Stoney Squaw Mountain
A great beginner hike/snowshoe (or even mountain bike) that can be completed at any time during the year. We completed it during summer and did the loop. I'd recommend the loop since there is a change of scenery to keep you going through the slightly monotonous treed landscape. The loop is fine either way, and there is somewhat steep climbing/descent wherever you go.
Stoney Squaw Mountain (or perhaps Stoney Lookout Mountain or Snow Peak now?) is an officially named peak located directly east of the Mount Norquay Ski Resort. An interesting history surrounds the name as well, which is potentially why it is an official summit. Traditional stories say that a brave first nations woman sustained her sick husband on the slopes of the mountain by hunting bighorn sheep in its meadows, which led to the name "Squaw". Now, as with much of the Rockies mountain naming, the term "Squaw" is a derogatory term towards the first nations people, so the mountain's name is hopefully in the process of being renamed. As of now, all the trails and the lookout point have been renamed to "Lookout" instead of "Squaw", but many sources still have the summit name as Stoney Squaw Mountain. Despite being officially named, this small "peak" is essentially just a bump off the side of Mount Norquay, and is but a mere treed hill when looking at it from that side. However, it still has well over 100 meters of prominence, so technically it is a peak. The best view of the mountain is just before arriving to the Banff townsite on the right of the Trans Canada Highway.
The access for this hike is the Mount Norquay parking lot. At the last Banff exit from Highway 1, take a right and drive up the winding Norquay Ski Resort Road. After reaching the top, the parking lot is on the right. Park as far from the actual ski resort as you can, since the trailhead is at the south end of the parking lot.
There are many route options that include two possible out and backs, and two loop directions. This will describe the counter clockwise loop. From the trailhead, gain hike on the trail over many small ups and downs, gaining elevation to a lookout point. The summit is just around the corner. From the summit continue on the loop, and after most of the descent, the trail will widen and two choices will become obvious. Make sure to turn left and head back down to the parking lot.
This peak has never been on my radar, nor have I ever really considered doing it. But, as usual, some of the easier peaks always have a time and a place!
Since our 67 years old friend Tak was visiting from Victoria, we thought we'd drag him out with us for this little hike.
As we drove through Canmore and dropped off the jacket for the girl from the Mount Field trip report, Tak told us that once upon a time, his dad (a climber) had completed the entire Mount Rundle Traverse. Impressive! Anyways, he wanted to get out and have some fun hiking in the Rockies so that's exactly what we did.
We started off at 12:00 pm after a nice paddle at Johnson Lake.
Here's the trailhead.
The trail is graded, but has plenty of roots to trip on.
The gang hiking up the trail.
Here's the first good viewpoint from the trail. Sundance Peak and Sulphur Mountain pretty much take up the whole thing.
Before we knew it, we were at the summit! Here's the view of Cascade from the top.
Left to Right: Inglismaldie, Girouard, Peechee
After a nice smoked salmon sandwich and some shortbread, we started the descent.
The trail is a bit steeper on the other side.
But is a bit more picturesque with the lush and green moss.
A cool rock feature breaks the monotony of the trees (it's actually a lot more interesting than it looks here).
After turning left to head down to the parking lot, we got a nice view of Mount Norquay. I wonder what it would be like to walk up in the meadow and have a snooze... I'd like to try it one day somewhere.
Now back at the Norquay parking lot after a successful trip!
Overall, this one is a lot more boring compared to a lot of our other trips, but there's always a time for these little ones, and it was absolutely perfect for this day. Plus, we got to test out Peakfinder on our friend's phone to spot peak names. I might have to get it now, it's kind of cool.