Exshaw Mountain

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After a disappointing time up Grotto Mountain Grotto Mountain
Hagelslag.ca
[Archive] [No Archive Link] I decided I wasn’t done for the day just yet, and headed a few minutes down the road to Exshaw Mountain, parking in the designated area of the town that is the peak’s namesake. I left my car at 1427hrs and made quick work of the two blocks between myself and the trailhead.

I started up the trail and promptly ended up distracted by a few butterflies sunning on the larger bits of rubble, burning a good few minutes trying to get a solid photo. I continued on my merry way after I was satisfied I had one or two “good ones” somewhere in the glut of shots I’d taken.

The trailhead is under some sort of construction at the moment. The trailhead is under some sort of construction at the moment. ✕

The trail's grade is steep for a hiker but relaxing for a scrambler. The trail's grade is steep for a hiker but relaxing for a scrambler. ✕

A Mourning Cloak butterfly sunning on the trailside. A Mourning Cloak butterfly sunning on the trailside. ✕

The trail forked just twice, and was trivially easy to follow - a major departure from my routefinding struggles that morning up Grotto Mountain, and one I found myself feeling increasingly greatful for as exhaustion started to set in. Between Friday and Saturday I was now at ~1500m of elevation gain, which is chump change later in the season, but is reasonably demanding after letting my fitness slip all winter!

It probably didn’t help that I’d forgotten sunscreen that morning either, and I wondered if a mild case of heat exhaustion could be setting in to boot. No matter - I’d pushed through far worse in years previous, and after turning back on Grotto I wasn’t about to add yet another attempt to the growing list of summits I want to revisit. I resigned myself to becoming a human flambé for any hungry bear or cougar who happened to be near the summit, and pressed onwards.

Making good use of the classic "photo break" excuse as I start to tire. Prairie Crocuses are already starting to surface here. Making good use of the classic "photo break" excuse as I start to tire. Prairie Crocuses are already starting to surface here. ✕

The first fork in the trail. The route up Exshaw is climber's right. The first fork in the trail. The route up Exshaw is climber's right. ✕

Part of the trail is private property. Locals have gotten permission to keep the trail open; please be respectful so it stays this way. Part of the trail is private property. Locals have gotten permission to keep the trail open; please be respectful so it stays this way. ✕

As I neared the summit, I noticed it seemed to be pretty heavily treed and paused for a panorama about 2/3 of the way up. This proved to be the right call, as the summit’s view is pretty obscured by comparison.

I started running low on water shortly after pausing for said panorama, and filled my new filtered flask up with some residual snow, setting it in my pocket to melt. I’d probably only get ~250mL of the 500mL capacity once the snow melted, but that was more than what I needed for the remainder of my outing.

A lovely view of the Bow Valley from Exshaw Mountain, approximately 2/3 of the way up. Heart Mountain and Engagement Peak both look easily passable already, despite this year's high snowpack.

A lovely view of the Bow Valley from Exshaw Mountain, approximately 2/3 of the way up. Heart Mountain and Engagement Peak both look easily passable already, despite this year's high snowpack. ✕

I reached the relatively flat summit area at 1557hrs, and wandered around for about a minute before finding the summit cairn and a surprisingly large ammo can containing the register.

The summit cairn is small and somewhat easy to miss. It's borderline dwarfed by the sizeable register can. The summit cairn is small and somewhat easy to miss. It's borderline dwarfed by the sizeable register can. ✕

Enjoying a lazy lunch at the summit. Enjoying a lazy lunch at the summit. ✕

I popped open the register, expecting to find a few tattered scraps of paper largely desecrated by passing tourists in the vein of Coliseum Mountain. What I found was the opposite: a chunky notebook placed in 2014 and cared for by the locals, with a few slips of paper indicating it had been replaced with a temporary register at one point while the main book was taken back to town to dry out.

Paging through it was incredibly wholesome too - I found countless entries of parents taking their babies on their first summit hike, scrawls from younger kids visiting the summit, a few entries from older folks in their 70s and 80s making a yearly pilgrimage to the summit, and one mourning a late father on his birthday. There’s a certain beauty to the Exshaw register that can’t be compared to anything else I’ve seen in the Rockies, and I’m glad it’s been preserved by the locals for this long. Registers are often of historic significance, and this one seems like it could end up in a local museum once it fills up in 20 years or so.

Middling summit views thanks to all the trees.

Middling summit views thanks to all the trees. ✕

I took a panorama from the summit (simply for the sake of having done it, since the view further down was less obscured) and started my descent after enjoying a long lunch. I started to feel the occasional twinge in my lower back as I worked my way down, and made some adjustments to my gait to cushion the impact as much as possible - while my injured body handled the cumulative ~1700m of elevation gain over the last two days reasonably well, it was a good reminder that my back still needed some time to heal.

I arrived back at my car just 41 minutes after starting my descent - not bad considering I couldn’t run thanks to my back. I gingerly settled my sunburnt, tired body into the drivers’ seat, cranked up the music, and headed home to Banff.