Hiking is something that I could do every day, rain or shine, sleet or snow. The only thing that I might not find enjoyable is, say, hiking in a blizzard where you can’t see where you’re going ~ other than that, I’m pretty much up for anything!
Our family recently went on a vacation where we stayed in Calgary and did our own thing for about 11 days, and I can’t tell you how refreshing it was to not have to punch a clock and have to go-go-go full tilt like we are usually doing. A lot of our days were spent at BMX tracks, shopping, hiking and Calaway Park, but the absolute best part of the trip by far (for me, anyway) was the Sunshine Village ski resort! We’ve been here to ski before, and in the summertime they run their gondola and a chair lift for day hikes.
This may be a little dramatic, but I want to live here!! Lol. I am telling you, this place is absolutely gorgeous in the summer (who am I kidding, it’s gorgeous year round!!).
We arrived at the base of the gondola around 9am and hopped on for a scenic ride to the lodge and interpretive centre. This is where you can educate yourself on some of the stuff to do on the mountain, plus they have some interesting artifacts that you can use to spot some of the animal activity on the mountain.
Before you head up the mountain, it’s a really good idea to make sure you’re all set for the day. Wear proper shoes (no flip flops, you will regret it!!), make sure your clothes are comfortable, bring some snacks and lots of water. It’s not required, but super important to bring bear spray!! They spot bears up there all the time, naturally, and you don’t want to surprise one while you’re hiking through the trees or meadows. It’s not a bad idea to wear a hat and bring some layers as the weather changes quickly on the mountain.
When we got to the top of the chair lift, we headed out to the Grizzly Loop Trail. From here you get to see the most incredible views from a viewing deck, and all along the trails on the way to the loop.
We saw beautiful wildflowers along the way, lots of bees, and cute little marmots. At this time of year, there are flowers that look like something you would see in the movie The Lorax ~ so cool!!
There are three lakes that you can hike down to, however you can’t swim in them (much to my youngest daughters disappointment!). The trail system is very clear and you can’t wander off trail as you will destroy the ecosystem.
There are lots of viewpoints along the way, and some viewing decks. Our first stop was the Standish Viewing Deck.
We hiked around 10 kms, and it was magical! Thankfully we didn’t see any bears while we were up there. Even though we had snacks, the girls were hungry and so we stopped at Mad Trappers Grill. It’s pretty standard pub grub here, and cocktails. They have a nice large outdoor patio where we sat and had a snack and a nice cold drink.
And that’s a wrap on our Sunshine Village Summer adventure! Have you been up here? I’d love to hear all about it, along with any other hiking suggestions that you might have for me.
As always, thank you so much for visiting my page, and I can’t wait for next time!
