From Highway 1A, turn north onto Highway 40, 11.1 kilometres west of the intersection with Horse Creek Road in Cochrane or 36.3 kilometres east of the intersection with Highway 1X.  Drive 24.2 kilometres through the village of Waiparous to the junction with Richards Road (Range Road 74) and keep right.  Continue northward for another 2.8 kilometres to the Ghost PLUZ boundary where the pavement ends and becomes 2WD gravel at a Texas gate.  Drive another 1.6 kilometres and turn left into South Ghost Provincial Recreation Area (trailhead with vault toilets).  Park here.

From the trailhead, Aga, Zosia and I proceeded westward along a dirt road and soon merged with an east-west cut line.  Except for a brief detour to cross a bridge over a small creek, the dirt road follows the cut line for a little over a kilometre before veering off and making some sweeping turns up the north end of LRP.  Despite some icy sections, ATVs had conveniently packed down the snow on the road, and we had no serious issues hiking all the way up to the ridge crest.  Instead of continuing along the road down the other side of the ridge, we turned right and walked about 150 metres to tag the northern high point of LRP.  This high point has unexpectedly good views, but a chilly wind prompted us to keep moving and backtrack to where we first gained the ridge crest.  Leaving the road, we continued southward along the undulating ridge crest on a snow-covered trail.  We had to break trail here, but fortunately, the snow was, at worst, never more than ankle-deep.  Less than a kilometre later, we reached a second east-west cut line going over the ridge crest, but ignoring it for the moment, we pushed on for another kilometre to tag two equally tall high points at the south end of LRP.  We then stopped for a lunch break near one of the high points.

When we resumed hiking, Aga, Zosia and I returned to the aforementioned second cut line and dropped off the ridge to the east.  The snow in the second cut line was significantly deeper—almost deep enough for skiing.  Fortunately, the post-holing was not too miserable as we plunge-stepped down the steep cut line.  Aside from one short but miscalculated detour, we pretty much followed the cut line all the way down to the valley within view of Highway 40.  We then turned left and completed our loop by hiking to the trailhead through wild horse pastures.

	Zosia and Aga follow a dirt road along a cut line heading toward "Lesueur Ridge Plus" (LRP) in the distance.
	Aga and Zosia cross a bridge over a small creek that is buried under snow.
	Zosia and Aga pause for a moment while climbing the road leading to the crest of the ridge.
	Zosia and Aga reach the surprisingly scenic northern high point (HP1; 1680 metres) of LRP.
	Zosia and Aga hike southward along the crest of the ridge.

A clearing along the ridge crest grants this panoramic view to the west.

 

	Who knew that bullet shell casings could be turned into a pan flute? Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Aga and Zosia arrive at the first (HP3; 1717 metres) of two equally tall high points at the south end of LRP.
	Sonny, Zosia and Aga stand on the second high point (HP2; 1717 metres) at the south end of LRP.
	Aga and Zosia find a nice spot for a lunch break.
	A mule deer stands near the top of a second cut line which Aga, Zosia and Sonny will use for their descent.
	The snow in the second cut line is surprisingly deep.
	Here is a look back at the second cut line which Zosia and Aga just descended.
	Zosia and Aga hike the final leg of the loop before the trailhead.
	Aga and Sonny observe a herd of wild horses grazing nearby. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak

Here is a closer look at the wild horses.

 

	Zosia and Aga have to climb over this fence at the trailhead parking area.
	Total Distance:  11.3 kilometres Round-Trip Time:  6 hours 4 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain:  295 metres GPX Data