near the water’s edge.  Lupe barked enthusiastically at them.  There were even a few squirrels around.  Her barking echoed through the valley, but no one else was around to care.

The NW shore of Sherbrooke Lake.
The NW shore of Sherbrooke Lake.

At the far NE corner of Sherbrooke Lake, the trail went into some terrain covered with tall bushes as it started around the N shore.  Here there were larger creeks flowing down into the lake.  The trail started to fade quickly as it went into the wet bushes.  There were rounded stones on the ground and muddy places.  SPHP got the impression that this whole area Lupe was approaching was a big wash where a larger braided stream was depositing rocks and mud, slowly filling in the N end of the lake.

It was starting to rain more steadily.  The trail was fading away as it headed into the tall wet bushes.  The larger streams Lupe now encountered were difficult to cross without getting wet.  It was becoming clear that continuing on meant both Lupe and SPHP would get totally soaked.  Without adequate rain gear, it was time to turn around.  Lupe was just as happy barking at birds on the way back S along the E shore of the lake, as she had been going N.

Looking back to the S from the NE corner of Sherbrooke Lake.
Looking back to the S from the NE corner of Sherbrooke Lake.

Lupe and SPHP had seen no one at all on the entire trip to Sherbrooke Lake, but on the way back a couple from Edmonton appeared at the junction with the trail to the Paget Peak lookout.  They were very nice and SPHP chatted with them for a while.

The Edmonton couple were on their way to the N end of Sherbrooke Lake where Lupe had just been, except they were going to continue on beyond the lake.  They said that the trail does not end at the N end of Sherbrooke Lake.  Not too far N of the lake is a headwall.  The trail climbs up and over the headwall to some fantastically beautiful territory (Niles Meadows) and goes on toward Niles Peak.  Definitely worth checking out sometime, but sissy SPHP wanted to do it in better weather.

The Edmonton couple was justifiably excited about a trip to the Himalayas they were going to take in the relatively near future.  They planned on spending time at a 14,000 foot elevation base camp near Mt. Everest, although they had no plans to climb Everest.  The airfare there was the big expense.  They could hire a Sherpa for $10 per day to haul all of their gear, cook, make camp, etc.  SPHP made a mental note to cross Sherpa off the list of possible career opportunities.

Of more immediate interest to SPHP was another trek in the Canadian Rockies that they recommended.  Across the Icefields Parkway Hwy No. 93 from the Crowfoot Glacier near Bow Lake is the Helen Lake trailhead.  From Helen Lake it is possible to climb up to the top of Cirque Peak where there are fabulous views of the Wapta Icefield, Bow Lake and Bow Glacier Falls.  Two days later Lupe and SPHP actually climbed Cirque Peak.  The experience was everything the couple from Edmonton promised it would be and more!

Just before 1:00 PM, a very soggy Lupe was back at the trailhead.  Lupe hopped right into the G6 and began licking herself dry.  She’d had a great time on the trail to Sherbrooke Lake.  It really had been an enjoyable outing and had only taken a few hours.  Sometime in the future Lupe and SPHP hope to return to see Niles Meadows.

Lupe’s 2014 visit to Sherbrooke Lake was over.  It rained for a while.  Lupe and SPHP took a nap.  By the time SPHP woke up, the rain had tapered off.  Lupe and SPHP returned to Lake Louise Village.  There was still time left in the day to do something else.  Lupe and SPHP headed for Moraine Lake for a walk along the lakeshore trail.

Lupe at Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada 7-25-14
Lupe at Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada 7-25-14

From the big rock pile at the outlet end of Moraine Lake, SPHP was amazed how blue the lake was despite the still cloudy skies.

Moraine Lake and Valley of the Ten Peaks from the rock pile.
Moraine Lake and Valley of the Ten Peaks from the rock pile.

After dinner, Lupe and SPHP went to Lake Louise to take a wonderful evening stroll to the end of the lake.

Lupe took an evening stroll along beautiful Lake Louise to the far side of the lake. Mt. Lefroy (L) and Mount Victoria (center) visible in the distance.
Lupe took an evening stroll along beautiful Lake Louise to the far side of the lake. Mt. Lefroy  (11,293 ft.) (L) and Mount Victoria (11,375 ft.) (center) visible in the distance.
Chateau du Lac Louise
The Chateau du Lac Louise is visible beyond Lupe across Lake Louise, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada 7-25-14

The views at Lake Louise looked even a bit more spectacular this evening with the bit of fresh snow from last night still lingering on the peaks.

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