{"id":1630,"date":"2015-09-07T08:10:10","date_gmt":"2015-09-07T14:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=1630"},"modified":"2019-03-16T11:12:06","modified_gmt":"2019-03-16T17:12:06","slug":"chephren-cirque-lakes-banff-national-park-canada-7-26-13","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=1630","title":{"rendered":"Chephren & Cirque Lakes, Banff National Park, Canada (7-26-13)"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was after 2 PM on 7-26-13 by the time Lupe and SPHP had finished with Lupe’s explorations up\u00a0Peyto Creek looking for a way to reach the Peyto Glacier.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP left\u00a0the Peyto Lake<\/a><\/strong><\/span> area heading N in the G6 on the Icefields Parkway Hwy 93.\u00a0 Now that Lupe was\u00a0N of the pass, the Icefields Parkway was\u00a0dropping steadily down into the Mistaya River valley.\u00a0 Beautiful high peaks were on both sides of the road, but the highest and most easily seen ones, since the highway was\u00a0closest to the\u00a0E side of the valley, were to the W.<\/p>\n

There was still plenty of time for Lupe to do something fun, but SPHP had no clear idea of where to go next.\u00a0 SPHP drove slowly to watch for possibilities.\u00a0 A quick side trip to an\u00a0overflow campground S of Waterfowl Lakes did not prove interesting.\u00a0 A bit farther on was a pullout along the Icefields Parkway where there was a short trail down to the southernmost\u00a0of the two large Waterfowl Lakes.\u00a0 The lake was a beautiful turquoise color, quite large and had impressive snow-capped peaks across the lake to the W.\u00a0 Sadly, other than the short trail to this lake, there was no sign of any other trail going anywhere.<\/p>\n

\"Howse<\/a>
Howse Peak from the Icefields Parkway near the southernmost of the two large Waterfowl Lakes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Howse<\/a>
Howse Peak<\/a><\/span><\/strong> (10,810 ft.)<\/strong><\/span> (L) and Mount Chephren<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (10,741 ft.)<\/strong><\/span> (R) from Waterfowl Lakes.\u00a0 Photo looks W.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking SW across S Waterfowl Lakes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking S from the southernmost of the 2 largest Waterfowl Lakes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and SPHP drove on and very shortly came to the Waterfowl Lakes campground.\u00a0\u00a0 SPHP\u00a0pulled in there, but a\u00a0chain was across the entrance to the campground.\u00a0 It was closed due to damage to the water system sustained during floods in June.<\/p>\n

Back on the Icefields Parkway again, Lupe and SPHP continued N several miles and came to a pullout for the Mistaya River canyon.\u00a0 Lupe took a short 300 meter\u00a0trail down\u00a0to a bridge across a deep, narrow chasm in the rock into which the very beautiful blue-green Mistaya River was pouring.\u00a0 Lots of people were around\u00a0taking pictures.\u00a0 SPHP took a few, too.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at the Mistaya River just upstream of where it plunges into a deep, narrow chasm.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Mistaya<\/a>
Mistaya River<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Back near the highway, there was something else of interest, too.\u00a0 A Gem Trek map was posted showing hiking trails in the region.\u00a0 The ones right there at the Mistaya River were mostly long, but it also showed some shorter treks starting at the Waterfowl Lakes campground.\u00a0\u00a0SPHP\u00a0started thinking it would be the perfect thing to do with the rest of the day.\u00a0 Since the\u00a0campground was closed, there would be hardly any traffic on those trails.\u00a0 There had been plenty of space to park the G6 just outside the campground.<\/p>\n

So SPHP\u00a0drove back to the entrance to Waterfowl Lakes campground and parked the G6.\u00a0 Lupe and\u00a0SPHP set off through the abandoned campground to find the main trail by looking for a bridge across the Mistaya River.\u00a0 The bridge turned out to be just upstream of where Lupe reached the river. \u00a0There was also another trail map on display at the bridge confirming the information SPHP had seen at the Mistaya River Canyon pullout.<\/p>\n

The map showed the trail system as forming a “T”.\u00a0 The main trail crossed the Mistaya River via a couple of decent bridges and went 1.3 km\u00a0into\u00a0the forest on the other side\u00a0to a junction where one could go either left or right.\u00a0 To the right (N) was a trail to Chephren Lake, and to the left (S) a trail to Cirque Lake.\u00a0 Chephren was the bigger lake and the shortest distance from the trail junction\u00a0at 2.4 km. The trail to the left went 2.9 km to Cirque Lake.\u00a0 Neither trail involved a lot of elevation gain or loss, but the trail to Cirque Lake gained more elevation than the trail to Chephren Lake, which hardly gained any at all.<\/p>\n

