I had been scouring Google Earth and the Hema Explorer app one evening looking for a new trail to explore in our local province of Alberta that wasn’t more than a few hours from Calgary. After 5 years of exploring, it felt like there weren’t many stones left unturned when it came to finding something new and relatively close to home. Each trip needed to be further and further in order to see something different. That being said, we have no problem going farther each trip, in fact, it’s one of the things we love most about vehicle based travel… But occasionally we’d rather keep it simple and explore local.
As I was moving the curser through south west Alberta near the Crowsnest Pass, something I hadn’t yet seen in all my time looking through this area caught my eye. It looked to be high in altitude, nearing the tree line. A tight trail starting off of Alison Creek Rd. But where did it go? Quickly, I followed the line that bobbed in and out of sight on my computer screen, disappearing in a thick area of trees, then popping back up again a few hundred meters away. It was heading west towards the BC border and I wondered if it would in fact make the pass up and over the mountain range into British Columbia. Sure enough, just I had hoped, the trail made the crossing. Right on the border, between the two provinces, read in small text “North Fork Pass.” I couldn’t believe I had never seen this trail before. Once I confirmed the trail made the border crossing, I hastily followed it further to see where it would end up. To my amazement, it reconnected with the Racehorse pass some 30 kilometres away, taking me back over into Alberta. I think I’ve found our next trail. If all goes to plan, (fingers crossed) this may just turn out to be one of Alberta’s finest 4WD trails!
Three Weeks Later
Packing the 4Runner has become second nature by this point and after the tent is bolted to the roof, it only takes 20 minutes to pack the rest of the gear, which is a great improvement from an hour! Unfortunately, Alison won’t be joining me for this trip as it is mid-way through the week and other obligations, like work, are rudely in the way. I recruited a friend of mine named Haakon to join me as I’m not quite sure what I’ll be getting myself into. We’ve also been talking about getting out for a trail run for a while so this will be a great opportunity to catch up.
I meet Haakon outside of Longview, a small town in south western Alberta where we fuel up the vehicles for what is expected to be roughly 70-80km of dirt. He’s driving a new Jeep Gladiator and after watching that thing conquer the Whipsaw Trail in BC, I’m feeling more confident in our ability to complete this trip in a timely manner (Without the use of emergency services). We pull away from the gas station due south for an epic adventure!
Our tires meet dirt as we turn off the highway by the Oldman River just before the Crowsnest Highway. I like to air my tires down as soon as we’re off the pavement. It makes the old 4Runner feel more planted when tearing up the gravel. I knock a quick 20 psi out of the tires and we’re off again.
Rolling hills soon turn to jagged mountain faces as the wheels turn beneath the vehicles. Hakkon’s leading and he’s taking us a way I have never been before. This trip is shaping up to be a great new experience already!
Soon enough, we reach the marked dot on the map, the North Fork Pass trail head. Anxiety is slightly elevated as we begin to push our way into the unknown but the views in this area are already breathtaking. To think that we will be moving over two mountain ranges, crossing borders in remote locations and camping in an amazing part of the province is enough to make my heart pound with excitement.
Directly ahead of us is our first water crossing followed by the first steep up hill climb. Over 850m (2788 ft) of elevation will need to be accrued in the coming hours. I take the first plunge into the crystal clear glacier water and Haakon quickly follows. Water crashes up against the doors and bumpers of our vehicles as the first obstacle is overcome.
Once on the other dry side of the crossing, we get out to take a look at our next hurdle. Our eyes are met with large rock shelves, some the size of our vehicles. Scrapes, fluid stains and tire marks could be seen on some portions of the rocks where other vehicles had obviously run into trouble making the attempted climb. The 4Runner is only on a mere 33″ tire with a 4 inch lift and the Gladiator has its long wheel base issues and 31″ tires. Looks like we may be in for a dramatic start to this hill climb.
We take our time planning out specific lines for each vehicle because they both have very different approach, break over and departure angles. The last thing we want is for one, or even both of us, to be on the back of a tow truck.
I shift the 4Runner into low, gearing for maximum torque and engage the rear locker. Drive is selected and I make my way forward towards the shelves. I line myself up with the predetermined line and begin the ascent. To my surprise, the 4Runner performs like an agile mountain goat scampering up a cliffside. Not a scratch as I bump up and over the shelves to the top! The Gladiator follows suit and our second obstacle comes to an end. With adrenaline pumping now, we get out to see what’s around the next corner.
“My god” I said aloud as my jaw slightly dropped. “if you thought that last shelf was big, take a look at this next one!” I yelled back to Haakon. The next shelf was easily double what we had just done. Excitement had now replaced anxiety as we planned out the new lines on this rock ledge…
. . .
Stay tuned for part 2 of our epic Great Divide Loop! Mistakes are made, vehicle damage is done and legendary views are in the near future!
