Most Giggers Say They Won't Do Crypt-Lake Challenge Ever Again, so They Bought the T-Shirt
 Well, the second leg of the Waterton Triple Crown is complete: We made it to Crypt Lake. The Crypt Lake hike is one of the most unique hikes you'll ever encounter. It was rated as Canada's "Best Hike" in 1981. In 2014 National Geographic rated this hike as one of the World's 20 Most Thrilling Trails. Here’s our story: On Friday, we left Great Falls at 5:20 a.m. and arrived in Waterton by 9 a.m., in time to get our boat tickets for the tour and for the 8:30 a.m. Crypt Lake shuttle for the next day. Then it was time to go back to the cars and gear up; the rush and worry over the tickets over. We boarded our vessel with tour guide Mike, whom Katie recognized as her guide from years ago. She recognized his distinctively low voice, which didn’t fit his 20-something body at the time, but now he has grown into it. Mike filled us in on everything Waterton, including the popular hikes, names of mountains, the international border, and his favorite things since he grew up in the area. We really enjoyed the one-hour tour on our way to Goat Haunt. We debarked at Goat Haunt, which is in the United States, and planned to hike, so we had to go through customs (twice in one day as we had come into Canada just two hours earlier) and have our passport stamped with the mountain goat, signifying this particular border crossing. We hiked as a group together to Rainbow Falls and had a snack overlooking this small cascade. Then seven of the 10 decided to book it to the Waterton Overlook to cross off two of Jake’s hikes while the other three took a leisurely stroll back to the boat dock. The boat left at 2:25, so it was a push to make the overlook with a smoky view down the length of Waterton Lake and back in time as this hike is up, up, up, although a short two miles roundtrip. After our short hikes and boat ride back, we had about an hour of shopping in Waterton, where we made it a point to visit Lorna’s stores, including Big Scoop Ice Cream Shop, to get some fudge and souvenirs. Luckily, Lorna was so we could say “hi,” however briefly as she was busily making fudge for the long line of people waiting to sample her wares. We also visited her Caribou Clothes shop. Then it was off to Zum’s for dinner at this Waterton staple. After dinner, we had a very rushed check-in and quick freshen-up at the Mountain View Inn “rustic cabin” before we drove to Cardston to see Music Man at the Carriage Theater. The starring role was performed by local talent Ricky Duane, who definitely has the right moves and acting ability. However, the day was long so a few nodded off occasionally. We did get to bed a bit late (around 11 p.m.) for our early morning and big hikes the next day. So it was up early on Saturday at 6 a.m. so we had an easy breakfast of yogurt, fruit, granola and peanut-butter on toast with orange juice before we headed back into Waterton for one of two hikes: the dreaded Crypt Lake or Bertha Falls and Lake, the tamer hike, although both groups faced hikes with elevation gain. The Crypt Lake hike starts with steep switchbacks out of the gate, then has a moderate section followed by steeper switchbacks and then finally the obstacle course of walking a cliff ledge that leads to a ladder that ends at a very low natural tunnel that requires some crawling, followed by climb on the side of the rocky mountainside with an iron cable to cling to. Most of the gals said the scariest part was the top of the ladder that was a few rungs short of reaching the entrance of the tunnel. It required a scary step or two on the rocky edges and using poor handholds on the sides of cave entrance both coming and going. Thankfully, men helped a few of us both directions while Sue helped several on the ladder part on the way back. After the obstacles, it was a short walk to the gorgeous cirque lake, where Katie and Beth decided to take a plunge into the cold water, still fed by some snow fields. Very refreshing. Then it was a reverse of everything with all of the gals letting out a sigh of relief and saying a prayer after the last ledge was completed. The rest was all downhill from there, as they say, except for a thunderstorm that gave us a bit of a scare when a bolt hit close by. Some had questioned whether we needed rain gear. The answer is always "yes"!. Katie and Beth decided to take the gorge detour, adding an extra mile, and getting them a bit wetter than the others. We caught the 5:15 p.m. boat back to the dock, where Anita announced that she didn’t care if the t-shirts were $40; she was going to buy one no matter what after surviving. The rest of us headed for the car. When Anita came back, she told us the shirts were on sale for half price. That convinced us all to go buy one. Then we headed to the Prince of Wales hotel to meet with the Bertha Lake group who was going to reserve a table. However, none was available so we sat in the lounge with a beautiful view. But the flies were very annoying, and every table had several "fly"-ers on it explaining that since we were in a national park, the hotel staff wasn't allowed to kill the flies and to "let the flies be flies." Some of us wondered if flies were an endangered species or why they couldn't put out humane traps and then let them go outside instead of all over our food. Again, we had a late night, but this time instead of watching a play, we relived our day of hiking by looking at Beth’s cellphone pictures. She really got some nice ones. The next day, we had a leisurely late start and a full breakfast of pancakes with blueberry sauce or real maple syrup with walnuts, bacon, cheesy eggs, orange juice and fruit! Wow. We cooked up a storm and then headed out for leisurely strolls to Blakison Falls and the Red Rock parkway before more shopping in Waterton. Again, the gals got more fudge and bought more clothes at Lorna’s store. In fact, many of us got matching purple and bright green windbreakers that say "Waterton Park Canada" on them. We plan to wear them to the eclipse hike. Anita had a saying we all liked. She said, "My husband asked me why I shop. I asked him why he hunts. At least I never get skunked." After a quick late lunch at the infamous Wieners of Waterton, we headed home, arriving before 7 p.m., tired but all happy from the great hikes, great laughs and fun comradery of our group. Next year we tackle the third leg of the Triple Crown: Akimina Ridge. |
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