Revelstoke

We spent a week in Revelstoke, British Columbia and it quickly became one of our favorite places on the trip. Quieter than Whistler, but still close to amazing hikes and the quaint downtown had several amazing restaurants and bars to check out. The smoke definitely set in while we were here, and combined with temperatures over 100 degrees most days it changed a lot of our hiking plans. The first full day we chose a very steep but short hike called Hermit trail in Glacier National Park (we didn’t even know before planning this trip that Canada has a Glacier NP, too!). The sign at the trailhead stated “this is the steepest trail in a park known for its steep trails” and boy was it right! The climb was brutal (4.4 miles round trip with 2730 ft of elevation gain) but the views were phenomenal. And we were glad we did it since the smoke came in much heavier the next day.

Friday came with heavy smoke we drove along the Sunshine Meadows parkway in Mt Revelstoke National Park. The wildflowers were starting to bloom but weren’t at peak yet, not surprising since the parkway was closed until a week prior from the winter snowpack.

Saturday we enjoyed the farmers market and shopping around the downtown revelstoke area. Sunday was spent hiking along rolling hills on a 10 mile stroll through Mt Revelstoke NP to two alpine lakes. Thank goodness they were cold so we could dip out hats in the 100 degree weather.

Sunday was still thick smoke so we chose short hikes in Glacier NP to waterfalls and through fern lined giant trees. It was nice to do some shorter hikes with rest between.

Monday we planned on going to the mountain resort early but the town along with our campground lost power. Luckily it was the coolest morning we had all week but we couldn’t leave until we knew the power was on and stable for the pups. Finally at 11am it came back and we could be on our way. The Revelstoke mountain resort has multiple activities, including 2 mountain coaster tracks, axe throwing, and gondolas you can take to multiple levels. We enjoyed all of it, but unfortunately the smoke came back in the valley as we were up top.

Tuesday was our last full day in the area and although we had hoped the smoke would clear it just wasn’t going to. We had been saving Abbotts ridge hike for a clear day but we did it anyway. It’s one that requires at least a group of 4 people due to bear activity (a momma grizzly and 2 cubs) so we found another group of 2 on AllTrails to meet up with. They were very nice girls and we had a great morning overall. In 7.5 miles round trip we climbed 3300 ft which actually didn’t feel too bad. The views would have been spectacular if the smoke would have cleared. It’s definitely a hike that’s high on our list if we get to come back to this area.

Overall it was an amazing week despite the smoke, heat, and mosquitos that tried their hardest to carry us and the dogs away. We will definitely return to this area!Læs mere