EXECUTIVE CORNER

January CORE Meeting Moved to Norseman Outdoor Specialists Shop

Due to renovations at Scarboro Community Hall, we were forced to find an alternative location. The Norseman Outdoor Specialists shop (formerly the Norseman Ski & Hike shop) came to our rescue and offered their store for the meeting. See further details below.

Cross Country Ski Lessons Deemed a Success

The executive would like to thank those members who participated in the subsidized x-c ski lessons on Jan. 7 and Jan. 14. Those who took the lessons all agreed that U of C Outdoor Centre instructor, Steven, was excellent and that they had learned some valuable skills for improving their skiing.

CORE Makes Donation to West Bragg Creek Greater Trails Association

Many CORE members enjoy x-c skiing and snowshoeing at West Bragg Creek during the winter, as well as hiking and biking there in the summer. The West Bragg Creek Greater Trails Association, which maintains and track sets the ski trails in this recreation area, recently expanded the parking lots and installed new washrooms and a warming hut. The association depends primarily on donations to maintain the ski trails in top condition. For these reasons, the executive has decided to donate $100 to the WBCGTA.

CORE Featured in 10hikes.com Calgary Hiking Clubs Blog

In late 2017, CORE was contacted by a fellow named Adam Hayman who writes for a website called 10hikes.com. He asked if he could interview one of our members to obtain information about the club so he could feature CORE in a section called Calgary Hiking Clubs.

CORE was selected as one of three local clubs featured in the blog. The other two were Slow and Steady and Fifth Dimension (a seniors club). To read what Adam wrote about CORE (and the other clubs), click on this link https://10hikes.com/calgary-hiking-clubs/

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ACTIVITY SCOREBOARD

November 2017 – January 2018

Here are a few highlights from the CORE calendar for November 26 to January 14. Please visit the CORE photo albums for more pictures from recent activities.

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JANUARY MONTHLY MEETING

Norseman Outdoor Specialists Store

4655 – 37 Street S.W. (Park in shopping mall across street but need to register your vehicle’s licence  number in the machine; or park on the street)

TUESDAY, January 30, 2018, 7:00 pm

Members and Guests: Please join us for our January meeting at the Norseman Outdoor Specialists shop.

Our presentation will be:

Winter Safety and Snowshoeing Skills

Snowshoeing is a wonderful winter activity that can, at times, be underestimated when it comes to safety. Justin Howse – a certified hiking guide – will be discussing the common issues and fitting troubles with snowshoes, along with skills and techniques to make snowshoeing more enjoyable. He will also be covering winter safety related to snowshoeing in the Rockies. Understanding what avalanche terrain looks like, what “Winter” actually is, along with equipment to consider for snowshoe travel will be discussed.

Justin is an instructor with the Outdoor Council of Canada, and a professional with the Interpretive Guides Association. He is also experienced as a wilderness first responder and has wilderness survival training. He is currently the operations manager at Norseman Outdoor Specialists.  

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NATURE NEWS & NOTES

Annual Christmas Bird Counts Originally Started for a “Sinister” Reason

Did you know that Christmas bird counts are done throughout North America and in some tropical areas in Central America, northern South America, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands? The activity began well over a century ago in the U.S. as a protest of an existing Christmas tradition in which teams competed to see who could shoot the most birds and other animals in one day.

Friends of Kananaskis Speaker Series

University of Calgary – Science Theatres ST 135

527 Campus Place NW

Time: 7:00pm – 8:00pm

General Admissions – $5 Suggested Donation – No Pre-Show Ticket Sales

Megan Evans – January 25, 2018: The Buzz About Native Bees

Did you know there are over 300 species of native bees in Alberta? Come learn all about the different bees, how and where they live and what you can do to help promote native bees in your own backyard

Christian Stenner – February 15, 2018: The Caves of Kananaskis and Beyond

Christian will discuss the captivating pursuit of cave exploration and some of his international expeditions and contribution to scientific research along the way.

Nikki Heim – March 15, 2018: Wolverine Populations in South-Central Alberta 

Join the Friends of Kananaskis as Nikki reveals when the fierce wolverine meet its match, providing a glimpse into factors influencing a declining population in Kananaskis Country.

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 A BIRD’S EYE VIEW

Free National Park Passes in 2017 Hailed as a Success by Parks Canada

An excerpt from the Banff Crag & Canyon Newspaper

The popular year-long program allowing visitors to enter Banff National Park for free has earned more than a passing grade from Parks Canada.

“Initial worries that the free entry promotion would result in massive overcrowding – with resulting damage to both the natural habitat and wildlife – proved groundless thanks to a carefully planned focus on urging visitors to use public transit much more than in previous years,” according to Banff National Parks visitor experience manager, Greg Danchuk.

“We feel 2017 was a great success here in Banff National Park.”

According to Danchuk, there was a weekend transit service from Calgary that carried 11,000 people to the park during just 27 days of service – that’s a lot of cars not on the road. Once people arrived, regular shuttle services provided a way to get around Banff town site or to travel to Lake Louise.

Parks Canada is now looking at future options, but say that they have learned a lot this year and that the experience in 2017 should help make things better in the future when it comes to moving people from Calgary to Banff.

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ARTICLES & BOOKS WORTH NOTING

Cave and Basin book offers context, clarity on history of Banff hot springs

Banff historian, E.J. (Ted) Hart has written a new book called Cave and Basin: Banff’s hot springs and the birth of Canada’s national parks. While relatively brief at 96 pages, Hart’s book is welcome as it is the authoritative record of the hot springs. Hart has pulled together a remarkable amount of detail on a subject that has been shoved on the sidelines for many years.

He begins his story with the Indigenous people of the Rocky Mountains and southern Alberta, placing their story into the context of the hot springs. Surprisingly, the first non-Indigenous person to make note of the springs was explorer James Hector, according to Hart. After Hector, the next people to come across the springs were prospectors Joe Healy (Healy Pass) in 1873 and Willard Burrell Younge in 1875.

By the time, railway workers, Frank McCabe and brothers, Tom and William McCardell discovered the hot springs in the fall of 1883, the hot springs had already been “discovered” at least three times, if not more, says author Hart.

The book is published by Banff-based Summerthought.

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….see you on the trails ….

CM