From the unsigned trailhead (50.24359, -114.34910) along SR 532, Zosia and I passed a pedestrian gate to gain a dirt road which is the main access artery along Willow Creek.  The dirt road was fairly mucky on this day due to recent snow melt coupled with warm temperatures from Chinook winds.  As a result, we were forced to walk more along the grassy margins, and this would hold true for most of the lower elevation trails and roads throughout the rest of our hike.  About 1.5 kilometres from the start, we turned north onto a well site road which runs for quite a distance up the valley west of "Indian Graves Ridge".  Other than having to tiptoe through a few swampy, cattle-churned sections, the long and steady climb to the reclaimed well site was straightforward.  From the well site, we continued north and then west along the undulating ridge crest to the high point of Gardner's Ridge.  We had a good trail to follow most of the way, but there were a few spots where we had to do a bit of route-finding to stay on track.  Leaving the unremarkable top of Gardner's Ridge, we continued northward across an extensive open section of the ridge before carrying on much as before to an unnamed and viewless high point.  From there, we turned westward again, and after hopping over a barbed-wire fence in a grassy dip, we climbed alongside the fence line for a short distance before veering off to head directly to the top of Willow Head.  A large and obvious cairn sits atop Willow Head, but because we noticed an apparently higher contour line a little further north on my GPS map, we naturally went to investigate.  As it turned out, the extra contour line did not manifest as higher ground and is obviously a mapping error.  Satisfied that we could go no higher, we retreated to the cairn and then dropped down the lee side of the ridge to have lunch out of the wind.

When we resumed hiking, Zosia and I descended the south ridge of Willow Head and ultimately connected with the same dirt road we started on along Willow Creek.  The long march back to the trailhead was mostly flat, but we had to contend with muddy conditions and numerous short but annoying creek crossings.  By the time we finished our hike, our boots were a mess, but thankfully, our feet stayed dry.

	At the start of the hike, Zosia passes a gate and gains a road which is the main access artery for Willow Creek.  Visible in the background is "Indian Graves Ridge".
	Hailstone Butte (left) and Sentinel Peak (right) are already visible from the road near the start.
	Zosia checks out a partly frozen section of Willow Creek.
	Zosia takes a short cut near a turnoff to a well site road (hidden behind the trees).
	Despite warm temperatures, some sections of the well site road still have an abundance of snow.

The reclaimed well site grants a more complete view to the southwest of Hailstone Butte (left) and Sentinel Peak (right).  Also visible on the central horizon is "Iron Creek Mountain".

 

	Zosia follows a fence line for long stretches of the route.
	Zosia stands on the high point of "Gardner's Ridge" (1803 metres).
	Zosia approaches an extensive open section of the ridge.  The route continues over the distant bump at right.
	Zosia finds an antler in the open section of the ridge.
	Sonny stumbles across an abandoned camp somewhere on the ridge. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Sonny stands on an unnamed and viewless high point (1829 metres) located east of "Willow Head". Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia eyes the top of Willow Head from this clearing just northwest of the unnamed high point.
	Zosia stands on top of Willow Head (1836 metres).
	On the back half of the loop, Zosia marches along the main road beside Willow Creek.
	There are many shallow creek crossings like this one during the hike out.
	Zosia enjoys some late-day sunshine near the trailhead.  In the background is one of the high points of "Willow Creek East Hills".
	Total Distance:  21.2 kilometres Round-Trip Time:  7 hours 46 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain:  513 metres GPX Data