Turtle Mountain- Fall Hike

Our 1st hike as a  group and a formidable challenge. This historic mountain is the one that caused the famous Frank Slide back in 1904. The slide buried the town of Frank. We were able to check out the rocks and rubble below and then hike to the summit to get a view from the top. 

The winds were a fair bit stronger than normal. You could see from how the trees were growing along the ridge that they were use to strong west winds. and we certainly held the same profiles as we hiked up some of the more exposed sections of the ridge.  

The climb was very challenging being our first one. We were not all quite in shape, but we'll be getting better now. For some the challenge was almost too great. but with plenty of stops to bolster our morale and our  stomachs we persevered and made the summit. The views were spectacular from the top. You could see mountain range after mountain range. The view down the slide was scary to say the least. 

Hiking down went a lot fasted. Having a powerful back wind and mother nature's gravity, we made it down in half the time. 

Finished off the event by having a wiener roast at Ed Norton's camp in Blairmore. Ed is Karl's father-in-law. He's a great scouter too. Provided a few tips on getting our fire started. 

Trip home was uneventful as we slept the whole thing. Oh, we each brought home a souvenir (a lump of coal) So now we will have re-gift opportunities for Christmas.