Snowshoe McLean Hill | Snowshoe Trails | Kananaskis Outdoors Forum

Post edited 6:24 pm – April 23, 2011 by Bob Stebbins

Inspired by the Daffern's post of 21 April, we snowshoed up McLean Hill the morning of the 23rd guided by their excellent description of the trail. The weather was clear and warm, with the result that we returned around noon on an ever-softening base, often well-granulated underneath. Since these conditions make ascending rather unpleasant (not unlike climbing in small scree), it is best to accomplish that part of the outing early to mid-morning. The summit is also accessible to ATVs, five of which passed over it while we were there. More positively we were greeted by what appeared to be the summit's resident ptarmigan, a friendly chap who would strut to within a few inches of us but for such intimacy still refused all offerings of food. No whiskyjack this bird. His mind was apparently on other matters, as suggested by his occasionally flared tail.