Janet rides in the Rockies
? 
Have you dreamed of a horseback riding adventure in the Rockies?? The clean fresh mountain air, rides through uninhabited valleys, magnificent scenery and flower-filled alpine meadows all add up to a holiday unrivaled anywhere in the world. http://www.lostguidetours.com/main.html
Welcome to Lost Guide Adventure Tours. Riding experience is not essential as qualified guides accompany and assist you each day. The horsese are sure-footed and gentle and are assigned to you according to your experience.
Picture yourself relaxing, after a carefully prepared meal that has been cooked over an open campfire, as the setting sun alights the granite in a blaze of orange and dusk envelopes the valley of Ranger Creek.
On the grassy meadow, deer and elk mingle with your saddle horse, grazing contentedly. High above in the distance you can see the jagged crags that hang over tomorrow’s destination, a ride through prisitne alpine meadows to the emerald Lost Guide Lake.
The website expounds on the culinary delights you will savour each day, and previous riders cannot say enough about how much they enjoyed the scenery and the overall experience.
? Janet joined? Lost? Guide Adventures for a week in July. If you have already ridden on this adventure, please add your comments.?
This was the trip of my dreams. We drove from Edmonton to the base staging area southwest of Rocky Mountain House on the Sunday, with a stop en route for dinner at the? Grandview Stage House. We had our choice of tents or trailers for the first night. All 6 of us ladies opted for a solid roof, so for the rest of the week we were known as “the tailer park girls”. A champagne reception around the campfire with entertainment by the wranglers set the tone for the week.
Coffee and breakfast were welcome on a cool Monday morning, but the sun heated things up quickly. Despite the usual confusion of assigning horses and saddles, the pack horses were loaded and we set off on the path to the Wrangler Creek camp.
We had a tour of the campsite and chose our tents. The afternoon was spent getting settled in and enjoying the awesome scenery. Dinner lived up to the expectations set on the website, with appetites enhanced by the cool fresh air.
Tuesday we did the signature ride up to Lost Guide Lake. Words don’t do justice to this experience. Tumbling creeks, unspoiled mountain views both below and above the tree line, and of course Lost Guide Lake itself. Lunch was follwed by a nap for some and a bit of exploring the lake by others. Janet discovered that riding downhill in a western saddle is a white-knuckle experience, although no-one else seemd to have the same issue! A very quick dip in? Ranger creek? washed away the trail dust and ensured that the experience would not be repeated unless the air temperature rose several degrees!!
Wednesday we rode to Box Canyon, enjoying more varied scenery and terrain. Open trails and? tight brush paths led us to the lunch area at the base of a waterfall. Although it was July 30, layers of ice still awaited thawing from the past winter over parts of the waterfall. I discovered that you cannot take a bad photo on a trail ride if you are using a digital camera. The scenery was so glorious that every shot was worth keeping- no matter how poorly set up!
Thursday we rode to Bare Mountain. It was the site of a? forest fire? several years ago, making the area look like a steep hill of toothpicks. Several folks climbed said hill, but I opted to cheer them on from the base. It was quite a workout for the climbers, but no casualties.
Dinner that night was topped off with port and cheese, and we sat around the fire in the cool air far longer than we should have! The food, scenery and overall experience reflected the experience and care of the hosts. They have been doing this for over 20 years, and it shows. The little details are all looked after and despite the “wilderness” setting of the mountain camp, it was very comfortable.
Friday we headed homeward.? The? ? raingear was unnecessary by the time we were all suited up, but what the heck, we had carried it with us all week, so at least we got to try it out! A rest stop at the trapper’s Cabin and a lunch break at the incredibly scenic Sickman’s Bluff? ? stretched out the return to base camp.
It was an unforgettable, but we have fantastic memories and photos and are already planning for our return. If you have ever considered a riding trip in the Rockies, I highly recommend going with Lost Guide Tours. Every aspect lived up to? my expectations: the horses, the food, scenery, and the people. Do yourself a favour and? be a dude for a week with Lost Guide Tours!
?
? ? ps- technical difficulties with new webhosting? version? prevent? addition of photos,? ? so check the link above for samples of the awesome scenery we experienced.?