BOU AVENUE
Bow Peak

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On 12 July 2003, Dan Millar, Kelly Wood and I hiked up to Crowfoot Pass in Banff National Park.  Some flagging tape on the south side of the Icefields Parkway about 1.2 kilometres east of the Crowfoot Glacier Viewpoint mark the start of the trail.  We briefly thrashed through the bushes beside the highway into a clearing and followed a couple of cairns before picking up a decent trail heading into the trees.  After about a kilometre, we had to ford the outlet of Bow Lake.  Later on, we briefly lost the trail in a boggy area but picked it up again after some searching and bushwhacking.  Other than some minor creek crossings, we had no further problems and reached the windy pass about 2.5 hours after starting out.

After a brief lunch, Dan and I scrambled up the easy west slopes of Bow Peak (2868 metres).  Dan even dragged his homemade didjeridoo along and played it at the top!  The summit views include both Hector and Bow Lakes and Mounts Chephren, Balfour, Hector, Temple, Ball and Assiniboine.  Dan and I rejoined Kelly at the pass, and we made it back to the trailhead just as a storm blew into the area.

	This is Bow Peak and Crowfoot Pass as seen from the Icefields Parkway at the trailhead.
	Kelly fords the outlet of Bow Lake.
	This ptarmigan was fearlessly defending her chicks.
	Kelly reaches the crest of Crowfoot Pass.
	Dan scrambles up the west slopes of Bow Peak.
	This is the summit ridge of Bow Peak.
	Sonny stands beside the summit cairn.  Mount Hector is visible over Sonny's left shoulder.  Click here for a 180-degree panoramic view.
	Dan blows bubbles into Bow Lake with his didjeridoo while circular breathing.
	This striking little flower is probably a smooth alpine gentian.
	Observation and Cirque Peaks are reflected in one of the tarns at Crowfoot Pass.