The Jasper Local August 1, 2018

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thejasperlocal.com

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wednesday, august 1, 2018 // ISSUE 126

Wabasso Lake wildfire extinguished

IVANA HRABALOVA JUMPS INTO AN ICY COOL CURATOR LAKE JULY 25 ON THE SKYLINE TRAIL // LADA D PHOTOGRAPHY

A small fire started by lightning close to the Jasper townsite has been extinguished by initial attack fire crew members.

Helicopters were bucketing water from Wabasso Lake and crews were on the ground to manage the 0.2 hectare fire.

Smoke was reported shortly after lightning strikes from a passing storm on July 29. The fire was approximately the same size as a football field end zone, Parks Canada officials said. “The fire was contained and did not pose a risk to people or assets,� communications officer

Steve Young said.

Much of the smoke across Alberta, including Jasper, is from wildfires burning in British Columbia and even as far away as Europe, according to officials.

No fire ban is in effect at this time in Jasper National Park. Fires are only permitted in designated fire pits in campgrounds and day-use areas in the national parks.

Report any sign of wildfire to Parks Canada dispatch call 780-852-6155 or call 911.

Fire information and updates can be found on the Jasper National Park website. b. covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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page A2 // the jasper local // issue 126 // wednesday, august 1, 2018

editorial //

Local Vocal Sometimes it’s nice to get out of town.

During July in Jasper, it’s absolutely necessary.

Apart from the ability to get gas or groceries without going gaga, however, it’s good to see how other communities deal with the same issues we are wrestling with.

Recently, my wife, daughter and I went to the west coast to spend time with family. Although we were up-island a couple hundred kilometres, the July 1 plastic bag ban in Victoria was a topical conversation point, not least because we knew some of our fellow Jasperites were presenting the very same idea to municipal council while we were away.

As we continued our vacation, other inevitable comparisons to the way we do business here cropped up. During a morning walk, Cora and I watched Nanaimo city staff truck away the recycling, organics and garbage which my in-laws and their neighbours had left out for pick-up. The Harbour City’s progressive waste management system is lauded in this country for reducing landfill waste. Jasper’s, meanwhile, is like going back in time.

Our bear-proof bins, for instance, may have been revolutionary in the 1980s, but today the system is sadly lacking in keeping residents accountable for what they dispose of. Other than that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from doing the right thing, there are neither incentives to reduce household waste nor disincentives (fines) for producing too much. As a result, Jasper has an atrocious track record when it comes to keeping organics and recyclables out of the waste stream. It’s all “out-of-sight, out-of-mind” and frankly it’s an issue that deserves as much attention, if not more, than single-use plastic bags.

So that’s where we come in. The Jasper Local has been mulling the idea of being a lot more proactive on the environmental journalism front and after some holiday-facilitated reflection, we think now is the time to start putting some of those thoughts into action.

We have some ideas on how to start covering issues relating to sustainable living but we need our readers’ help, too. If you see an environmental issue that you think we should dive into, let us know.

Of course, not all coverage has to be an exposé.

If you know of a local steward who’s practicing what’s being preached or if you can think of other jurisdictions to whom we can look to model the way for Jasper, please send us a note.

We’re back from vacation, we’ve got a full tank of gas, a fridge full of groceries and we’re ready to roll out a new series on sustainability. Stay tuned. bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

Paved paradise, then wrote a fake ticket Dear editor, We recently spent a wonderful week in Jasper, