Tag: Stone Mountain Provincial Park

Along the Long Road Home (9-12-18 thru 9-15-18)

Days 40 – 43 of Lupe’s 2018 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon, Northwest Territories & Alaska!

9-12-18, 9:07 AM, International Falls trailhead, South Klondike Highway – The Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood had been so lucky yesterday!  She’d finally made it to Peak 6053 on a cool, cloudy day.  Most fortunately, the clouds had been high enough not to interfere with any of the incredible views.  Different story this morning.  100% overcast, low ceiling, all the mountains in fog.

Didn’t matter now.  Peak 6053 had been the last grand hurrah of this Dingo Vacation.  SPHP’s feet were too sore to do anything today, even if the weather had been perfect.  The Carolina Dog wasn’t actually a ball of fire, either.  She seemed perfectly content resting on her pile of blankets and pillows gazing out the windows of the G6.

Lupe’s grand summer of 2018 was ending.  Time to head home.  Less than 1 km from the Alaska border, SPHP turned the key.  The G6 sprang to life.  2,300+ miles to go!  Mountain climbing was done.  Any further adventures along the way were going to be quick and easy.  At this point, that was perfectly fine with both Loop and SPHP.  A long, relaxing drive sounded delightful!

9:45 AM – Canadian customs was only 7.5 miles N on the South Klondike Highway from where Lupe had spent the night.  A short wait in line, and Lupe breezed through.  The long drive began in earnest.  Even from the road, the scenery was gorgeous.  Big mountains, huge lakes, forests, rivers, for mile after mile.

At Carcross, SPHP turned NE on Tagish Road (Highway 8).  It started to rain.  Still weary, the Carolina Dog passed out, snoozing peacefully to the rhythmic slapping of the windshield wipers.  From Jake’s Corner, the rest of the morning and all afternoon were spent cruising E on the Alaska Highway across the southern Yukon.  Lupe did get out for a short break from the G6 at Teslin Lake.  By then, the rain and clouds were long gone.

Miss Sleepyhead revives long enough for a quick sniff along Teslin Lake.
Fake wildlife at a campground next to the gas station in Teslin. No, wait! The American Dingo is real!

Highlights of the day didn’t occur for Lupe or SPHP until the Yukon had been left behind for good.  E of Watson Lake in British Columbia, wide swaths of forest were clear cut along both sides of the Alaska Highway.  Bison roamed wild on the open ground.  That snapped the Carolina Dog to attention!  Lupe saw 7 bison in all, each of them loners.  Naturally, each bison was cause for a hysterical foaming-at-the-mouth barkfest as the G6 raced on by.  What could be more fun?

SPHP’s big moment came at Liard River Hot Springs.  While Lupe waited in the G6, lucky SPHP got to soak in the beautiful outdoor pools.  Warm and clean again for the first time in forever felt heavenly!  Even SPHP’s sore feet were more or less cured by the soothing experience.

Out for a quick romp with a view of the Liard River.

Light was fading by the time SPHP returned from the hot springs.  Only 6 miles after crossing the Liard River, it was time to stop for the night.  The sky was completely clear, and the night promised to be a cold one.  The big show didn’t start until 10:45 PM.  For an hour, the Northern Lights entertained in a true dancing with the stars.

9-13-18, 5:23 AM, 23°F – Ice in Lupe’s water bowl!  After a quick foray out to sniff the chilly air, the Carolina Dog was on her way.  Still pretty dark.  Upon entering Muncho Lake Provincial Park, Looper became excited, barking and whimpering at something she either sniffed or saw out there that SPHP couldn’t detect yet.  More bison?  Maybe.

6:17 AM, 25°F – Muncho Lake is always worth a stop!  The park here has some beautiful peaks, but is so wild and remote that SPHP has never been able to find any information on whether any trails exist providing access to them.  Some fine day Lupe is going to climb a mountain in Muncho Lake Provincial Park!  That great peak at the S end of the lake would be ideal.

By Muncho Lake.
Impressive peaks in Muncho Lake Provincial Park.

The next stop came at a pullout after crossing the bridge over the Racing River.  18°F!  Despite the chilly air, Lupe was totally enthused!  This was a favorite place.  A short dirt road goes through a stretch of forest here where she often finds squirrels on the way to the river.

This morning the Racing River was the lowest Lupe had ever seen it, but still that fabulous icy blue color!

The Racing River between Muncho Lake and Stone Mountain Provincial Parks.

While driving over the bridge, SPHP had noticed some white mountains upstream that looked interesting.  After Lupe’s woodsy stroll to the river, SPHP drove back to the bridge for another look.  Upstream, a pickup truck was in sight parked near some trees.  Must be a road over there!

7:52 AM – Continuing across the bridge, sure enough, there was a side road.  SPHP pulled off the highway, parked again, and the lucky Carolina Dog got to go exploring for a second time.  A short trek through another forest brought her to a relatively open area near the Racing River.  The gleaming white mountains, sporting new snow, looked intriguing.

The scene was so beautiful, that Lupe got to extend her sniff upstream for another 10 minutes.  It appeared she could have followed dry parts of the riverbed for miles, getting much closer to the white mountains.  No time for that today, but this area was certainly worth researching for a future trip.

By the Racing River with the intriguing white mountains in sight. Photo looks SW.
Another look with help from the telephoto lens.
The Alaska Highway bridge over the Racing River. Photo looks NE.
Another look downstream from a little farther up the Racing River.
As close to the white mountains as Lupe went. Photo looks SW with lots of help from the telephoto lens.

Exploring along the Racing River had been fun!  Lupe didn’t have long to wait before there was more excitement.  Upon reaching Stone Mountain Provincial Park, she saw 3 caribou, but barked so fanatically from the G6 that the caribou disappeared before SPHP could get a photo.

A quick stop a mile later provided a grand view of Mount Saint George, which Lupe had nearly succeeded in getting to the top of back in 2017.

Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.) (L). Lupe had made it to the middle high point in 2017 before being forced to retreat due to threatening weather. Photo looks SSE.

9:38 AM, 32°F, Summit Lake, Stone Mountain Provincial Park – Must be an inversion up here.  The temperature was clear up to freezing!  SPHP had stopped at Summit Lake, the high point of the Alaska Highway in Stone Mountain Provincial Park, to let Lupe out for another look at Mount Saint George.  Lupe had successfully climbed both Summit Peak  and Mount Saint Paul from here in 2017.

Mount Saint George from Summit Lake. Photo looks SW.

The American Dingo’s busy morning continued on the way out of Stone Mountain Provincial Park.  More caribou, this time right on the highway, were cause for another barking frenzy.

Caribou on the Alaska Highway.
A recent poll shows that 4 out of 5 caribou don’t care to listen to shrill barking frenzies.

The caribou were just a warm-up for what came next.  Lupe just about busted a gut when a black bear appeared.  The black bear didn’t seem to know what to make of all this racket, but did not run off.  The huge bear appeared quite willing to go a round or two with a pip-squeak Dingo, if it dared to leave the safety of the G6.

American Dingoes are incredibly strong, brave, and ferocious!  Lupe would most certainly have torn that foolish bear to shreds, if SPHP hadn’t spared it by refusing to let her out and driving on.  Later in the day, a grizzly bear near Bonnie Creek S of Fort Nelson had sense enough to flee into the woods rather than take a chance that SPHP might relent and let the feisty Dingo prove her point.

Black bear E of Stone Mountain Provincial Park.
Bring it, Dingo!

Approaching Fort St. John, SPHP skipped the R turn onto Highway 29 to Chetwynd and Prince George.  Although this meant no more mountains on this Dingo Vacation, the Carolina Dog was going to get to travel through more than 1,000 miles of territory neither she nor SPHP had ever seen before.

5:00 PM, 32°F, Fort St. John – In a way, a strange day.  Despite clear skies, the temperature peaked at 47°F early in the afternoon.  Already down to freezing again at Fort St. John, and it stayed that way for many miles.

The Alaska Highway was busy from Fort St. John all the way to where it started in Dawson Creek.  The community of Taylor where the highway crossed the Peace River made a good impression.  A big oil refinery was there, but the whole town was impeccably neat and clean, and the Peace River setting was beautiful.

S of Taylor on the way to Dawson Creek, SPHP was surprised to find the seemingly endless northern forests greatly reduced already.  About half of the land had been cleared.  Hay seemed to be the big crop, although little livestock was seen from the road.  Lupe was thrilled to see a few cows and horses, though, and the G6 became a sporadically noisy place.  Her enthusiasm sometimes extended to huge rolled hay bales, too.

E of Dawson Creek on Hwy 49, the road straightened.  Lupe was now in Alberta.  Remaining woodlands became scarcer, and traffic dwindled.  SPHP drove under a cloud bank as the sun sank in the rear view mirror.  Light began to fade quickly.  Although the land was quite flat, it did slope gradually lower to the N.  Lupe could see a long way in that direction, all the way to the northern forest.

Many fields had snow in them.  In the dim light beneath the gray clouds, it looked and felt like November.  After passing Spirit Lake and Rycroft, SPHP parked for the night before getting to Wanham.  Happy to escape the G6 again, Lupe rolled in snow in the ditch to cool off.

9-14-18, 3:10 AM, 35°F, Hwy 49 – At least it hadn’t gotten any colder out.  3°F warmer, in fact.  SPHP walked along the dark highway, while Lupe sniffed near the ditch.  No stars.  Dead calm.  No traffic.  A coyote howled, and a dog at a farmhouse 0.5 mile N started barking.

7:08 AM, 32°F, Hwy 49 – Back to freezing again.  Another quick sniff outside, then on to the vast metropolis of Wanham!  The edge of the cloud Lupe was under was only a little way N, but it was soon left behind.

Morning along Highway 49 W of Wanham, Alberta.

S of Donnelly, SPHP continued straight at an intersection where Hwy 49 became Hwy 2.  A lovely drive through a mix of farms and woodlands ensued.  The woods began to dominate again.  Driving through forests with snow on the ground, it felt like Christmas was coming.

Highway 2.

10:15 AM, 35°F, Canyon Creek harbor, Lesser Slave Lake – Eventually Hwy 2 had taken Lupe E through the forests S of Lesser Slave Lake.  The big lake was the most interesting natural feature on the map between the mountains and home, so the Carolina Dog simply had to stop for a look.  Waves lapped gently along the shoreline.  The day was gray and calm, peaceful except for the raucous activity of seagulls.

Clearly, a boat was needed to make even a cursory exploration of Lesser Slave Lake, but it was fun to stroll along the shore for a little bit.

Lesser Slave Lake.
Low hills were over toward the E end of the lake. Only a small fraction of Lesser Slave Lake is in view here.
Seagulls provided what excitement and activity there was at Lesser Slave Lake on this cool, gray day.
Looking toward the N shore.

1:23 PM, 39°F, Athabasca – Some sort of big event was just breaking up in a park at the busy little town of Athabasca when Lupe arrived.  The park was right next to the Athabasca river, which Lupe had only seen before in Jasper National Park.  The river was much tamer here than at mighty Athabasca Falls, but Loop still enjoyed sniffing around down on the partially exposed riverbed.

Christmas was in the air on the way to the town of Athabasca!
Along the Athabasca River in Athabasca, Alberta.

From Athabasca, SPHP drove E on Hwy 55, then S on Hwys 63 and 831.  On the road S, the woodlands gave way for a final time to fields and farms of the great northern prairies.

3:36 PM, 39°F, Lamont – Lupe didn’t escape the G6 again until reaching the town of Lamont.  SPHP let her check out the Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. John the Baptist, which featured distinctive architecture.

Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. John the Baptist, Lamont, Alberta.
Churches aren’t usually part of Lupe’s adventures, but this one was quite striking!

At Mundare, Lupe reached 4 lane Hwy 16.  Except where there were cows or horses to bark at, the drive E over gently rolling prairies put her to sleep.  Near Lloydminster, Lupe and SPHP entered Saskatchewan for the first time ever.  The scenery didn’t change, though, and the long drive continued.

7:11 PM, 41°F – As evening came on, SPHP left Hwy 16 looking for a rest area, but didn’t find it.  Lupe’s first outing in Saskatchewan was a walk along a dirt road through a wheat field to see an oil tank.

Visiting Saskatchewan for the first time ever!

The sun set before the American Dingo reached Battleford.  SPHP doesn’t ordinarily like to drive in the dark, but it didn’t seem like Loopster was going to miss much except more prairie, so tonight was an exception.  No longer sleepy, she stayed awake anyway, keeping SPHP company as miles rolled by.  Saskatoon was big and confusing in the dark, but by midnight, Lupe was far beyond it, S of Chamberlain along another Hwy 2.

756 miles today, and that was enough.

9-15-18, 9:13 AM – The morning was cool, overcast, almost foggy.  SPHP parked the G6 at a rest area along the E side of Hwy 6 in S Saskatchewan about an hour N of the Montana border.  The rest area was a triangular 30 acre tract surrounded by wheat farms.  Picnic tables were arranged around a circular drive, with the rest of the 30 acres given over to tall grass and shelter belt trees.

No one else around.  Hardly any traffic.  This rest area was a beautiful little refuge on the quiet prairie, and Lupe’s last adventure of her 2018 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon, Northwest Territories & Alaska.  For two happy hours, she roamed with SPHP through the tall grass and shelter belt woods exploring every nook and cranny, chased tennis balls SPHP threw for her, and sniffed along while SPHP picked up trash.

Happy times at the rest area along Hwy 6 in Saskatchewan.

The rest of the day was devoted to one more long drive.  During the noon hour, Lupe crossed the border into Montana at Regway on the way to Plentywood.  S of Baker, SPHP finally drove out from under the cloud the Carolina Dog had been under since Dawson Creek back at the start of the Alaska Highway.

5:59 PM, 71°F –  The sun was shining at Medicine Rocks State Park.  The air was breezy, and had soared to room temperature.  A quick stop, then Lupe continued S, enjoying a ride with the windows partly open.  This was all eastern Montana ranch land.  Opportunities to bark at cows and horses came one after another!  Toward dusk, SPHP had to slow way down due to all the herds of deer.

At Medicine Rocks State Park in eastern Montana.

The sun set for the last time on her last summer of 2018 Dingo Vacation while Lupe was still in SE Montana on Hwy 323 N of Alzada.

On Hwy 323 as the sun sets in SE Montana.
Lupe’s grand summer of 2018 fades into history.

9-15-18, 9:45 PM – 43 days, 9,691 miles, and countless adventures come and gone.  Home again.  SPHP unlocked the front door.  Home was dark, stuffy, warm.  Sigh.  Back to the old routine.  Time to air things out, and start unloading the G6.

Felt strange to be here.

Oh, for a time machine!  Tomorrow a bright summer morning would dawn, and the Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood would be heading N on the long road to adventure.  Tuktoyaktuk, Land of the Pingos, and the Arctic Ocean in her future once again!

At the Arctic Ocean, Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada 8-19-18

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Mount Saint George, Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada (8-5-17)

Day 6 of Lupe’s 2017 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon & Alaska!

(5:21 AM, Summit Lake at Summit Pass, Stone Mountain Provincial Park)  The second time SPHP woke up sunlight was just beginning to shine on Mount Saint George.  The light quickly grew in intensity.  In minutes, the mountain was aglow, radiantly beautiful all pink and yellow.  SPHP knew it wouldn’t last long, but couldn’t muster the energy to grab the camera until it was too late.  The moment had passed.

Yesterday, up on Mount Saint Paul, Lupe and SPHP had been all excited about her success there, and eagerly looking forward to climbing Mount Saint George today.  But by the time it was over, yesterday had been a nearly 13 hour expedition in rugged territory, and had taken a toll.  SPHP felt it.  Apparently Lupe did, too.  She was awake, but all bleary-eyed.  Clearly, “ambition” wasn’t her middle name this morning.

Huh? … Another mountain? … NOW!? You can’t be serious! For pity sake, just hit the snooze button, would ya, SPHP? I’ll think about it later.

For several minutes Lupe licked SPHP affectionately, as if to apologize for not wanting to dash off up the next mountain at the crack of dawn.  It turned out she was hungry.  She devoured a chicken treat, a milk bone, a generous bowl of Taste of the Wild, and lapped up a huge drink of water before rolling over to resume snoozing.

Clouds moved in.  Mount Saint George vanished.  It started to rain.  Shucks!  If it didn’t show signs of clearing up before SPHP’s breakfast was over, it would make more sense to drive on instead of sitting around here.  Lupe still had a long way to go to get to where she had more adventures planned in the Yukon and Alaska.  Still, it would be a pity not to even get an attempt on Mount Saint George in.  If only yesterday’s beautiful weather had held out one more day!

Nothing one can do about that.  It was what it was.  A wind came up.  It rained harder.  SPHP piddled around to see what would happen.  Breakfast, catch up the trip journal, get water at the campground, pitch out the trash, straighten out the G6, study a few maps.  At 8:00 AM, the moment of truth arrived.

The breeze had died down.  The rain had stopped.  The sky remained overcast, but not darkly.  Mount Saint George still couldn’t be seen.  Maybe it would clear up?  Prospects seemed 50/50.  Lupe had been awake for a while now, looking no worse for yesterday’s wear.  The Carolina Dog was ready for action again.  Was it worth it, or was it smarter to drive on?  Decisions, decisions.

Kind of now or never, Loopster.  What do you think?  Who knows if we will ever be back here again?  We’re a mighty long way from home already.

Oh, I’ll be fine either way, SPHP.  Yesterday was great fun, so I’m happy enough with an easy day watching scenery from the G6 if you want to drive on.  On the other paw, I’d be happy to climb Mount Saint George now, too, if you’d like.  Even if you don’t get your precious views, I always enjoy sniffing around and a good romp.

Hmm.  Not that helpful, Looper.  You’re as wishy-washy as I am.

Well, tell me what the weather is going to do, and I’ll tell you what to do.

I was hoping with your keen Dingo senses you knew.  I can’t tell what’s going to happen.  Maybe it’s best to delay making a final decision?  We could start for Mount Saint George, but if the weather doesn’t clear up by the time we reach where the Flower Springs Lake trail leaves the road to the microwave tower, we could try going to Flower Springs Lake instead.  If the weather gets all socked in and it starts to rain again, we can just beat a retreat and drive on.

Fine with me, SPHP!  So are we going then?

Thus went the discussion, with no real resolution until 8:15 AM when at the edge of vision far to the W, the deciding factor appeared.  A tiny speck of blue, blue sky.  Hope blossomed.  Maybe the weather really was going to clear?  Maybe an hour from now, Lupe would be in brilliant sunshine?  That blue speck was enough.  Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.) was a go!

Lupe and SPHP crossed a paw bridge at the Summit Lake stream outlet which was where a sign at the campground indicated the Flower Springs Lake trail began.  Immediately across the bridge, the trail divided three ways.  No sign here.  Left, right or straight?

Lupe tried going R along the shore of Summit Lake.  She quickly came to places where the trail had collapsed into the lake.  This couldn’t be right, could it?  Perhaps this wasn’t even a real trail?  (Note: Consulting maps later on, SPHP discovered this really was the Flower Springs Lake trail.)  Loop returned to the junction by the bridge.  This time she tried the middle trail which went up a hillside into the forest.

After Loop had gained some elevation, a small sign said she was on the Ridge trail.  Appropriately enough, it climbed to the top of a ridge where it leveled out.  The Ridge trail now passed through a forest dense with bushes.  Everything was wet from the earlier rain.  The bushes soon had Loopster sopping wet, too.  She was one soggy doggie, but her spirits weren’t dampened in the least.

The Ridge trail wasn’t terribly long.  After crossing the ridge, it led down a forested embankment to meet up with a road.  SPHP knew this road led to a microwave tower perched on a hill at the base of Mount Saint George.  Somewhere along the way the road ought to provide Lupe a convenient access point to the mountain.  The American Dingo followed the road SSW going uphill.

A bit of a trek brought Lupe to a sign identifying the Flower Springs Lake trail where it crossed the road.  This area was open terrain, the forest having recently been left behind.  The sky was still overcast, but the speck of blue sky to the W had grown considerably.  A W breeze held promise that the clouds might soon sail off to the E.  With this encouragement, all thought of settling for the Flower Springs Lake trail was banished.  On to Mount Saint George!

Shortly after passing the Flower Springs Lake trail, the road made a big switchback climbing W before leveling out.  Lupe was now headed straight W toward the microwave tower, which could be seen atop its hill, High Point 5469 (1,667 m), more than a mile away.  To the S, seemingly right at the base of Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.), a green 200 foot high ridge paralleled the road.

Lupe followed the road W halfway to the microwave tower before SPHP decided she might just as well begin her ascent of Mount Saint George.  Lupe left the road and climbed S up onto the big green ridge.

Looking W at the microwave tower on High Point 5469 (1,667 m). This tower sits close to the N base of Mount Saint George. Lupe left the road here, turning S (L) to climb a 200 foot high green ridge that parallels the road.

Up on the green ridge, Lupe and SPHP stopped briefly to rest.  Looking back, part of Summit Lake where Lupe had started from was in view.  The Carolina Dog had already gained many hundreds of feet of elevation.  Beyond the lake Looper could see Summit Peak (6,611 ft.).  Only yesterday, Lupe had stood on top of Summit Peak on her way to Mount Saint Paul (6,985 ft.).

Up on the big green ridge looking back at where Lupe had come from. She’d started out at the far end of Summit Lake (R) which appeared to be many hundreds of feet below where she was now. Summit Peak, which she had climbed yesterday, is the more distant mountain at Center. Photo looks NE.

Lupe continued SW across the green ridge, which was very wide, toward the base of Mount Saint George.  At first, heading right on up the wide NE arm of the mountain looked like it would be a snap.  As Lupe got closer, though, it became apparent this was an illusion.  A deep valley draining to the SE was between the American Dingo and the mountain.

Loop crossing the big green ridge toward the base of Mount Saint George. It initially looked like Lupe ought to be able to head straight for the NE arm of the mountain (Center), but she soon discovered a deep intervening valley draining to the SE (L). Photo looks SSW.

Dang it all, anyway!  SPHP didn’t feel like descending into that deep, steep-sided drainage.  A glance to the W revealed that the highest part of the drainage was way over near the microwave tower.  Climbing onto this big green ridge had been a waste of time.  Lupe should have just stuck with the road until she was at the base of the hill the tower sits on.  It would have been faster and easier to turn S there.

A glance to the W revealed that the high point of the drainage Lupe needed to get across was way over by the microwave tower. It would have been easier to simply stick with the road instead of climbing up onto this big green ridge. Photo looks W.

Live and learn.  Lupe and SPHP turned W traveling along the ridge toward the microwave tower.  This pleasant level stroll was made even easier by an old jeep trail Loop found on the way.  As Lupe started getting closer to the tower, she left the jeep trail angling SW to look for a good route down into the drainage.

As Lupe started getting close to the microwave tower, she angled toward the S side of the ridge she was on looking for a way across the drainage. The bottom of the drainage is in view now on the R. Mount Saint George has 3 N arms or ridges. The NE arm Lupe would ultimately go up is on the L. The middle N arm that ends closer to the microwave tower is seen on the R. Look at those beautiful blue skies now! Oh, yeah! Things were looking good. Photo looks SW.

Mount Saint George has three N arms or ridges.  A large valley comes down between the middle and NE ridges that joins the drainage Lupe needed to get across only a little E of that drainage’s high point.  As Lupe drew closer, she could see a sizable gash at the lower end of this valley.

That gash looked like a good spot to begin Lupe’s ascent of Mount Saint George.  Once opposite the gash, the bottom of the intervening drainage wasn’t all that far below the green ridge, and the slope leading down into it wasn’t so steep.  Lupe and SPHP descended into the drainage, and crossed over to the gash.

Looking across the drainage at the gash at the lower end of the valley between Mount Saint George’s middle N and NE ridges. The middle N ridge is on the R. Photo looks SW.
Lupe on her way down into the drainage. It wasn’t far or steep to the bottom from here. The microwave tower is in view at the far end of the green ridge. Photo looks W.

As expected, the terrain in the eroded gash was nearly all rock.  A stream so small it could be conveniently crossed almost anywhere tumbled down a series of small waterfalls into pretty pools below.  Lupe explored numerous nooks and crannies while SPHP trudged up the gash.

Lupe wades the small stream in the gash. Part of the big green ridge she had just come from can be seen on the L. Photo looks NE.
Looking up the gash. Although it was often fairly steep, traveling up the gash wasn’t bad at all. It certainly wasn’t as hard as it might have been. Most of the rocks were fairly small. Usually there were easy ways to avoid troublesome spots. Photo looks SSW.

After crossing the stream once, Lupe and SPHP stayed on the E (L) side of the gash the rest of the way up.  The water in the creek was cold and clear.  SPHP tried it.  Delicious!  The water SPHP had gotten from a pump back at the Summit Lake campground this morning tasted terrible.  SPHP dumped it all to fill 3 water bottles with fresh creek water.

At the upper end of the gash, Lupe discovered a lovely waterfall higher than any of the others.  It plunged noisily over a tilted layer of rock.

Lupe discovers the highest waterfall of all at the upper end of the gash. Photo looks S.
The terrain above this waterfall at the upper end of the gash was not so heavily eroded. The stream raced swiftly and smoothly over intact layers of exposed bedrock. Photo looks SW.

Above the final waterfall, Lupe followed the creek quite a distance.  Here it raced swiftly and smoothly over intact exposed layers of bedrock.  Nearby slopes were mostly green with low vegetation.  Gradually the creek bent around toward due S.

Lupe eventually left the creek to turn E toward Mount Saint George’s huge NE ridge.  Loop aimed for a large black rock prominent among whiter stones high up along the ridgeline.  A considerably lower black rock provided an intermediate goal.

Surprisingly, Looper found a narrow, but very definite trail that passed only a short distance below the lower black rock.  The trail continued climbing ENE from here slanting up along the side of the ridge.  Lupe reached the ridgeline somewhat below the upper black rock, which was now hidden from view.

Lupe was now on the lower slopes of Mount Saint George’s NE ridge.  Way down here, the ridge was rounded and extremely broad.  Small rocks interspersed with low vegetation dominated the terrain.  Up until a short time ago, a W breeze had prevailed, driving the cloud cover off to the E, and bringing blue sky and sunshine.

The wind was shifting, however.  A light E breeze was now forcing clouds back this way.  Summit Peak was almost completely hidden from view, and Summit Lake was disappearing fast.

By the time Lupe reached the lower slopes of Mount Saint George’s NE ridge, the breeze had shifted around to the E. Clouds that had earlier blown off to the E were on their way back. Only an outline of Summit Peak is now visible beyond Summit Lake, which is also rapidly disappearing from view. Photo looks NE.

Despite the approaching clouds, Lupe and SPHP turned S and began climbing the vast ridge.  The breeze might easily shift again, and Lupe had already come a long way.  The Carolina Dog wasn’t going to give up on Mount Saint George so easily!  Clouds enveloped the ridge.  Everything except the immediately surrounding terrain disappeared.

Although clouds moved in to envelop the NE ridge, Lupe continued up.

For a long way, Lupe and SPHP continued up the NE ridge in fog.  At least initially, the climb wasn’t as steep as Lupe’s ascents of Summit Peak and Mount Saint Paul yesterday.  Sometimes Looper even came to relatively level stretches.

Slowly, though, the situation changed.  The rocks increased in size.  Vegetation became scarce.  The terrain grew rougher and steeper.  Lupe was climbing sharp boulder fields.  In places, SPHP was scrambling instead of walking.  The ridge was clearly narrowing, though it was still broad.

Lupe takes a break at a rare patch of greenery.

Lupe climbed a series of 100+ foot high benches of jumbled, broken rock.  SPHP had to use hand holds.  At the top of each bench, the terrain ahead usually leveled out some and became easier to traverse, but another bench every bit as difficult as the last one always appeared ahead.

Up and up went the Carolina Dog, over one obstacle after another.  Time passed.  It seemed like Lupe had been at this a long time.  She must have gained a lot of elevation.  Hard to tell how much, though.  The fog might be distorting all sense of time and distance.

The fog was sometimes dark and thick.  If it had stayed that way long, it absolutely would have been time to give up on Mount Saint George and head down.  It didn’t though.  After a few minutes, it would lighten up again.  The fog swept in waves over the ridge.  And every now and then, if Lupe looked up, the gray was tinged with blue.  Maybe Lupe would climb above the clouds?

And then it happened.  A genuine patch of clear blue sky appeared directly overhead.  Lupe was in sunshine!  It didn’t last.  The fog reasserted itself.  The hole closed.  Lupe kept climbing.

More and more often, there were hints that Lupe was going to get above the clouds, or that they might simply blow away.  The fog grew lighter and darker with increasing frequency.  Blue tinged fog was seen more often overhead.  In the meantime, the terrain was getting easier.  The rocks were much smaller again.  Lupe seemed to be past the boulder fields and benches.  SPHP could walk instead of scramble.  Lung, heart and leg power were the limiting factors instead of broken boulder fields.

Finally, finally, a bigger hole in the fog.  Blue sky!  Lupe could see farther up the ridge.  The view was disheartening.  SPHP had thought she would be closer to the top.  The truth was, the American Dingo still had a long way to go.

Finally a genuine break in the clouds revealed much more of the ridge ahead. The sight was initially disheartening. Lupe still had a lot farther to go than SPHP had hoped. Photo looks S.

Puppy ho!  Onward!  Yes, it was still a long climb, but so what?  The terrain wasn’t bad, steep yes, but not terribly so.  This was cake!  Just a matter of one paw after another.  Lupe could get to the top of this NE ridge.  No obstacle was in sight that could stop her.

Clouds and fog continued to sweep by sporadically, but less and less often.  Lupe pushed on.  She was going to reach the top of Mount Saint George’s NE ridge in brilliant sunshine!

The persevering puppy approaches the top of Mount Saint George’s NE ridge in brilliant sunshine! Not far now! Photo looks WSW.

Suddenly Lupe was there!  She had reached the N end of Mount Saint George’s summit ridge where the middle N and NE ridges meet.  This was the high point of both of those ridges.  The views were incredible!

Looking NW, Loop could see the huge McDonald Creek valley.  To the W, beautiful silvery mountains stood in sunshine.  Off to the E and S was an amazing sight.  A soft ocean of purest white stretched beyond vision.  The ocean wasn’t much lower than where Lupe stood now.

From the N end of Mount Saint George’s summit ridge, Lupe could see all the way down to the bottom of the McDonald Creek valley (L). Photo looks NW.
Looking W. Silvery mountains stand in sunshine beyond the McDonald Creek valley.
To the E, an amazing sight greets Lupe. A soft, billowing ocean of white stretches beyond vision. The ocean isn’t much lower than where Lupe stands now on Mount Saint George. Photo looks NE.
Looking S at the sea of white being held back by the mountains.
What an amazing view! Dark blue mountaintops jut up like islands from the pure white ocean of cloud. It was like being in an airplane! Photo looks S.

One view was of greater importance than any other.  Lupe had made it to the N end of Mount Saint George’s summit ridge, but this was the lower end.  Not an awful lot lower, no more than 56 meters (184 ft.), relative peanuts compared to how far she’d come, but certainly enough to make a difference.  Lupe couldn’t claim a peakbagging success yet.  Unfortunately, the topo map showed the true summit was somewhere way over near the far SW end of the long ridge.  How hard would it be for Lupe to get there?

The whole summit ridge was in view now.  What Lupe saw was disconcerting.  It appeared she could travel safely a long way, but near the SW end of the ridge where the summit was, the rock turned dark and it looked dicey.  Really dicey.  It looked like Looper might encounter drop offs or walls of rock she couldn’t climb or go around due to virtual cliffs next to the ridgeline.

On a brighter note, Lupe could almost certainly reach a high point about halfway along the ridge that looked higher than anything else except the summit.  According to the topo map, High Point 7320 (2,231 m) was only 82 feet (25 m) lower than the true summit.  Not really close enough to claim a peakbagging success, but still a major accomplishment on a day like today.

