Corridors of Conifers : Chief Isadore Trail into Cranbrook

Today we continued along the gorgeous Chief Isadore Trail, walking the final 30 km to Cranbrook.  Chief Isadore was leader of the Ktunaxa People during the tumultuous early 19th century, when tensions were high due to European settlement in the area. 

The Ktunaxa traditionally ran horses and crossed the Rocky Mountains to hunt buffalo every year. By the end of the 1870s the buffalo had been hunted nearly to extinction by Europeans, the land was beginning to be settled, and Europeans were arriving in search of gold. Increasingly the Ktunaxa had to turn to farming to survive.  Chief Isadore commanded great respect, and through shear force of personality was able to wield considerable power and influence as he guided his people through a rough transition.  However, he was not offered the opportunity to sign Treaty 7 as the neighbouring Blackfoot Confederacy was, and the land concessions he was offered didn't include Joseph's Prairie (Cranbrook), which was an important camping and hunting ground for the Ktunaxa. In 1894 he succumbed to disease, as did many of the elders in his tribe, but he was remembered as a great leader.

As the sun came up it began to light the valley below us, and the reddish mountains opposite appeared soft purple.  It was a relatively warm, clear morning, and as the sun's warmth began to penetrate the canopy, the forest around us began to come alive.  The sounds of Black-capped and Mountain Chickadees were joined by the repeated and incessant calls of Red-breasted Nuthatches.

It was a very pleasant morning, following the winding earth footpath along the forested slopes.  Around 8:30 am we came to the site of an old gypsum mine. It was discovered by prospectors in the 1920's who investigated the many sink holes that appeared in the forests around Mayook.  Following their discoveries, the Canada Cement Company, and later Western Gypsum began mining the soft white mineral from the 1920's to the early 1950's.  During that time they extracted about 100,000 tonnes of gypsum from the Rocky Mountain Trench.  There are still two gypsum mines active in the area, with an estimated 300 years of reserves still remaining.   Gypsum has a number of uses, including as an ingredient in paper, wall boards, beer, fireproofing materials, pharmaceuticals, and more.

Just beside the open pit where the mine used to be we spotted an unusual, slightly humorous, and highly effective sign.  It said 'Private, No Trespassing, Biting Dog.'  While people may be willing to disregard a 'No Trespassing' sign, my guess is many would be unwilling to dismiss the possibility of a biting dog!

We continued along the winding pathway, greatly enjoying the quiet, sunny forest as we gently climbed.  About an hour after passing the gypsum mine we stepped out onto a grassy plateau with a lovely view of the mountains, and sat down for a short break in the sunshine. 

As we sat there, minding our own business, we heard a strange hissing sound.  Moments later, it sounded more like an aerosol can going off.  It wasn't until we started coughing and our eyes started burning that we realized the noise had come from our bear spray canister, which had begun to leak!  It seemed to stop, but a few seconds later the can exploded, discharging its nasty, sticky, orange spray all over the side of Sean's backpack and flinging the safety lock off into the shrubbery.  Not wanting to leave it there, or to litter, we sealed the offending canister inside a Ziploc bag, where it promptly discharged once again, filling the bag up.  In retrospect we were lucky, because it didn't hit either of us directly, but for the remainder of the day, every time Sean took off his pack to take a photo he was overcome by a fit of coughing.  It seems his luck has yet to change for the better.

We continued to gently climb until around km 23.  Along the way we crossed several small clear streams on metal foot bridges.  The water babbled along between mossy banks, adding a cheerful voice to the peaceful coniferous forest.  One of these bridges had been adorned with a memorial of flowers and a message to a loved one who had passed away.

As we wove up and down the hills we passed through different looking and feeling stands of trees. In some areas the tree trunks were tall and very skinny, standing packed closely together.    In these areas many stems had grown so fast that they couldn't hold themselves upright, and were leaning over.  The sunlight had a harder time penetrating these stands, giving them a strange, almost otherworldly feel.

In other areas the trees were taller, farther apart, and the sunlight filtered freely down to the forest floor.  These stands felt light and airy, and the smell of warm pine filled the warm air.

As we walked we also passed several Trans Canada Trail plaques that featured new species.  After walking more than 12,000 km on this trail we've seen quite a few of these signs, and it is rare to find a new one.  The lodge pole pine and the marten were two species we don't remember seeing previously.

