Of course when I started my two week vacation in September, the weather turned for the worse in the Rockies. And when I say “worse”, I mean way worse… First of all was the dump of snow that covered the entire range of the Alberta Rockies from north of Jasper to Waterton Lakes National Park. While a bit of snow isn’t a huge issue, especially in the fall – it definitely limited my choices for peak bagging. I had to dial down my ambitions from lofty 11,000ers to trips that involved more hiking and backpacking. I didn’t mind, to be honest. I was in the mood for more reflective trips anyway – sometimes the intensity of larger peaks can distract from the beauty and peacefulness of the area that you’re traveling through. Not a terrible thing necessarily, but it’s nice to stop and smell the roses every once in a while.
Signal Mountain is easily done off the Skyline Trail backpacking route in Jasper National Park.
It’s fitting that the belle of the ball was the last major summit we tried. After doing Antler Ridge, Curator Mountain, Amber and GR403502 by the Notch we were ready for a real challenge.
Curator Mountain was a very enjoyable scramble. Next to Tekarra it’s the one I would recommend most for a side trip off of the Skyline Trail backpacking route in Jasper National Park.
Amber Mountain is even easier than Signal Mountain to tag “for free” while you’re backpacking the Skyline Trail in Jasper National Park.
I call the summit on the ridge that connects to Antler Mountain ‘Antler Ridge’. We climbed up this ridge from the Snowbowl campground along the Skyline Trail in Jasper National park.
With over 1400 meters of height gain and 1900 meters of height loss, the Skyline Trail is a lot of work. But it’s worth it. Add a few peaks and soon you’re doing over 2200 meters of height gain, but again, it’s worth it!