Lupe at the lower N end of Mount Saint George’s summit ridge. The view toward the true summit at the far end was disconcerting. It wasn’t at all clear that Lupe would be able to get there. She could probably make it to High Point 7320 (2,231 m) (seen straight up from Lupe’s head), though. It was only 82 feet (25 m) lower than the true summit according to the topo map. Photo looks SW.
True summit of Mount Saint George (R). Photo looks SW with lots of help from the telephoto lens.

The true summit was too far away to tell for certain from here if Lupe would be able to climb it or not.  After a short rest dazzled by the views at the N end of the summit ridge, Lupe and SPHP headed for High Point 7320 (2,231 m).

At first, all was well.  The stroll along the ridgeline was easy.  Lupe made great progress.  She even found a delightful patch of snow.

Loop enjoying a little patch of snow she found.

The easy trek was soon over.  Even at some of the lesser high points along the way, the terrain became too rough to stay right up on the ridge.  Lupe had to down climb a bit to get around them, negotiating a way through collections of large boulders.  Slow going, but at least possible.  Loop always stayed toward the less steep NW (R) side of the ridge.

The incredible scene to the S of dark mountaintops jutting up from an ocean of white reminded SPHP of photos in airline magazines.  Lupe has never been in an airplane.  She probably never will be.  This might be as close to having that airliner kind of view as Lupe would ever get.

Before Lupe even got to High Point 7320 (2,231 m) something happened that they never show in airline magazines.  All of a sudden, that bright white ocean of clouds flooded up in a swelling tide, completely swallowing Mount Saint George in a matter of seconds.  Lupe was engulfed in fog again.

Nope!  Loopster wasn’t turning back.  Foggy or not, the American Dingo had come too far, and the summit of Mount Saint George was too close.  One way or another, she was going to find out if she could get to the top or not.  Sadly, there wouldn’t be any views now, even if she made it.  No matter.  Reaching the summit in fog would still count as a legitimate peakbagging success.

Maybe it was smart to hurry things along, though.  SPHP didn’t like the notion of being way up here in fog for hours on end.  This time it didn’t seem likely the clouds would dissipate.  Onward!

Lupe reached High Point 7320 (2,231 m), but didn’t bother going all the way to the top.  She passed only 20 or 30 feet below it, again staying to the R.  Beyond High Point 7320 was a relatively flat area of small brown stones leading to the next somewhat lower high point nearby.  Beyond that next high point, Lupe was seldom right on the ridgeline.  She stayed NW (R), skirting past one high spot after another.

It was slow going, scrambling among large rocks and boulders on steep slopes the entire time.  Such limited visibility made things more difficult.  Lupe came to drop offs that couldn’t be seen soon enough to avoid having to retrace some hard won gains to down climb and go around them.  After each down climb, Lupe tried to regain her lost elevation.

Coming to drop offs in the fog usually meant retracing some progress and down climbing to get around them before returning to the ridge a bit farther on.
Lupe up on the ridgeline sometime after getting by High Point 7320 (2,231 m). Photo looks ENE.

The fog also made it impossible to see how much progress Lupe was making.  She had gone what seemed like a considerable distance beyond High Point 7320, when suddenly the fog thinned.  For a brief moment it was possible to see farther along the ridge.  Dark rocks.  Higher ground ahead!  Lupe was getting close to the summit!  It wasn’t that far away!  The fog closed in.  The view vanished.

There was a problem.  Lupe was on a platform of light gray rock.  15 feet ahead the platform ended abruptly at a drop of unseen proportions.  The platform narrowed toward the end.  It was like walking a plank.  SPHP peered over both sides of the plank.  To the L was a cliff.  To the R talus fields of darker rock could be seen well below where Lupe was.  They were steep, steeper than anything that had come before.

Lupe reaches the plank leading to a sudden drop off. Photo looks WSW.

This would be the biggest down climb yet.  Loopster would have to retrace more of her route to even start it.  She would then be on that very steep talus slope.  Yet if Lupe could get past this point, maybe she could quickly reach the summit?

The view ahead had only appeared momentarily.  Maybe what SPHP had seen wasn’t really the summit, just another of multiple high points on the way?  Maybe she couldn’t even get to the top of what had been so briefly glimpsed?

Standing there wondering in the enduring fog on the plank, the situation was starting to feel intimidating.  Unnerving.  Lupe seemed fine.  So close, yet …

A low rumble, muffled and distant.  Thunder?  Oh, brother.  Not up here!

It was the straw that broke the camel’s back.  If a storm was coming this was no place to be.  Close or not, whether Lupe could have made it or not, it was time to get out of here.  Enough playing with fire.  Time was up.  Lupe and SPHP turned back.  Within moments, thunder again, more distinctly twice in quick succession.  Closer, but still a way off.  It was coming from the W or SW.  Hurry, hurry!

On the retreat, Lupe passed so close to the top of High Point 7320 (2,231 m), that SPHP had her scramble briefly to its summit.  This was it!  As high as Lupe was ever going to get on Mount Saint George.  A couple of photos, then time to flee.  No views in the fog, anyway.

Near the top of High Point 7320 (2,231 m). Photo looks SE.
Lupe at the top of High Point 7320 (2,231 m). This is as high as Lupe ever made it on Mount Saint George. It was a valiant effort, but she’s still 82 feet below the elevation of the true summit. Photo looks S.

On the way back to the N end of the summit ridge, thunder was heard with increasing frequency.  Still distant, but louder and louder.  The storm was moving this way.

Lupe and SPHP had only barely started down the NE ridge when Lupe became frightened.  The thunder was getting unnervingly loud.  The Carolina Dog begged SPHP to stop and hide.  Not possible.  No place to hide existed.  Way too high and exposed on the mountain, down as fast as possible was the only answer.  SPHP urged Lupe onward.

No lightning was seen, but the thunder continued at regular intervals.  SPHP tried to reassure Loopster as she worried over each fresh rumble.  After a particularly loud roar, SPHP reached down to pet Lupe and got shocked twice.  The Carolina Dog’s fur crackled with static electricity.  Now Lupe wasn’t the only one truly alarmed.

A shock happened once more, but not as strongly the second time.  Down, down, down forever.  It started to rain.  Out came the rain poncho.  Poor Loop got soaked.  The thunder finally faded.  The storm had moved off in another direction.  Two thirds of the way down the endless NE ridge, the fog lifted.  For a while it continued raining, but only lightly now.

The waterfall down at the gash had tripled in flow!  For a few minutes the sun came out, shining briefly on the Carolina Dog now busy sniffing and exploring like on any other day, the fearsome thunder only a memory.  By the time Lupe was back on the microwave tower road, the fog had returned.

Safe and sound back on the microwave tower road. Photo looks E.
Remember! This was all your idea, SPHP! …. No worries Loop! I think you did fabulous, all things considered!
Miss Curly Tail happy to be checking the forest for squirrels again.

What a crazy day!  Memorable for sure.  So close, but denied!

Could Lupe have gotten to the summit of Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.) under more favorable conditions, or had she been destined to failure no matter what from the very start on a mountain that was simply an impossible challenge?

We’ll never know.  Puppy ho!  Onward!  (7:20 PM)

Looper on High Point 7320, as high as she ever made it on Mount Saint George, 8-5-17

Related Links:

Summit Peak & Mount Saint Paul, Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada 8-4-17

Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada

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Summit Peak & Mount Saint Paul, Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada (8-4-17)

Day 5 of Lupe’s 2017 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon & Alaska!

The sky was clear and bright, that pale arctic blue that promises rare adventure.  This was going to be a fantastic day!  Five days into her Dingo Vacation, Lupe was finally going to get to tackle her first major peakbagging objective.  She got a reasonably early start heading W on the Alaska Highway (6:41 AM, 50°F).  A sign said it was still 60 km to Summit Lake.

Summit Lake is situated at Summit Pass, the high point reached by the Alaska Highway as it goes through Stone Mountain Provincial Park in NE British Columbia.  There’s a campground and a picnic ground at the E end of the lake.  Lupe and SPHP had stopped there last year on the way through the park for the first time.

