Hiking the Kananaskis Driveway

Okay, it’s not really a driveway. And in fact, it’s the hike to the Kananaskis Fire Lookout in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. But since there is a couple living up there, and they own a car, the trail is pretty much a long dirt driveway. And why is it called a Fire Lookout? So that the couple can watch the area for forest fires and alert the appropriate authorities. Sounds important to me!

Friends Paul, Vanessa and I thought it’d be great to head to the mountains right after work. So after a productive day in the office, I gathered my things and we were off. We chose the Kananaskis Fire Lookout based on a recommendation from the info center, even though the girl told us that there were 20 known grizzly bears in the surrounding area. NBD, no big deal. (Truth be told, most definitely not NBD. But we made sure to make lots of noise while hiking). It was a short hike (5:25 pm to 8:15 pm) with an elevation gain of 296 metres, but the views of the Kananaskis valley and lakes were very nice.

At the top, we stopped to sign the guest book and sat at a picnic table for dinner. And then it dawned on me: How amazing is it to live in a city like Calgary, where I can work at my desk throughout a Friday, and then be sitting at the top of a mountain in the evening for dinner overlooking the Kananaskis valley… all in the same day?! It’s definitely not something I take for granted :).