[MCR] Jasper Hiking Eastern slopes and Watchtower Basin Area

[Public Mountain Conditions Report]

A Thompson Rivers University ACMG Assistant Hiking Guide course was 
held in Jasper from Sept 8-16.

The group hiked on Mt Morro, over Hidden Valley, 2 Valley creek area 
(sub peak in front of Mt. Dromore), and finished with a 3 day 
backpacking trip in and adjacent to Watchtower Basin.

We started with summer conditions early in the week. A cold front 
brought colder temperatures and snow leading to early winter 
conditions by the morning of Sept 14th.
In the Watchtower Basin the snow line was down to 1600 metres, with 
up to 15cm of new snow at and above treeline The temperature was near 
-4C at in the morning from a camp at 2050  metres.
Signs of wildlife included tracks of Moose, grizzly, black bear, and 
wolf. Lots of recent bear scat noted, and though we did not see any 
bears, it looked like they have been eating well.

The lower section of trail out of Watchtower is well cleared (in the 
burnt area), however in the upper drainage the trail is indiscernible 
in places, especially with the new snow.

Hikers should consider staying at lower elevations over the next few 
days while conditions improve, especially on northerly aspects where 
the snow still lingers near treeline.

Overall it was a splendid week of hiking that spanned through 3 seasons!

Instructors:
Peter Amann
Steve Ludwig


Peter Amann
Mountain Guiding
Box 1495, Jasper AB, T0E 1E0
780 852 3237
cell 780 931 2521
www.incentre.net/pamann/
pamann.incentre.net
pamann at incentre.net
amannpeterr at gmail.com 
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