Asulkan Valley (Hut) Trail

 31 August 2024

On that day the five of us: Mike, Bożenna, Barbara, Piotr and Anna, we hiked to Asulkan Hut in the upper part of Asulkan Valley, Glacier National Park, British Columbia. According to AllTrails the hike 13.7 km long with 968 meters of altitude gain. My GPS showed almost 20 km (forth and back) with about 860 m of altitude gain. Go figure!

One of the proponents of this hike was Ewa Stroemich (left, here with Barbara), who lives in Golden, BC, mere 80 km from the Glacier National Park. 

However, a couple of weeks earlier, Ewa burned her toes while trying to fix a tea with rum for herself. Due to the lack of contact with Polish camping equipment, Ewa lost her skill of using "utrzymanka" (pot holder). So she was with us for moral support, but couldn't hike herself. 

We stayed for three nights in the cultish A.O. Wheeler Hut, one of the first cabins build by (or for) Alpine Club of Canada (ACC). The hut is full of charm, though, one could say, it saw better days. The first night we were all woken up by CO alarm, possibly a result of unskilled use of one of the hut's stoves. On the positive side - thanks to this unfortunate event about 20 persons from all over the world had a chance to see ... Northern Lights!

We hit the trail around 8:00 am after a proper warm-up, but of course. 

Barbara and Mike were showing signs of great happiness, right from the beginning. Nothing compares to being in the mountains with a loved one!

The weather was excellent ... 

... and the air filled with delicious mountain prana!

The trail is well maintained. 

There is also access to water all along so it is not necessary to carry too much of liquids. 

Also a good part of the morning hike was in shade, making it easier on everybody. Not that a periodic encounter with sun rays did us any harm. 

Around the 7th kilometer the valley opens up into this field of boulders. 

Shortly after crossing the creek at the 7th km a steep section of the trail begins. 

The trail follows a very sharp moraine ...

... which is steep ...

... and tiresoming. 

Only Barbara didn't seem to have difficulty with this section. 

After a few breaks ...

... the rest of us also got to the upper part of the moraine ... 

... from where we had the first glimpse of Asulkan ... not Hut, but the outhouse!

It meant that the end of the trail was close. 

Asulkan Hut itself is modern and what appears from outside (it was closed) comfortable. 

We used the hut's veranda to hide from the sun ... 

... and in my, and some German hiker's, case ... to stretch our backs!

The upper Asulkan Valley is, what else, picturesque! 

Not surprisingly it is visited by gods and ... goddesses! 

Pity Sir Donald had almost hid behind the outhouse. 

After the one hour break it was time to go back. Steep moraine was quite challenging for our not so young knees. 

Hiking back in scorching afternoon sun was not without difficulty. That is why some of us decided to cool down in the mountain creek. Luckily the photos from this episode are missing. 

We returned to the hut exhausted but happy. After having a nutritious supper, I played two rounds of Garibaldka with Ewa, winning, but of course. 

What a rewarding day it was!

Thanks to Anna for permission to use some of her pictures. 

(PR)