Crypt Lake

29 χρόνια μαζί. Αυτή τη φορά στην Κρυφή Λίμνη, στα σύνορα Καναδά-ΗΠΑ

29 years together. This time at Crypt Lake, at the border Alberta (Canada) - Montana (USA)

The Crypt Lake Trail is one of the premium hikes in Waterton Lakes National Park (UNESCO World Heritage Site) in Alberta, Canada; it was voted "Canada's Best Hike" in 1981. The hike will take your breath away. It leads through mixed and coniferous forests, along mountain streams and waterfalls, across exposed boulders, and finally into the cirque that contains Crypt Lake. The approx. 20 km hike (round trip), with an elevational gain of 900 m, is strenuous, but spectacular. However ... if you have fear of heights you should avoid this hike. Just below Crypt Lake, you will have to cross a talus field, where the path is less than 30 cm wide. At the end of this section, you will have to climb up a very narrow 2 m tall iron ladder, stretch considerably to access a 30 m long, narrow tunnel, manage to climb down a 1 m ledge at the end of the tunnel, and then traverse a very exposed rock face, where the path is less than 20 cm wide, and all that prevents you from falling about 300 m to your death is a steel cable with a length of about 50 m attached to the rocks. One false step, and you're dead. 

The southern tip of Crypt Lake skirts Canada's international border with the United States, and the trail enters the United States for less than 50 metres, meaning that hikers technically enter the United States illegally. However, there is no border-related signage or warnings, and no legal consequences for hikers, as entry any further into the United States at this location is impossible due to sheer mountain cliffs at the south end of the lake.

Η πορεία

The hike

Η λίμνη

The lake

Η επιστροφή

The return