Mount Rae

Hike Name: Mount Rae
Activity: Scrambling
Distance: 8.3 km (RT)
Altitude: 3,232 m
Elevation Gain: 1040 m, ~600 to turnaround point
Area: Kananaskis Valley
Crew: Mark, Jaimie, Eric
Time to Summit: No summit (came back in 2018)
Lisa's Mom Rating: No

Trailhead: Highwood Pass Parking Lot/Ptarmigan Cirque

Getting There:
From the Trans-Canada (Hwy 1), go south on Kananaskis Trail (Hwy 40). Park at the Highwood Pass Parking Lot. It will be on the right side of the highway. The parking lot is past the turn-off for the Smith-Dorrien.

Additional Info:
Follow the trail up to Ptarmigan Cirque. You will cross the highway and head up the mountain. Enjoy the beauty of this area! Once you have reached the far end of the cirque, instead of turning back, continue around the mountain to your left (there should be a faint trail in the scree) up to the ribs in the rock. Pick a rib to go up, aiming for the saddle. Head right once you hit the ridge. You can follow the ridge or avoid the exposure below the ridge in the trails that can be seen through the scree. We stopped at the saddle after running into some snow. I came back in 2018 with Steph!

Note: Kananaskis Trail (Hwy 40) is seasonally closed. It closes from Peter Lougheed Provincial Park to the Highwood House Junction from December 1 to June 14 annually.

View from the saddle after attaining the ridge