Where My Soul Lives

My beloved Prairies

I went to The Cypress Hills last week.  To get there, I drive across Southern Saskatchewan.  I live near the eastern border of the province.  Cypress Hills is at the western border.

Much of the prairie is gone in my area now.  Plowed up for farmland. 

But farther west....it's almost all natural prairie.  Mile after mile after mile. 

And it is pure, spiritual beauty to me.

Every tiny particle of what I am rejuvenates out here.

And at night.....there's no light pollution.  You can see every possible star in the Milky Way and beyond.  It's amazingly beautiful.

A Mountain-Climbing Dream

Whew, I woke up from a dream wherein I was about to climb Mount Rundle at Banff.  One moment I was gazing at the mountain, the next I was geared up to start climbing the steep face.  I don't do mountain climbing.  I'm not afraid of heights but I do have a big fear of falling.  This was a bit of a nightmare!  At least I didn't wake up clinging to a rock wall unable to make myself take the next step....

It is a beauty, though, isn't it.  The classic thrust-fault Rocky Mountain.  I took this photo in October on my way home from the coast.

From MountainNature.com

The smooth sloping face of Mount Rundle has formed the focal point for millions of photographs over the past 100 years. However, as countless visitors snap their shutters at this picturesque peak, few appreciate the summits role as a perfect representative of Front Range mountain structure. Few peaks show the dramatic impact of thrust faulting like Mount Rundle. The Mount Rundle Thrust Fault, found at the base of Rundle’s steep eastern slope, allowed massive layers to be pushed eastward several kilometres. Cascade Mountain and the Three Sisters are part of the same thrust sheet.

The lower slopes are composed of steep, sheer cliffs of Palliser limestone. These hard rocks were formed near ancient coral reefs where lime rich muds were deposited to incredible depths. Similar conditions can be found in the Caribbean today. Moving above these cliffs, the mid-slopes of the mountain take on a softer, more crumbly nature. These soft layers are characteristic of the Banff Shales which form the middle of this three layer sandwich. Dark, and rich in organic matter, the Banff Shales may be 1,200 m thick. Were the hard limestone summit of Mount Rundle to erode away, these shales would quickly follow. Soft and easily eroded, they offer little resistance to the persistent forces of erosion and weathering.

The sheer summit of Mount Rundle is composed largely of ancient marine shell fragments now stranded more than 3,000 m above the nearest ocean. These limestones are part of the Livingstone Formation of the Rundle Group

Same Place Today

Mount Sir Donald

Ooops, almost forgot to post this. 

Still in the Roger's Pass - Mount Sir Donald is possibly the most striking mountain along the road. 

Mount Sir Donald is a peak in the Rogers Pass area of BC. Its good rock quality and classic  Matterhorn shape make it popular for alpine rock climbers, and the Northwest Arete route is included in the popular book Fifty Classic Climbs of North America.

It was originally named Syndicate Peak in honor of the group who arranged the finances for the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, but was later renamed after Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal head of the syndicate.

The first ascent was made in 1890 by Emil Huber and Carl Sulzer of Switzerland and porter Harry Cooper.  As of the 1910s, an average of three or four ascents per year were being made.   (from Wiki)

In The Kootenays

'The Kootenays' are not a mountain range - or at least not one named The Kootenays.  It's more or less the drainage area of the Kootenay River, which includes the central Rockies, the Purcell and the Selkirk ranges.  The Kootenay Pass (el. 1775 m) is the highest year-round pass in Canada. 

This was the Trib's first visit to the mountains.  He loved it.  (zoom-zoom)

Now we are at the top of a long, grinding incline.  There's a pretty little lake

and a cute little log cabin

and big parking lots on both sides of the highway with signs that read (click on pic to enlarge)

because coming up is a 9% grade descent and these guys are gonna be hauling-ass big time.

This is the sort of place where one sees multiple runaway lanes.  One grimaces and wonders what it would be like to have to use one - but all are a little grassy and overgrown...until one whips around a downhill curve and there, there is a runaway lane that has freshly plowed tracks that go straight up for a long way.  Wow.  One is glad one wasn't around for that event.  (One is also glad this paragraph is over).

Anyone know......(corrected)

the name of this mountain?  I always called it The Chief, but apparently Chief Mountain is in Montana.  This one is near Blairmore, AB. 

Correction:  This is Crowsnest Mountain.  For its history, go here.