Trail Conditions for Calgarians

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Trail Conditions for Calgarians
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flag brucie1
O+
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 16:47 Quote
Check the news as they have closed all Parks and Wildlands to vehicle access. No parking in lots or on roads. Going to be a long spring I'm afraid. I will be sticking to early road rides and then home improvement projects that take labor.
flag R-M-R
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 17:52 Quote
Roads around Bearspaw were in surprisingly good shape. No water and mostly mild gravel, with a bit more on minor roads. Be careful of deeper gravel at intersections and assume every sharp bend will have an unexpected pile of gravel, even though none did.

Start your ride heading west, into the wind, and return with the wind at your back. Don't start with the wind at your back, assume you're remarkably fit for this time of year and it's definitely not the wind helping you along, only to discover you're actually horribly out of shape when you turn back into the wind, and get so wrecked on the way back that you're barely able to turn your lowest ratio on flat ground. That's just a general warning; I would definitely not be so foolish as to do that ... every year.
flag Cro-Mag
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 18:44 Quote
R-M-R wrote:
Roads around Bearspaw were in surprisingly good shape. No water and mostly mild gravel, with a bit more on minor roads. Be careful of deeper gravel at intersections and assume every sharp bend will have an unexpected pile of gravel, even though none did.

Start your ride heading west, into the wind, and return with the wind at your back. Don't start with the wind at your back, assume you're remarkably fit for this time of year and it's definitely not the wind helping you along, only to discover you're actually horribly out of shape when you turn back into the wind, and get so wrecked on the way back that you're barely able to turn your lowest ratio on flat ground. That's just a general warning; I would definitely not be so foolish as to do that ... every year.

Never seen the roads so busy with roadies round here......Wind at your back sounds like ebike talk......
CM!
flag R-M-R
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 19:13 Quote
Cro-Mag wrote:
Never seen the roads so busy with roadies round here......Wind at your back sounds like ebike talk......

It felt like an e-bike until I turned around!

Fewer people on the roads today than a typical weekend. Lot fewer than Elbow Falls (CBC photo):

Being outdoors doesn t always count as social distancing CBC photo from https www.cbc.ca news canada calgary provincial-parks-deena-hinshaw-jason-kenney-banff-jasper-1.5513246
flag Cro-Mag
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 19:20 Quote
R-M-R wrote:
Cro-Mag wrote:
Never seen the roads so busy with roadies round here......Wind at your back sounds like ebike talk......

It felt like an e-bike until I turned around!

Fewer people on the roads today than a typical weekend. Lot fewer than Elbow Falls (CBC photo):

Being outdoors doesn t always count as social distancing CBC photo from https www.cbc.ca news canada calgary provincial-parks-deena-hinshaw-jason-kenney-banff-jasper-1.5513246


And we can thank that load of punters for pissing on our down time!

CM!
flag VPS13
O+
Posted: Mar 27, 2020 at 21:02 Quote
aka-bigsteve wrote:
VPS13 wrote:

Are they touring in from WBC parking lot??

Yes. Winds really picked up yesterday afternoon. Between that, and the sun, the window of opportunity may have closed. Only one way to find out....
I left the fat AT setup at home so I wouldn't be tempted by those logged areas, and for faster travel on my loop. Despite the unusual snow depth for Bragg, it is not a very solid snowpack there- mostly facets below MF crust that is not all that strong. Too much slash lurking for my tastes.

Yes surprising how much meltdown we have had the last day and a bit out here. Went for a bit of a local tour myself the other day to get a bit of PT. Looks like we have big 5cm reset coming on Tuesday so should be slashing pow again soon, check the avy forecasts before heading out and watch out for those nasty k-country spring slabs Big Grin
flag d-man
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 7:17 Quote
VPS13 wrote:
aka-bigsteve wrote:
VPS13 wrote:

Are they touring in from WBC parking lot??

Yes. Winds really picked up yesterday afternoon. Between that, and the sun, the window of opportunity may have closed. Only one way to find out....
I left the fat AT setup at home so I wouldn't be tempted by those logged areas, and for faster travel on my loop. Despite the unusual snow depth for Bragg, it is not a very solid snowpack there- mostly facets below MF crust that is not all that strong. Too much slash lurking for my tastes.

Yes surprising how much meltdown we have had the last day and a bit out here. Went for a bit of a local tour myself the other day to get a bit of PT. Looks like we have big 5cm reset coming on Tuesday so should be slashing pow again soon, check the avy forecasts before heading out and watch out for those nasty k-country spring slabs Big Grin
Don't think there is any more avy forecasting, same for sar.
Apparently there is a gate going at the bottom of Swansea. No more shuttling, pedal only now as of April 1....
flag Rmcfarland
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 8:16 Quote
d-man wrote:
VPS13 wrote:
aka-bigsteve wrote:


Yes. Winds really picked up yesterday afternoon. Between that, and the sun, the window of opportunity may have closed. Only one way to find out....
I left the fat AT setup at home so I wouldn't be tempted by those logged areas, and for faster travel on my loop. Despite the unusual snow depth for Bragg, it is not a very solid snowpack there- mostly facets below MF crust that is not all that strong. Too much slash lurking for my tastes.