After km 23 we began to slowly descend again, still winding along the beautiful forest pathway.   We started to notice the smaller things, like colourful fall mushrooms and fungi, and wonderfully striped rocks.  We also stopped to watch a tiny American red squirrel eating a lodgepole pine cone, methodically peeling it from the bottom upwards to extract and eat the tiny seeds inside.  We examined the pile of husks left behind by the busy critter and noticed that the process wasn't too efficient - quite a few discarded seeds hadn't been consumed.

Eventually we crossed a large, open hydro corridor.  We could see the huge BCH Cranbrook  Substation below us, and the long power lines extending out from it and leading above us and up over the top of the mountain.  As we stood there a glossy blue helicopter flew along the valley below us, then turned above the hydro station and began flying very slowly up the hydro corridor. When it passed directly over us it was only about a hundred meters of above our heads.

After this point the trail brought us back towards Highway 3, and we began following a straighter section of rail trail once again.   A very strong, reinforced barbed wire fence ran along the trail to one side, and on the other tall rocky cliffs of various colours and textures rose up.

A definite highlight in this section was spotting another Western Terrestrial Garter Snake lying across the trail.  This one had very impressive red spots down its length, and very strongly defined stripes.  It was lying in a patch of shade, right in the middle of the path, and it was so cold it couldn't move.  I gently moved it off the trail and into a patch of sun.  It was a good thing too, because a few moments later a cyclist passed us, going far too fast to notice a small snake in its path.  Hopefully the little fellow escaped without getting crushed!

Not too long after this we came to a well-marked fork in the trail, which gave us the option to continue down the rail trail, or to keep following along the highway and go to the Rampart Rest Area.  Since we were continuing on towards Cranbrook we took the more direct route, which didn't go to the rest area.  As we climbed gently along our treed corridor we could see a beautiful pond below us, and a field filled with cattle.  When we have choices like this we always think about the way not taken, and wonder what it would have been like.

Eventually the two sections of trail came back together, and we pulled back towards the highway.  In this stretch we were walking in more open areas, passing grassy meadows and patches of marsh, and it was very hot in the afternoon sunshine.  At km 9 we came to a picnic table, where we gratefully took a break. Although the trail was gorgeous, those last kilometres seemed to be endless in the hot afternoon sun.  We seemed to be crawling along, although it certainly didn't feel like it.

As we approached Cranbrook we were passed by an increasing number of cyclists, joggers, and other hikers.  It was nice to see a trail so well loved by locals, and with such good reason.  This is one of the nicest, most highly developed, and well maintained trails we've encountered in a very long time.

Eventually we arrived at the final trailhead for the Chief Isadore Trail at the edge of Cranbrook.  As we crossed the gravel parking lot we were sad to leave the trail behind. At this point we picked up the Rotary Trail, which was a paved cycling trail that wove through the neighbourhoods of Cranbrook.  We passed a large trailer park, walked through a small neighbourhood, and crossed a large park with several baseball diamonds.  We were surprised to see several mule deer on the trail, patiently waiting for a break in the traffic so they could cross the busy road at the crosswalk.

Cranbrook is a city of just over 20,500 people that is located at the confluence of the Kootenay and St. Mary's Rivers.  The land that Cranbrook now occupies was bought by Colonel James Baker, who named it after his hometown in Kent, England.  In 1898 Baker successfully convinced the Canadian Pacific Railway to route their Crowsnest Pass line through Cranbrook rather than Fort Steele, making this town a major administrative center in the region. 

In 1890 the Kootenay Residential School, also known as St. Eugene's, opened in Cranbrook.  Over 5,000 Indigenous children from across BC and Alberta were forced to attend it before it closed in 1970.  The building has been home to the St. Eugene Golf Resort and Casino since 2000.

We took a day to resupply, catch up on blogs and photo editing, and do laundry in Cranbrook.  During our stay we had a chance to explore a little of the old downtown area.  The tree lined streets, brick buildings, colourful murals, and urban parks of the downtown core were quite charming.  It is also surrounded by beautiful mountains that turn bright pink and purple in the setting sun.  In the coming days we will be crossing over some of those mountains as we leave the Rocky Mountain Trench behind.  To do this we will walk over the Gray Creek Pass, traversing the highest point on the Trans Canada Trail in BC.  Hopefully a day of 'rest' will prepare us for the challenges that lie ahead.

See you on the trail!

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