Lupe had been on her way home then at the tail end of her 2016 Dingo Vacation to the Canadian Rockies, Yukon & Alaska.  She was out of time and couldn’t stay, but there had been new snow on the mountains, so conditions hadn’t been right anyway.  However, Stone Mountain Provincial Park had been an impressive, gorgeous surprise.  SPHP had left convinced that Lupe ought to come back some day.

Now, only 11 months later, the American Dingo was on her way.  She would arrive within the hour!

Suddenly, Lupe spotted a fox next to the Alaska Highway!  A skinny, somewhat strange looking fox of the far N.  The fox had tall, thin black legs, a gray and tan coat, and the most amazingly luxurious tail, ever.  SPHP slowed down hoping to get a picture.

Lupe had a conniption fit, barking hysterically.  Oddly enough, the little fox wasn’t fazed in the least.  It seemed to take Lupe’s hysteria as a friendly greeting from a fellow canine.  After SPHP got a photo, the fox trotted down the highway following the G6, staring hopefully at Lupe and SPHP as if it would like to hitch a ride, or wished Lupe would come out and play.

This strange, skinny northern fox seemed interested in making friends with a hysterical Dingo.

SPHP watched it in the mirrors for a few moments before accelerating away.  Best not to encourage the precious little fox to stay on the highway.  Besides, the decibel level in the G6 was totally out of control.

As it turned out, the fox wasn’t the only cause for hysteria.  Next came 3 caribou.  The caribou seemed to be licking something off the road.  Salt?  There was actually some traffic, but the caribou pretty much ignored it.  They were reluctant to move for vehicles, but warily kept their distance from the foaming-at-the-mouth Carolina Dog.

Lupe saw 3 caribou on her way to Stone Mountain Provincial Park. They couldn’t help but notice the deranged Dingo, too.
The caribou stayed busy purposely licking the highway. Maybe they were after salt? It was the only explanation SPHP could think of.
Although traffic had a hard time persuading the caribou to get out of the way, they were far more wary of Lupe.

As far as Lupe was concerned, the day was off to an exhilarating start!  She arrived at Summit Lake in great spirits.  SPHP parked at the picnic area next to the lake.  After a quick bite to eat, it would be peakbagging time!

Lupe arrives at Summit Lake in great spirits on a beautiful summer morning. The day had gotten off to an exhilarating start! Photo looks SW.

The Summit Peak trail starts right across the Alaska Highway from the campground and picnic area.  After a quick breakfast, SPHP moved the G6 to the roomy trailhead parking lot.  Only a couple of other vehicles were around.  Before Lupe hit the trail, SPHP took a look at information and maps posted nearby.  (9:04 AM, 61°F)

Information posted at the trailhead across the Alaska Highway from Summit Lake.
A closer look at the trail description.
This more general map of the Summit Lake area shows other nearby trails, too.

The posted description for the Summit Peak trail was vague and somewhat misleading about the significance of 3 stars shown on the trail map.  Only by comparing the posted information with what SPHP had brought along was SPHP certain what each star must represent.

The first star was only the first high point at the closest end of what could be considered Summit Peak’s long summit ridge.  It was both a false summit and a great viewpoint where apparently many people call it good and turn around.  The second star was the location of Summit Peak’s true summit.  The third star was the summit of Mount Saint Paul.  The trail description barely mentioned Mount Saint Paul, and made it sound as though the third star was the summit of Summit Peak.

As far as Lupe was concerned,  Summit Peak (6,611 ft.) was only her first objective.  SPHP really hoped the American Dingo would make it all the way to Mount Saint Paul (6,985 ft.).

The first section of the Summit Peak trail was short.  The trail climbed a bit, then emerged from the forest at an open level area where it passed by the end of a ridge on the L (W).  Once Lupe was past the ridge, the trail dropped into a shallow ravine where it crossed a creek before climbing an embankment on the opposite side to enter a conifer forest.

Lupe near the start of the Summit Peak trail in Stone Mountain Provincial Park in NE British Columbia. The trail leveled out here passing around the end of the ridge seen on the L. Part of Summit Peak is seen directly ahead. Photo looks N.
Crossing the little creek early on. This creek was the only water source on the way up Summit Peak.

Lupe climbed steeply through the forest until she reached the rim of the creek valley.  Here the trail nearly leveled out and made a sweeping curve around to the W along the rim of the valley.  Lupe was already high enough to have some beautiful views.  SPHP was particularly intrigued by a mountain off to the S, which looked easily climbable.

Once beyond the creek, the trail climbed steeply to the rim of the valley before nearly leveling out. Here the trail sweeps around to the W along the rim. The trail ultimately goes up the rocky ridge ahead on the way to Summit Peak. Photo looks N.
Lupe was already high enough to have some beautiful views. SPHP was particularly intrigued by the mountain on the L, which looked like something Lupe could easily climb. Photo looks S.

The pleasant trek along the rim of the creek valley didn’t last long.  Soon Lupe was above treeline at the lower end of Summit Peak’s S ridge.  The trail turned N here and headed up.

Looking NW up the creek valley from the base of Summit Peak’s steep S ridge. The trail turns NNE here to begin climbing up to the false summit at High Point 6,500 (1,981 m).

The S ridge became progressively more rocky.  The low vegetation began to disappear.  Looper came to various rock formations.  Sometimes there was a bit of scrambling involved, but nothing significant, scary or long.  The trail became less obvious, and began to fade away.  Sometimes Lupe followed cairns, though the general direction the route had to take was never in doubt.

SPHP paused frequently to catch breath.  The views were incredible!  The higher Lupe went, the more spectacular they became.

Early in the climb up the long, rocky S ridge. The true summit of Summit Peak is seen on the L. Photo looks NNE.
Lupe’s route up the S ridge would take her first to the false summit at High Point 6,500 (1,981 m) seen on the R. The true summit is in view on the L. Photo looks NNE.
Summit Lake from partway up the S ridge. The campground and picnic area are visible on the L. The mountain beyond the lake and slightly to the right of Lupe is Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.). Photo looks SSW.
Puppy ho! Onward and upward! Lupe (L) leads the way. By now vegetation was scarce. Still a ways to go, though. Photo looks N.
The upper end of the creek valley Lupe had crossed much farther down is at lower L. Summit Peak (6,611 ft.) is in shadow on the R. Mount Saint Paul (6,985 ft.) is the high ridge in sunlight on the L. Photo looks NW.
Lupe sometimes passed over rock formations like this one on the way up. Once in a while there was a bit of scrambling involved. Never anything scary or serious, however. Photo looks N.
Getting close to the SE end of Summit Peak’s long summit ridge. The true summit is on the far L.

After a long climb, Lupe finally reached the upper end of the S ridge.  She was now at the far SE end of Summit Peak’s long summit ridge.  This was already a glorious viewpoint, but a somewhat higher point was in view not too far off to the NW.  That was the false summit, High Point 6,500 (1981 m), which corresponded to the first star on the trail map that was posted back at the trailhead.  The mountain’s true summit could be seen beyond High Point 6,500, still some distance away.

After the long climb up the S ridge, Lupe arrived here, at the far SE end of Summit Peak’s long summit ridge. High Point 6,500 is near at hand on the R. Beyond it, appearing in shadow straight up from Lupe’s rump, is Summit Peak’s true summit. Mount Saint Paul is the high ridge on the L. Photo looks NW.
Same view with help from the telephoto lens. High Point 6,500 (1,981 m) is on the R. The true summit is in shadow at Center. Photo looks NW.

After a pause to take in the views, Lupe and SPHP continued on to High Point 6,500 (1,981 m).  Getting there was cake.  Lupe stood by a cairn at the top, which she had seen from a distance.  This was the location of the first star on the trail map, and the place where most hikers supposedly turn around according to the information back at the trailhead.

Looper stands by the cairn at High Point 6,500 (1,981 m). The far SE end of the long summit ridge, where Loop had just been, is seen a bit lower at Center. Photo looks SE.
Looking down the long S ridge Lupe had just come up from High Point 6500 (1,981 m). Summit Lake close to where she’d started out from is in view below. Much smaller Flower Springs Lake can also be seen well beyond Summit Lake. Photo looks SSW.

All the hard work was done!  The weather was perfect.  No way on earth were Lupe and SPHP going to turn around here!  The American Dingo headed for the true summit.

