or the Mental Health Therapy No.1

When it comes to the week-end everybody is looking forward to some good time, meaning: fun, relaxing, refreshing and stress free time. I have learned that there are 2 kinds of individuals.  Some who find the “week-end fun time” by contemplating other people actions like watching movies or sports events on the TV, or hang out with friends to share gossips about the others’ actions.  Some have fun by being part of the action.  I am one of the second bunch, in order to relax or to have fun I must do things, if possible “crazy” things. In order to maintain my sanity in this crazy world I need to have good time as well, and my doctors have recommended me the great outdoors in the Rockies. Who are my doctors? Well, I have 2 of them: my soul – the main doctor (who else can know me better inside out than my own soul?), and my best friend - the real doctor (who happens to be a psychologist and my husband as well).So here it goes my story about this week-end mental therapy. 

Saturday morning – first day of a “relaxing” week-end – we wake up at 5:00 am to leave at 5:30 and to drive in Kananaskis. We arrive at the lakes and it is still dark and guess what? We are the only car in the parking lot. For some reason I am not surprised as it is 7:00 am.  Our target is Sarrail Mountain (3174 m). This is one of our older projects, born during one of our easy hikes to the Lake Rawson in 2007 winter.  At that time we coudn't see the top as it was in the clouds!

Most of the hikers (and books) consider this trail a 2 days project: first day to Lake Aster (about 3-5 hours from Kananaskis Lakes) and second day to the Sarrail top (about 5-8 hours from Aster Lake) and then back to the parking lot (again 3-5 hours). So, in a good summer day it might take someone between 10-14 hours of intensive hike if he decides to do it in one day. Now considering that end of September is not even close to the summer conditions (hours of day light and weather), this puts in perspective how desperate we were for “mental therapy” when we decided to do it all in one day. The first 1 ½ goes by fast on the Upper Kananaskis trail: the sun finally comes out on the lake, a little bit of wind, a nice clear sky and…the silence of the nature, a perfect day! We are in good spirit and we keep talking quite loud just in case a bear is around the corner for the morning wash at the lake. We leave the main trail to go towards the Hidden Lake. 

 Now folks I have to tell you a story about this lake. As a new comer in Canada, once you see the blue water in the Rockies Lakes, you can’t help it but to ask: how come this water is so blue?  And obviously you get the scientifically answer about the snow, the ice and the minerals. But when I asked this question 2 years ago I got a different answer: the story about the “tourist” asking the question about Lake Louise and the “Canadian” who replied that they empty the lake from time to time to paint the bottom in blue, the same way they do it with the swimming pools. Of course it is a joke, but now when I face Hidden Lake I must admit that it might be true. For what other reason, if not for painting, is this big lake empty? It looks like someone has pulled the tub stopper!  Well for sure I will have to come back when the painting is done and the lake full!  Am I crazy or what?

We take the shore line of the lake  and from here starts the uphill, through the woods. And once passed the woods suddenly we see the Fossil Falls, a huge wild water fall that it is obvious that comes from Aster Lake but I have no clue where it goes since the Hidden Lake is empty! Maybe they call it Hidden Lake for a reason?!

The weather is ok, few clouds on the sky and quite windy. You can tell that the trail to the Aster Lake is quite frequented.  We pass two nice springs falling down from the cliffs shower like.

Finally we see the top, what a view! Full of enthusiasm we speed up. We don’t reach the Aster Lake as we turn left on a rib. There is no trail but the direction is very clear: up to the ridge! 

We cross few frozen snow patches, which make our climb easier than on the scramble, and finally after 3 hours from the start we are on the ridge; lots of snow. Timing is quite good and we think we will make it to the top in 2-3 hours.

Well there is another factor that changes out plan: the wind. At the beginning it is ok, very strong but bearable. It slows us down in our ascents but we keep going attracted by the top as a fly by the light. It gets colder despite moving. The wind goes to the bone!  One might say “Thanks God for the GoreTex!”  But since I doubt He had any contribution to the invention of this fabric, I say “Thanks NASA!” We gear up! We stop to grab a bite: some rock hard chocolate and even harder granola bars, we can’t hear each other talking because of the wind “whisper”. Let’s move on, it’s getting colder if we don’t move! 

The ridge and the trail are ok, no difficulties with only one “funny” point during normal weather condition. But look at the picture and add the wind and you will realize that this “funny” point suddenly is not so funny anymore. Anyway I pass it and I am proud to report that I passed without whining: considering the wind, who could have heard me complaining? 

Let’s move on….this ridge takes us longer than expected.  And then it happens: a gust of wind that puts me down! Unbelievable but true. Now if you know me, you realize I am not a petite one and it takes quite a wind to put me down!  I stand up and decide to keep going. This is getting quite interesting….and slower with every step. I think about the hot shower I will have tonight and the glass of red wine…And it happens again, the gust puts me down! The thought of the home comfort make me decide: I am a normal human being dreaming of normal things in tough situations, my week-end mental therapy worked as expected. So I decide to stop there and to let Florin to continue the ascent to the top.  He is psychologist and he needs extra therapy as he has to give some to the others.  I wait for him and I try not to think about the wind and I move back and forth just to stay warm. The view is so impressive, so wild; I will not exchange this moment with the best in the world TV show. I can’t have enough of it, I try to breath deep (the wind helps!) to fill my whole being with this place, enough for a week at least.

 One hour later Florin is back to me and we start the descent.   Once off the ridge we stop to eat and to talk. He tells me about the top and about the view from there, I can’t wait to see the pictures. From here down it is a piece of cake and we take it easy, no rush; time for pictures.  We pass the Hidden Lake again and this time we walk on the bottom of the lake, just for fun of it.  Once "painted and filled" we coud say we walked on the bottom of it!

After 12 ½ hours we are back to the parking lot, our car still the only one in the lot.   We realize that we didn’t see any other human being all day; we were the only ones on the trail today. Before we leave the Kananaskis Lake it is dark already, a final look at the top...

What a perfect day, I could not have asked for more! Someone mighty say that my mental therapy was not complete since I didn’t make to the top.  It might be true but I have to say that a little bit of craziness is it necessary in order to return to work on Monday for another week of “work fun”. And I know the people in my office will agree with me: in our job we have to be a little bit crazy in order to come back to work every Monday, isn’t it? 

 PS: Yeah, I am unrecoverable crazy as Sunday (next day) we went hiking again on Mount Baldy!

Here you have the full "therapy" in pictures, including the pictures from the top...