Yes surprising how much meltdown we have had the last day and a bit out here. Went for a bit of a local tour myself the other day to get a bit of PT. Looks like we have big 5cm reset coming on Tuesday so should be slashing pow again soon, check the avy forecasts before heading out and watch out for those nasty k-country spring slabs Big Grin
Don't think there is any more avy forecasting, same for sar.
Apparently there is a gate going at the bottom of Swansea. No more shuttling, pedal only now as of April 1....

Permanently? Or to keep Albertans out for now?
flag VPS13
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 9:23 Quote
d-man wrote:
VPS13 wrote:
aka-bigsteve wrote:


Yes. Winds really picked up yesterday afternoon. Between that, and the sun, the window of opportunity may have closed. Only one way to find out....
I left the fat AT setup at home so I wouldn't be tempted by those logged areas, and for faster travel on my loop. Despite the unusual snow depth for Bragg, it is not a very solid snowpack there- mostly facets below MF crust that is not all that strong. Too much slash lurking for my tastes.

Yes surprising how much meltdown we have had the last day and a bit out here. Went for a bit of a local tour myself the other day to get a bit of PT. Looks like we have big 5cm reset coming on Tuesday so should be slashing pow again soon, check the avy forecasts before heading out and watch out for those nasty k-country spring slabs Big Grin
Don't think there is any more avy forecasting, same for sar.
Apparently there is a gate going at the bottom of Swansea. No more shuttling, pedal only now as of April 1....

AvCan stopped the reports last week ish.
flag aka-bigsteve
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 9:26 Quote
Rmcfarland wrote:
d-man wrote:

Apparently there is a gate going at the bottom of Swansea. No more shuttling, pedal only now as of April 1....

Permanently? Or to keep Albertans out for now?

With all the "trails open, but no vehicle access to trailheads"- maybe I should be investing my battered RRSP funds in e-bike related stocks. Or getting one myself, but that would make me a hypocrite...such a dilemmalol
flag VPS13
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 9:29 Quote
So will they be putting a gate on hwy 66 now that all the parks are closed?
flag quinnltd
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 9:47 Quote
Rmcfarland wrote:
d-man wrote:
VPS13 wrote:


Yes surprising how much meltdown we have had the last day and a bit out here. Went for a bit of a local tour myself the other day to get a bit of PT. Looks like we have big 5cm reset coming on Tuesday so should be slashing pow again soon, check the avy forecasts before heading out and watch out for those nasty k-country spring slabs Big Grin
Don't think there is any more avy forecasting, same for sar.
Apparently there is a gate going at the bottom of Swansea. No more shuttling, pedal only now as of April 1....

Permanently? Or to keep Albertans out for now?

It's just to keep people off early spring when the road is soft
flag aka-bigsteve
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 10:07 Quote
VPS13 wrote:
So will they be putting a gate on hwy 66 now that all the parks are closed?

A lot of that area falls under "Public Land Use Zones" (PLUZ). Many trailheads are Provincial Recreation Areas (PRA)
https://albertaparks.ca/media/5119911/kananaskis-sibbald-elbow-wmu-map.pdf
I read the notice of closure to parks and recreation areas as indicating that PLUZ's are not included. Use that at your own digression. My view is that responsible, dialled back outdoor activity in uncrowded locations is not a threat to the health and safety of society at this time, and is a benefit in maintaining health both physical and mental, as well as reducing the inevitable overcrowding in city parks. Both the riding and skiing out that way are likely going to suck though...
flag husstler
O+
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 10:10 Quote
aka-bigsteve wrote:
VPS13 wrote:
So will they be putting a gate on hwy 66 now that all the parks are closed?

A lot of that area falls under "Public Land Use Zones" (PLUZ). Many trailheads are Provincial Recreation Areas (PRA)
https://albertaparks.ca/media/5119911/kananaskis-sibbald-elbow-wmu-map.pdf
I read the notice of closure to parks and recreation areas as indicating that PLUZ's are not included. Use that at your own digression. My view is that responsible, dialled back outdoor activity in uncrowded locations is not a threat to the health and safety of society at this time, and is a benefit in maintaining health both physical and mental, as well as reducing the inevitable overcrowding in city parks. Both the riding and skiing out that way are likely going to suck though...

So once the snow is melted I could ride there from home and hit some trails? It's the parking lot that's closed, not the trails is what I'm taking from this.
flag lazyname
Posted: Mar 28, 2020 at 11:24 Quote
Lol parking within the Highway 66 RW, at Elbow Falls is probably technically outside the PRA that is on both sides of the Highway, so G2G.

I guess what you are suggesting Steve is finding quiet highway parking outside the lots / PRAs. I could see RCMP start ticketing maybe if that is within their rights.

 


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