WAD Valley

December 14, 2016

I returned to the Rockies on my vacation with my puppy and attempted to explore the WAD Valley. The exact whereabouts escaped me though it turned out to be relatively simple. On Maligne Lake Road you will continue south to the end of Medicine Lake.  Continue driving south past the Beaver Lake (Jacques Lake / South Boundary Trail) staging area.  Once the hill starts a gradual climb you've gone too far, and can circle back to the first (blatant) drainage on the side of the road.

I didn't get far on this trail before Loki wasn't able to complete it.  I was expecting a packed trail for a common ice climbing location, however what I encountered wasn't even a flat path.  It appears that I was walking over shrub and rock that had been covered by a fair amount of fresh snow.  I had my snowshoes with me however it would have been rough to pivot between the roots and rocks.

Perhaps traveling further up the drainage would have opened up a little, however Loki was pretty much covered in snow and wasn't able to keep up.  Coupled with the lone wolf we spotted on the road five kilometers north, we decided to take our hikes in closer to town.