Kissed by the Ice-King

The snow lay thick upon the ground, 

and upon the branches of the trees: 

the frost kept snapping the little twigs on either side of them, as they passed: 

and when they came to the Mountain-Torrent 

she was hanging motionless in air, 

for the Ice-King had kissed her.

~ Oscar Wilde, The Star-Child and Other Tales

 
The Maligne Canyon* walk in winter - and even on the cusp of Spring - is an amazing experience. We chose to travel with a guide,** for good reason. It can be a hazardous hike without the right gear and guide. 

Here is a little of our hike.*** I enlarged the photos for a better view. Some may be a little out-of-order.

It had snowed gently most of the night. The trees were now full of powdery flakes. It continued to snow until midday.

These photos are all in color, but this is how the forest looked in the snow.

Part of our group crossing 5th Bridge - there is color.

The Maligne River - looking upstream from 5th Bridge.

Alicia, our guide from SunDog Tours.

Bridal Veil Falls (there will be more photos)

We walked in the riverbed much of the time.

This is a wee bit of ice. Just wait.

This one is a bit bigger.

It was still snowing as we started through the canyon.

Alicia tested spots to ensure no one stepped into a "pothole." Our group mostly followed directions (there is always one - or two - who don't listen). It's the sign of a good guide to provide rules and structure and insist on compliance. Alicia was great.

There was a guy ice climbing on the other side.

This fellow was ice climbing. Alicia was firm about safety - calling a couple of our party away from below the climber. We then waited until he was in a spot where we were clear to pass by.

Here you can see some of the narrow spots and how there was a distinct path to follow.

Because we were stopped here for a bit (photos in addition to waiting for the climbers), I took a number of shots. It was hard to capture everything.

You can just see where we are going  - and a little bit of the climber.

It felt like the trees were leaning down to see us and whispered to each other about these silly humans.

The climber had cleared the ice.

Alicia is a "full service" guide. She would take as much time as necessary for us to get some special photos. She is a pretty good photographer! [DH, Walker, JRF]

It is hard to explain how strange and beautiful it was.

See, taking another group photo.

At one point people above started lobbing snowballs down on us. It was not a smart nor safe thing to do.

Not only was she concerned about safety, Alicia shared the geological history (and present) of the canyon and how the guides and trail volunteers work together to keep the trails in good shape for all seasons. It was definitely more than just a "Hey, step over here" kind of experience. And see that ice ax? It saw a bit of work, making steps in some ice formations and checking the depth of the slush/potholes.

Not a beaver dam. It's a pile of driftwood washed into the canyon and caught in a bend. It's been there a while.

This may have been where we turned back. There was no way to continue without more gear. So the rest of the photos will be a different view of things already seen...and the trail back.

That woodpile again.

Watch your step.

Bridal Veil II

A view fro the bus.

NOTES:

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maligne_Canyon

**https://www.sundogtours.com/package/maligne-canyon-icewalk/ Our guide was Alicia. She was amazing - personable, professional, experienced, engaging - perfect!

*** I am sure I missed a bit - talking or looking the wrong direction - or watching out for the "potholes" in the ice that could drop a few inches to a few feet. I need these ankles.

Other Stuff:

SunDog outfitted us with boots and ice cleats - we tried them on until we were satisfied with the fit (but we did have to give them back). 

While on the bus we were lucky enough to see elk and a coyote (in addition to all the crows/ravens).