From the Cave and Basin parking lot (51.16959, -115.58911), we walked past the Cave and Basin buildings and briefly followed the paved trail to Sundance Canyon.  About 300 metres west of the trailhead information sign board, we veered left from the pavement onto what was once a forested trail--the same one used to access Philosopher's Knoll.  The trail is still there, but the forest is now gone as a result of recent measures taken by Parks Canada to mitigate the threat of potential wildfires to the Banff townsite and local infrastructure.  About 200 metres up this trail, we turned left (south) into an obvious fire break.  There was a cairn wrapped with flagging tape here, but we were not sure if it was the start of the trail to Raven's Crag or just a marker delineating the boundary of a closed area behind the Cave and Basin.  In any case, the fire break looked more appealing to hike at least initially, but after hiking that way for a short distance, we realized that we were heading toward a dead end.  We quickly scrambled up the slope to the east of the fire break and immediately intersected a well-defined trail.  Turning right, we then settled into a pleasant hike up to Raven's Crag which is characterized by steep rocky cliffs.  Somewhat surprisingly, we did not see anyone climbing here on this day.

At this point, the pleasant trail downgrades to more of a scrambling route with loose rocks and a bit of exposure, but Zosia and I actually welcomed the extra challenge as we worked our way up to an unobstructed viewpoint.  This looked like an ideal spot for a break, but still feeling energetic, we decided to push higher up the ridge and see how far we could go.  We ended up ascending almost another 300 metres higher to a shoulder of the Sulphur Mountain massif, and although we could have conceivably continued all the way to Sanson Peak, we had no desire to join the crowds of tourists up there.  Instead, we turned around and descended back to the unobstructed viewpoint where we finally stopped to have lunch.

After lunch, Zosia and I carefully descended the scrambling route without mishap.  During our hike out, we were surprised to see a couple of hikers come up the trail.  They explained that they were searching for a cave which we had missed in the vicinity of Raven's Crag.  We were already a fair distance below Raven's Crag at this point, and having to climb back up just to see the cave held little appeal to us (a photo of "Crystal Cave" can be found here).  Given the shortness of this hike, we will likely return in the future anyway and check out the cave then.  Following the rest of the trail out in its entirety, we encountered some deadfall near the very bottom but ultimately ended up at the aforementioned cairn.  The remaining walk back to the Cave and Basin parking lot was short and easy.

	Zosia passes Cave and Basin National Historic Site near the start of the hike.
	Zosia veers off the paved pathway onto a horse trail that used to be forested not too long ago.
	A barely visible cairn with flagging tape (right of centre) marks the start of the trail to Raven's Crag, but Zosia would forego the trail and enter the fire break at far right.
	The fire break is initially easy to hike through but eventually dead-ends under some cliff bands.
	After a short off-trail climb, Zosia gains the trail to Raven's Crag.
	A break in the trees grants this view of Philosopher's Knoll.
	Zosia approaches the climbing zone for which Raven's Crag is named.
	The trail becomes more of a scramble route at this point.

An unobstructed viewpoint at Raven's Crag grants this view to the north of Mount Norquay and Vermilion Lakes.

 

	Fossils can be found on the ridge near Raven's Crag. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Zosia scrambles up steep terrain above Raven's Crag.
	The ridge here resembles an abandoned paved highway that is slowly being reclaimed and overgrown.
	Zosia reaches the high point of the day (2044 metres) on a shoulder of the Sulphur Mountain massif.
	Here is a zoomed-in view of Banff Springs Hotel from the ridge above Raven's Crag.
	Zosia carefully makes her way back down the ridge to Raven's Crag.
	Zosia and Sonny return to the viewpoint at Raven's Crag to take a leisurely break.
	Here is a close-up view of Mount Edith (centre) and Mount Louis (right) across the valley.

Snowy Mount Aylmer makes an appearance to the northeast as the clouds begin to lift.  A little bit of Lake Minnewanka is also visible.

 

Total Distance:  6.0 kilometres Round-Trip Time:  4 hours 24 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain:  636 metres GPX Data