Turn around here? No way! A fun, glorious, easy ridge walk to the true summit lies just ahead! The American Dingo was going for it! Photo looks NW.

The stroll along the ridge leading to the summit was pure joy.  So easy, such stupendous beauty on all sides, conditions absolutely perfect, and the happy realization that no obstacle was going to prevent Lupe from attaining her peakbagging success!

Loopster reached the summit cairn to claim her first Stone Mountain Provincial Park summit.

Loopster at the true summit of Summit Peak (6,611 ft.). Mount Saint Paul in the background. Photo looks WNW.
Summit Lake from the top of Summit Peak. The lower end of the S ridge Loop had come up is seen at lower L. Photo looks SSW.
Looking SE back at High Point 6,500 (1,981 m) (L). Upper portions of the S ridge are seen on the R.

Getting to the top of Summit Peak had been quite a trek.  Lupe and SPHP took a lengthy break at the summit.

There was so much to look at and admire from up here!  Many fabulous mountains of the Muskwa Range were in view.  Some of the highest, most dramatic peaks were on the far W or SW horizon, sporting big snowfields and glaciers.  SPHP had no idea what the names of those mountains might be.  They were simply beautiful, remote, and mysterious.

There was no lack of wonderful sights close by, either.

On the far horizon, mostly toward the SW & W, Lupe saw many mysterious high mountains with snowfields and glaciers. Photo looks WNW(?) with help from the telephoto lens.
Looking W(?) with help from the telephoto lens. SPHP had no idea what the names of any of these beautiful peaks might be.
Looking WSW(?)
Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.) in sunlight (R). Summit Lake (lower L) and Flower Springs Lake beyond it. Photo looks SSW.
View to the ENE. The mountains were lower in this direction.
Lupe wandering a bit down the N slope, the cairn at the top of Summit Peak in view beyond her. Photo looks S.
Back at the cairn. Although the day had started out totally clear, puffy white clouds were building. They didn’t seem threatening yet. Photo looks S.
An American Dingo surveys Stone Mountain Provincial Park from Summit Peak. Photo looks SSW.
View to the N.
Lupe stands at the N end of the summit area. Beyond this point the mountain dropped off very sharply. Photo looks ENE.

After 45 minutes on Summit Peak, it was time to think about starting for Mount Saint Paul.  Lupe and SPHP were about to leave when Lupe spotted movement.  People were coming!  They would arrive momentarily.  Lupe and SPHP waited, and met Dave & Nancy Leckschas.

The Leckschas were from the Okanagan region.  They were on a 2 month vacation, with plans to go up the Dempster highway.  Dave said he had climbed Mount Saint George once, some 31 years ago.  Summit Peak now seemed more difficult than that had been.  Encouraging news, since Lupe and SPHP were hoping to climb Mount Saint George tomorrow!

Lupe meets Dave & Nancy Leckschas from the Okanagan region on Summit Peak. The Leckschas were on a 2 month vacation which would include a trip up the Dempster Highway. Dave and Nancy were the only people Lupe saw all day, other than a couple of girls who had turned back early on.

When SPHP mentioned that Lupe intended to go on to Mount Saint Paul from here, Dave said there were already two people up there.  Dave lent SPHP his field glasses, and sure enough, two people could be seen very close to Mount Saint Paul’s summit.

After a nice chat with Dave and Nancy, Lupe and SPHP headed out, leaving the Leckschas to enjoy the solitude they had no doubt expected to find on Summit Peak.

Referring to the rest of the route to Mount Saint Paul from Summit Peak, although not in a very clear manner, the information at the trailhead had said “After this viewpoint there are no more rock cairns or a visible trail but the peak can be reached by continuing on along the ridge of the mountain.”

Well, maybe, but that’s not exactly how SPHP would have worded it.  Looking toward Mount Saint Paul (6,985 ft.) Lupe could see the ridge the sign was referring to alright.  There was one teensy detail that had been left out.  Continuing on along the ridge meant dropping more than 1,000 feet (330 m) down an extraordinarily steep rocky slope to a saddle leading to the next part of the ridge.

Looking toward Mount Saint Paul (L), Lupe could see the ridge leading to it (R), but getting to that ridge meant dropping 1,000 feet down the very steep, rocky slope seen at lower R. Not to quibble, but it seemed to SPHP that this was a detail that might have been worth mentioning on the signage back at the trailhead. Photo looks NW.

At first, “continuing on along the ridge” going NW from Summit Peak looked like such a challenge that SPHP hesitated.  This route was way steeper than anything the Carolina Dog had faced on the way up.  However, there was no doubt this had to be the way.  If others had done it, Lupe could too.  Lupe started down.

“Continuing on along the ridgeline”, a simple matter of a 1,000 foot steep rocky descent to the saddle below (green area on L) before having to subsequently regain it all immediately climbing back up onto the next part of the ridge (seen ahead also on the L). No choice, though. If Lupe was ever going to get to Mount Saint Paul from Summit Peak, she had to do it. Photo looks NW.

For a while, Dave and Nancy could be seen waving encouragement from up on Summit Peak as SPHP slowly, cautiously trudged down the steep slope.  It was soon evident this was actually going to work, although SPHP was clearly destined to chew up a bunch of time on the descent.  Finally the terrain began to level out.  Lupe reached the saddle leading to the next part of the ridge.

After a lot of waiting around for SPHP, Lupe reaches the saddle leading to the next ridge. Photo looks ENE.

The weather was suddenly starting to become questionable.  Each cloud was now sprinkling rain as it sailed by.  While Lupe traversed the saddle, the rain showers intensified.  SPHP grudgingly called a halt to dig the plastic rain poncho out of the pack.

Putting on the rain poncho worked wonders.  Within 10 or 15 minutes the rain showers were kaput.  Nada.  No more the rest of the day.  No doubt failing to have put on the rain poncho would have caused a cloudburst.  Life can be like that.  Anyway, the rain poncho had done its job.  Back in the pack it went.  Lupe and SPHP began the process of regaining the 1,000 feet the American Dingo had just lost, and started up the next steep ridge.

Lupe just past the saddle area. Photo looks W up the valley leading to the base of Mount Saint Paul (L). Lupe needs to climb the lovely little ridge on the R to get there.
Looking back at Summit Peak (R) and the ridge Lupe followed down to the saddle seen below to get here. That whiner, SPHP! Doesn’t look bad at all from this angle! Photo looks SE.
Starting to get high again! Summit Peak on the L. The ridge going down from Summit Peak to the R toward the far end of the valley is NOT the same S ridge Lupe climbed. That ridge is out of sight beyond the one seen here. Anyone interested in climbing only Mount Saint Paul might do well to skip Summit Peak entirely, and come up the valley on the R. Photo looks SSE.

At first, the climb up onto the ridge beyond the saddle was steeper and more challenging than anything on the way up Summit Peak had been.  Part of the way, SPHP found some use of hands advisable, even necessary.  Lupe regained a lot of elevation before the situation improved.

The ridge beyond the saddle didn’t become an easy trek until Loop was back up even with Summit Peak again.  She was still gaining elevation from here, though, because this ridge went higher than Summit Peak.

On the way up. The first part of the climb up this ridge beyond the saddle was steeper and more challenging than the S ridge Lupe had climbed going up Summit Peak. It’s starting to get easier here. Photo looks NW.
Lupe (a tiny brown speck not far from the green patch on the R) up on the easier, more level part of the ridge. Mount Saint Paul is not pictured, still off to the L of this photo. Photo looks WNW.
In addition to grand views all around, there was beauty in miniature, too. The delicate, colorful tiny plants of the tundra are always fascinating.
Way up high again! The high point of the ridge beyond the deep saddle coming from Summit Peak is seen on the L. However, a 2nd saddle Lupe would have to go over was still ahead beyond that high point. Photo looks W.

A second saddle existed along this ridge leading to Mount Saint Paul.  Even if Lupe followed the very top of the ridgeline the entire way, she wouldn’t lose nearly so much elevation going down to this second saddle from the next high point as she had on that first enormous drop from Summit Peak.  However, there didn’t seem to be any reason to gain more elevation than necessary only to lose and regain it again.

