Mt. Louie - Grande Cache, AB

Mt. Louie is an 11km round trip with 714m of elevation gain. The trailhead is 4km south of town, parking in the Cowlick Creek staging area. The trail is estimated to take 4-6 hours. As someone who prefers starting hikes early, a 7am start time to beat the heat was great. As a bonus, even on a long weekend, there were very few other cars in the parking area, and we didn't see anyone else on the trail on our way up, only on the descent.

The trail is quite steep, with much of it travelling up a northwest facing ridge with exposed, erosion-resistant conglomerate rock (no switchbacks). There are also less steep sections through forests that give a change of scenery and take you through some diverse ecosystems. 

The trail starts on what appears to be an old access road (which can be pretty muddy), which quickly brings you to a manmade canal linking Grande Cache and Victor Lakes. This was extremely beautiful in the early morning. It was also pretty wet from the dew.

There is a bridged crossing of the canal, then into a boggy stand of black spruce before gaining higher ground where tall aspen and poplar trees. As someone who is absolutely in love with forests, this section was beautiful. The mosquitoes were pretty vicious, but on a trail like this one, it's worth it.

After this, the terrain changes as you reach the rocky ridge and begin to climb. This is where the trail gets steep. Despite my well-documented love of hiking, I am not in my best hiking shape, and found some of the steep section to be a bit of a struggle-fest. That said, the geology is fascinating, the views are incredible, and while my thighs were burning, and I was cursing myself for my quarantine weight gain and relative lack of fitness, it was a stunning experience

The footing was also a bit challenging, and would definitely be tricky in wet conditions. However, one advantage of a steep grind up a rocky ridge is that you get to enjoy stunning views well before reaching the top.

Another advantage of this trail is that it is not just a steep push up rocky terrain. You re-renter a forested section, and get a slight reprieve from the steepness, and softer ground under foot. I cannot overstate my love for forests. I could probably be happy only ever hiking through forests. I would live in a forest if I could.

However, when one is hiking up a mountain, one cannot stay in the forest forever. The trail open back up for the steep grind up to the summit. I was a little concerned that the top might be a scramble, and after taking a nasty fall on my last scramble trip, and realizing halfway up the trial that my knee brace was back in Edmonton, I was prepared to stay down from the summit and enjoy the scenery while my hiking buddies pushed on. 

Luck was actually on my side, and the trail just continues up as an actual trail. A steep one, but nothing too precarious underfoot. Just steep. So I pushed on, cursing my quarantine snacks and the fact that I am not as fit as I would like.

Then you reach the top. With a cute little mailbox with a summit register (which I forgot to sign). 

At this point, I immediately start forgetting how much of a struggle the steep parts were, and am prepared to recommend this hike to anyone. Of course it's worth it. It always is. The views are incredible, although almost impossible to capture in a photogprah.

We had the summit to ourselves, and had snacks and photo op time. Unfortunately, it was not windy enough to keep the mosquitoes away, but at this point, I am not worried about that. I am back on a mountaintop, and that is enough for me.
This hike is considered difficult, which seems fair. It is steep with relatively challenging footing compared to some of the more well-maintained, switchback filled trails in the national parks. I would say that the steepness was my biggest challenge, although I know if I had done this hike 2-3 years ago, I would not have had as hard a time with it. I also probably would have felt a little less like a burden if I had hiked alone, or with fellow turtle-paced hikers. I hiked it with friends who are fitter than me, and felt a bit of that slowpoke shame, where you don't want to hold anyone else back.

A couple of key points about this trail: Hiking poles are your friend! With the level of steepness, they are essential both up and down. Also, wear comfortable boots. I thought mine would be ok, but they are a little stiff-soled, and the bottoms of my feet were pretty sore on they way down due to the rocky footing. Also critical to make sure your boots fit right, or I could imagine a few bruised toenails after the descent. 

All that said, it is hard because it is steep, not because it is particularly technical. So unless it was quite wet, it is doable if you can push through. A steep grind with varying ecosystems and beautiful views. I highly recommend it, and hope to return to Grande Cache for anther visit, a little fitter and ready to tackle some other hikes in the area. I would also definitely hike this one again.