Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

scaling sheer rock walls
The helicopter returns and flies us to Tamarack Glen, where evergreens frame
snowy granite hills. We have a picnic lunch overlooking another jade lake. Next,
we fly around to the opposite side of the spires, landing on a rock outcropping with
an expansive vista across a green valley and an up-close view of the spires. We
hike through a meadow, across several small rushing streams and over rock slabs
to an alpine lake.
Paul yanks off his boots and wades in to the lake. ‘It feels great’, he insists. I
cautiously dip my toes into the icy water, and after the initial shock – yikes, it’s
absolutely freezing! – it does rather perk up my flagging feet.
We trek over another crest, and Paul radios the helicopter. As it hovers above
our hikers’ huddle, I’m stunned to see that the pilot can land on a flat rock not
much larger than a queen-size bed.
The chopper flies us over to one more trail, where we hike amid evergreens and
across several snowfields. The terrain is gentler here, but that’s OK with us. We’ve
been out all day between the turquoise lakes, mountaintop glaciers and the spiky
Bugaboo Spires. And with our helicopter to shuttle us from trail to trail among these
remote Canadian mountains, we haven’t seen another soul. CH