Lupe climbed far enough to get a little higher than the second saddle, which she could see ahead.  Here a faint, nearly level animal trail went directly across the slope S of the ridgeline straight to the saddle.  Following this trail allowed Loop to skip the next high point she’d been approaching on the ridge.

Once Lupe reached the second saddle, only the final steep climb to the summit of Mount Saint Paul remained.

Way up in NE British Columbia in Stone Mountain Provincial Park, intrepid American Dingo explorer Lupe continues up the ridge. Summit Peak is now far behind her on the R. Photo looks SE.
The second saddle is seen ahead on the R. Lupe headed straight for it from here following a faint animal trail across the rocky slope, enabling her to skip going all the way up to the high point on the far R. Mount Saint Paul, her ultimate objective, is on the L. Photo looks WSW.
Loopster getting close to the second saddle. Mount Saint Paul on the L. On the final climb to the summit, Loop would stay slightly to the L (SE) of the ridge leading to it. Photo looks WSW.
Lupe pauses at the second saddle for a look back at beautiful Summit Peak (Center). The ridge she has been coming up is on the L. Photo looks SE.

The final climb to the summit of Mount Saint Paul from the second saddle was steep enough so it wasn’t entirely clear if Lupe and SPHP would even make it to the top.  At last that happy moment arrived when Lupe popped up onto the summit plateau.  The Carolina Dog had made it!  SPHP was ecstatic!

An easy stroll brought Lupe to a cairn along the W edge of the summit plateau.  This was it, the summit of Mount Saint Paul (6,985 ft.)!

Made it! Lupe on the summit cairn on Mount Saint Paul. Photo looks SW.
Looking WNW. High Point 6831 (2,082 m) is nearby at far R.
Looking N.
Oh, yeah! I made it! All the way up Mount Saint Paul! Photo looks NW.

Reaching the summit of Mount Saint Paul was cause for celebration!  And a break, a fantastic hour long break.  Lupe relaxed by the summit cairn.  She had water and Taste of the Wild.  She toured all around the whole roomy summit plateau, which was highest toward the NW, but relatively level overall.

And of course, Lupe and SPHP gazed long upon the splendid glories of the Muskwa Range on display in every direction of the compass in Stone Mountain Provincial Park way up here in NE British Columbia.

Looking down the valley to the SW. A little section of McDonald Creek is seen way down at the far end. Photo looks SW.
Loop at the SW end of the summit plateau. Photo looks N back toward the true summit.
Loop still at the SW end of the summit plateau. The triangular high spot (R) at the end of the near ridge is High Point 6752 (2058 m) Photo looks SSW.
High Point 6722 (2,058 m) is now on the L. Photo looks SW with help from the telephoto lens.
Zoomed in on High Point 6752 (2,058 m) in the foreground now. Next we’ll zoom in on some of those distant snowy peaks. Photo looks SW.
Zoomed way in on the high peak straight out beyond High Point 6752 (2,058 m). Photo looks SW.
Now zoomed way in on the distant peak slightly more to the R (W). SPHP has no idea what the names of these gorgeous peaks are. Photo looks SW.
Two nearby ridges rise up to meet at Center of this photo. A more level sharp ridge continues farther from the meeting point sweeping around toward the R. The high point at the far R end is the summit of Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.). Photo looks SSW.
Zoomed in on Mount Saint George’s summit ridge. Tomorrow Lupe would try to climb Mount Saint George (7,402 ft.). She would go up the ridge seen at lower L to the meeting point reached with the ridge coming up from the lower R. From there, she would follow Mount Saint George’s sharp summit ridge as it sweeps around to the summit at the far end on the R. At least, that was the plan. Photo looks SSW.
SPHP no longer remembers what direction this distant snowfield was from Mount Saint Paul, but believes it was likely toward the W.
Looking back up toward the summit of Mount Saint Paul from near the SE edge of the summit plateau.
The ridge Lupe came up from Summit Peak is highlighted in sunshine (Center). The first deep saddle from Summit Peak is at far R. The second saddle before the final ascent up Mount Saint Paul is on the far L. Photo looks NE.
Beautiful Lupe taking it easy on Mount Saint Paul.
At the summit. Photo looks NW.

Lupe’s beautiful, joyous hour on Mount Saint Paul passed by.  It was a long way back to the G6.  Best get a move on.  Looper wasn’t going to return using the same route she had come up.  It was late afternoon now, and she didn’t have time to go all the way back to Summit Peak.

Back on Summit Peak, Dave Leckschas and SPHP had commented that Mount Saint Paul’s SE ridge looked like it ought to serve as a good shortcut back and a reasonably easy route down.  Now looking down on it from above, it didn’t look quite so amenable.  Most of the SE ridge was fine.  Getting down to the easy part was the problem.  The upper end of the ridge near the top of the mountain was steeper and more challenging than SPHP expected.

Lupe relaxes near the E edge of the summit plateau. Here she’s got a fantastic view of Summit Peak (6,611 ft.) (Center L) and High Point 6500 (1,981 m) (Center R) leading to it. The distant ridge on the R is the one Lupe climbed on the way up Summit Peak. The near ridge at lower R is part of Mount Saint Paul’s SE ridge SPHP had expected Lupe would be able to take back to the G6.
The upper end of Mount Saint Paul’s SE ridge is in the foreground. Doesn’t look bad from this angle. Photo looks E.
At the top of the long SE ridge (foreground) leading down from Mount Saint Paul. Summit Peak at Center. Photo looks SE.

Lupe and SPHP started down Mount Saint Paul’s SE ridge.  The upper ridgeline was pretty ragged with drop offs that had to be negotiated around.  Lupe always stayed on the less steep R (SW) side of the ridgeline when she couldn’t make progress right on it.

SPHP is always terribly, terribly slow on steep rocky descents like this.  After a while, SPHP became discontent with the rate of descent.  Everything was fine, Lupe would have gotten there, but it seemed like it was taking forever to reach the lower, easier part of the ridge.  SPHP got the numbskull idea that things looked easier off to the SW away from the ridgeline.

They weren’t!  Soon Lupe found herself far from the ridgeline heading down a slope so steep and rocky that even the Carolina Dog was becoming alarmed.  Lupe begged SPHP to stop.  She wanted to be held, petted, comforted, reassured.  SPHP periodically obliged her, but never for long.  It was imperative to get down to the easier terrain far below.

Zigzagging ever so cautiously down the slope trying to avoid drop offs at a series of horizontal rock bands was incredibly slow, and Lupe had to go a lot farther down this way to reach more reasonable terrain than she would have staying on the ridge.  The American Dingo made it, though.  Anxious to be out of the rocks, she sped ahead long before SPHP was able to move freely.

Deep in the shadow of the mountain, SPHP finally reached the floor of the upper valley.  How long had that descent taken?  It seemed like hours.  Crazy!  Pathetic!  Nerve-wracking!  Thankfully, it was all over now.  To SPHP, the trek ahead down the huge valley was just a relaxing end to the long day of peakbagging.  To Lupe it was the best part of the whole journey.

Lupe ran and ran, far from SPHP, wherever she pleased.  She sniffed, played, explored.  SPHP had to keep an eye on that fleet brown and white speck dashing across the countryside, to make sure it never disappeared from sight for very long.  Loop periodically returned, grinning ear to ear, panting hard.

It was still a long way back.  Lower down, Lupe came to hillsides full of bushes nearly as high as SPHP.  Pushing through them threatened to become a difficult, hopefully not impossible, task.  The sun was down, and the long twilight of the N country was slowly fading when finally a deep ravine appeared ahead.  A creek was at the bottom.  Lupe scouted the edge of the ravine until she found a way down to cross the creek.

A 75 foot descent and subsequent higher ascent up a steep embankment on the other side of the creek brought Lupe to a much anticipated link to civilization.  The trail!  Yes it was here!  Lupe was at the base of Summit Peak’s S ridge.  No worries now.  Puppy ho!  Onward!  Back to the G6.  What a fabulous day!  (9:50 PM)

Summit Peak (L). Mount Saint Paul’s SE ridge (Center). Lupe’s playground on the way back, the vast valley on the R. Photo looks SE.

Related Links:

Mount Saint George, Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada (8-5-17)

Stone Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada

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