Lupe and SPHP crossed the bridges over the Mistaya River and headed into the forest.\u00a0 Shortly before reaching the junction, Lupe met 7 or 8 people on their way back from one of the lakes.\u00a0 They went right on by and didn’t stop to talk to SPHP.\u00a0 They were the only people Lupe saw the rest of the day.\u00a0 At the\u00a0junction, Lupe\u00a0and SPHP chose to take the trail to the right to Chephren Lake.\u00a0 The entire route was almost flat and in the forest.\u00a0 There were some small open swampy areas off the trail.\u00a0 There were lots of exposed tree roots on the trail and some soggy spots, too.\u00a0 Lupe enjoyed going through the forest.\u00a0 There were squirrels now and then in the trees.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe looking for squirrels.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The trail just dead-ended at Chephren Lake.\u00a0 The lake shore where the trail reached the lake was rather swampy.\u00a0 SPHP was disappointed there wasn’t any way to explore the shoreline.\u00a0 Chephren Lake was certainly beautiful and surrounded by impressive mountains, including Howse Peak and Mount Chephren.\u00a0 It would have been great to have a canoe there.<\/p>\n

\"Chephren<\/a>
Chephren Lake. Mount Howse is the tallest peak in the distance. Lower slopes of Mt. Chephren are seen on the R.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at Chephren Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at Chephren Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

With no way to easily explore the lake shore, Lupe and SPHP didn’t stay too long at Chephren Lake.\u00a0 When Lupe reached the trail junction again, SPHP thought there was still time to go on to see Cirque Lake.\u00a0 The trail to Cirque Lake actually went downhill for a little way, but was mostly level.\u00a0 When it finally got close to Cirque Lake, though, the trail started climbing steadily.\u00a0 Sometimes there were glimpses through the forest of the outlet stream from Cirque Lake as it rushed down the hillside.<\/p>\n

The sun was still shining on the high peaks to the W & SW of Cirque Lake, but the lake itself was in shadow by the time Lupe arrived.\u00a0 SPHP was again disappointed to find that the trail just dead-ended at the lake.\u00a0 At least the ground was not swampy.\u00a0 There was a boulder field extending a short distance out into the lake.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP boulder-hopped out a little way from the shore and selected a handsome boulder for Lupe’s own private tiny island.\u00a0 SPHP rested on\u00a0Lupe’s island admiring the splendid scene,\u00a0while Lupe sniffed around.<\/p>\n

\"Evening<\/a>
Evening at Cirque Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and SPHP stayed at Cirque Lake longer than they had a Chephren Lake.\u00a0 However, with the sun setting behind the mountains, sadly it was soon time to leave Cirque Lake and head back to the Waterfowl Lakes campground.<\/p>\n

On the way to Cirque Lake there had been a white washcloth someone had forgotten hanging on a bush next to the trail not too far from the lake.\u00a0 Lupe hadn’t noticed it on the way to the lake, but on the way back she did.\u00a0 Lupe was suspicious of the white washcloth and barked ferociously at it.\u00a0 She would not get close to it.\u00a0 SPHP had to pluck it off the bush and throw it in\u00a0the backpack, before Lupe dared to go on.\u00a0 Now it\u00a0is\u00a0Lupe’s washcloth and souvenir of her days in the Canadian Rockies.\u00a0 At home it hasn’t been a scary thing.\u00a0 It is just a washcloth here, not some dread unknown creature of the dark forest.<\/p>\n

Shortly after\u00a0Lupe and SPHP\u00a0got back to the trail junction for the last time, and had already started back towards the Mistaya River and Waterfowl Lakes campground,\u00a0Lupe did\u00a0see a real dread creature of the darkening forest.\u00a0 She barked at it as ferociously as if it had been a white washcloth.\u00a0 It was a porcupine!\u00a0\u00a0The porcupine was up in a tree near the trail.\u00a0 It climbed even higher up, annoyed by the crazy\u00a0noisy American Dingo below.\u00a0 SPHP led Lupe onward.\u00a0 Though Lupe seemed to think otherwise, a porcupine encounter would not be the least bit fun.<\/p>\n

It was almost 10:00 PM when\u00a0Lupe got back to the G6.\u00a0 Although the sun was long down behind the mountains, it was still light\u00a0out.\u00a0 Lupe had some Alpo for dinner, and ate quite a few\u00a0Milk Bones, too.\u00a0 Soon she was fast asleep and dreaming of tearing a deadly white washcloth apart bit by bit.\u00a0\u00a0Carolina Dogs\u00a0are strong and fearless like that.\u00a0 In our dreams, we all are.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at Cirque Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s 2013 Beartooths & Canadian Rockies Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a>,\u00a0Dingo Vacations Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span> or Master Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was after 2 PM on 7-26-13 by the time Lupe and SPHP had finished with Lupe’s explorations up\u00a0Peyto Creek looking for a way to reach the Peyto Glacier.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP left\u00a0the Peyto Lake area heading N in the G6 on the Icefields Parkway Hwy 93.\u00a0 Now that Lupe was\u00a0N of the pass, the … Continue reading Chephren & Cirque Lakes, Banff National Park, Canada (7-26-13)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1628,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[76],"tags":[105,32,30,31,106,254,255,26,257,104,259,258,256],"class_list":["post-1630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2013-beartoothscanadian-rockies","tag-american-dingo","tag-banff-national-park","tag-canada","tag-canadian-rockies","tag-carolina-dog","tag-chephren-lake","tag-cirque-lake","tag-dingo-vacations","tag-howse-peak","tag-lupe","tag-mistaya-river","tag-mount-chephren","tag-waterfowl-lakes"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/P1050163.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1630"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1630\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20794,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1630\/revisions\/20794"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1628"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}