Started by two enterprising and engaging young men, hot dogs are taken to a new level with
superior quality wieners from local and afar, as well as their own homemade falafel version. Buns are baked daily on premise, dogs are grilled to order and they have a good variety of toppings."
See what I mean?
Then three nights ago, just as it was getting dark, we noticed a young couple walking around the Airstream, pointing and talking. Now, we frequently have people who slow down and give the Airstream a good look, but this couple were more than casual lookers and then knocked on our door. It was beginning to drizzle a bit so Frederick invited them to step in and sure enough, they had some questions for us about the Airstream.
Recently married, the young man explained that he was beginning a post-doc position at Berkeley and they were considering buying a vintage Airstream to live in near Berkeley because the rents are so high in the Bay area. When they learned that we live full-time in our Airstream we had lots to talk about. We asked their names - Fausto, from Italy (just received his doctorate in physics from the University of Rome) and Jasmine, from Waterton. Jasmine told us she plays the harp and works at the Prince of Wales Hotel where she plays in the afternoon during the serving of High Tea. At other times, like now, when the hotel is closed, she helps out her two brothers who own Wieners of Waterton.
Meet Fausto and Jasmine, headed for Berkeley in an Airstream.
Last night, after hiking to the USA, we hiked over to Wieners of Waterton. I had a "smoky" dog and Frederick had a Jalapeño one - we both had a large order of sweet potato fries. Yum !
Here's how the Lonely Planet guide book describes the Carthew-Alderson Trail -
A panoramic parade through myriad forests, lush meadows and rough scree showcasing the best of Waterton Lakes National Park. When one of America's leading outdoor magazines lists a hike as "one of the best high alpine day hikes anywhere" (as it did with this one), you know you're in for something special.
As with other through hikes that we have done, where you park your car at the end of the trail and get transportation to the trailhead, usually miles away, the "hikers shuttle" that normally runs had stopped for the season. As before, that leaves us with hitch-hiking.
(This is a re-enactment.) We left the car parked at the end of the trail and walked 1/4 mile to the main road. Traffic is very sparse now but we were hopeful. The first car drove by, obviously not going to Cameron Lake, but the second vehicle, a camper, pulled over. We had waited maybe 30 seconds!
Sabine (L) and Vreni are traveling from Switzerland and were heading out to the Akamina Parkway, where Cameron Lake is at the very end, before they left the park. The kindness of strangers is a wonderful thing and we are very thankful for these kind and generous Swiss women.
Cameron Lake and the snow-encrusted headwall that towers above it and the beginning of the Carthew-Alderson Trail.
The trail enters a pine-encased slope alongside the lake's eastern shore accompanied by picturesque views of the aquamarine lake. Unfortunately, the sky was cloudy so the vibrant colors don't show up in today's pictures.
The second lake along the trail is Summit Lake. Just before we got there we passed through a meadow where the roots of this up-ended tree made an imposing sculpture.
And here's Summit Lake, a fragile alpine jewel that is nestled in the folds of a high plateau and offers outstanding views of Mount Custer across the border in Montana.
From Summit Lake the Carthew-Alderson Trail turns uphill, and we began to get a look at Carthew summit and, if you look closely (click on the picture to enlarge it), you can see the trail as it travels across the arid cirque on the southern face of Mount Carthew.
We continued through the scrubby fir forest to the open talus field and zigzagged our way across the slope.
Mount Chapman dominated the southern skyline from the peak with Lake Wurdeman in its cliff-walled niche, a classic example of a cirque lake.
As expansive panorama of the peaks of northern Glacier National Park.
The pass on Mount Carthew. I didn't take any pictures from right on the ridgeline of the pass because the wind was blowing at about 120 mph. We had to move from the middle of the pass to the descent trail, to the right, along the ridge and I was bent over and practically crawling so I wouldn't be blown down the slope. We couldn't get off the pass fast enough!
As one of our guidebooks says, the scenic climax of this hike bursts into view as we crest Carthew summit. Framed between the ridges of Mount Carthew and Mount Alderson, the Carthew Lakes "lead your eye through a rugged hanging valley to the distant prairie."
Although glaciers are now absent from Waterton, their legacy in creating this exceptional landscape is everywhere. By their arrangement, the Carthew Lakes are know to glaciologists as a glacial cirque staircase, or paternoster lakes. The lakes occupy basins eroded by glacial ice as it flowed down the valley. Each basin is at a progressively lower elevation.
The almost moon-like landscape on the other side of the pass.
From the pass, a valley that give way to stupendous views over Montana, British Columbia and Alberta.
The trail descended from the ridge and wove between the two starkly located Carthew Lakes where...
snow can linger all summer.
The trail follows the north shore of Upper Carthew Lake to an ancient kruppelholz forest at the outlet.
After passing both Carthew Lakes, we had to negotiate a steep cliff at the exit of the Carthew basin before Alderson Lake became visible below.
Looking at the west shore of Alderson Lake we could see a series of remnant terminal moraines. These moraines were probably formed during the Little Ice Age which ended in the mid-1800s.
After hiking 8 miles we found a sheltered spot on Lake Alderson to eat our lunch; it was one o'clock.
Our lunch view of Mount Alderson which looms above the head of the lake.With a depth of 198 feet, Alderson Lake is the deepest of Waterton's high country lakes. It is named to honor Lt. General E.A.H. Alderson who commanded Canadian Forces in France during WWI.
After leaving Alderson Lake, the main trail continued down the Carthew Valley, where openings in the trees provided good views of the multifaceted mass of Buchanan Ridge.
As we neared the end of the valley, we had views of Waterton Townsite and Waterton Lake with Vimy Peak rising on its far side.
Near the end of the trail we came upon this snag that birds have found irresistible.
One final turn and we were at the end trail with Cameron Falls the fitting climax. At 33 feet high, the falls are being eroded into an outcrop of 1.5 billion-year-old limestone, the oldest sedimentary rock known in Alberta. Our car is in a parking lot just to the left of this picture.
Hike statistics:
Length - 12.67 miles
Elevation gain - 1968 feet (298 floors on the Fitbit)
Duration - 6 hours, 50 minutes
Fausto and Jasmine are in for a rude awakening when they find out where they have to park their airstream in Berkeley lol
ReplyDeleteI think they were mentioning going to somewhere out toward Walnut Creek or Lafayette.
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