Three Lakes Valley

BOU AVENUE
Three Lakes Valley

On 13 April 2025, Zosia Zgolak and I returned to the Chester Lake area in Alberta's Peter Lougheed Provincial Park to ski to Three Lakes Valley. This would be an extension of a ski tour we did a month earlier to Elephant Rocks, but this time, we would have more favourable avalanche conditions to tackle the steep headwall guarding the valley. Joining us for this ski tour was Racquel Wood.

Racquel, Zosia and I were the first party to arrive at Chester Lake trailhead (50.79080, -115.30042) after a big dump of snow overnight in the region. Zosia broke trail most of the way to the second junction between the designated uphill and downhill routes, but an older couple and their dog that were right on our heels broke trail for us from the junction to Elephant Rocks. Passing the couple and their dog at Elephant Rocks, we made our way through forest and up a drainage to the first (snow-covered) lake at the entrance to Three Lakes Valley. After skirting along the north side of the lake, we surmounted the headwall guarding the valley by climbing up a steep ramp dotted with a few trees. We ultimately stopped on a broad hill at the top of the headwall. Although we could have continued further into the valley, skiing the flat terrain there held little appeal for us, and the scenery would not have been any better than what we could already see from the broad hill. As such, we decided to make this our turnaround point and stripped off our climbing skins.

While Racquel, Zosia and I were anticipating a fantastic return ski, snow conditions were already beginning to deteriorate under a warm sun. The short-lived descent of the headwall turned out to be the best skiing of the day, but even then, we could already feel the snow starting to grab our skis. It only got worse from there as I was constantly losing my glide while snow repeatedly balled up under my skis. Racquel and Zosia fared a little better than me, but they also reported similar issues. Racquel had the foresight to bring a scraper which was helpful for clearing the sticky snow from our ski bases, but this was a time-consuming process. Ultimately, we all somehow muddled our way back to the designated ski route near Chester Lake, and although we made better progress here, the sticky snow conditions persisted all the way back to the trailhead. In contrast to our delightful ski a month ago, this was the second time in as many weeks that Zosia and I struggled with horrible snow conditions on descent, and I am inclined to concede that our ski season may have come to an end.

	Zosia and Racquel are already enjoying the fresh powder at Chester Lake trailhead parking lot.
	It looks like mid-winter conditions on the trail to Chester Lake.
	Racquel and Zosia ski across meadows just before Chester Lake with a familiar view of Gusty Peak in the background.
	Zosia and Racquel arrive at Elephant Rocks.
	Sonny breaks trail up a steep slope. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Racquel and Zosia skirt around the north side of a snow-covered lake at the foot of the headwall guarding Three Lakes Valley.
	The terrain is wide open above the headwall.

Maybe next time we'll climb up the slope at far left...

Racquel and Zosia get a good view of Mount Galatea from the top of a broad hill in Three Lakes Valley.

	Sonny, Zosia and Racquel make the broad hill (2401 metres) their turnaround point for the day.
	Zosia begins to ski back down the headwall.

I was a much different person when I climbed this mountain so many years ago!

Here is one last look at Mount Galatea.

	Racquel and Zosia maneuver around some trees near the snow-covered lake at the base of the headwall.
	Racquel and Sonny ski past Elephant Rocks on their way out. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Total Distance: 12.0 kilometres Round-Trip Time: 5 hours 48 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain: 481 metres GPX Data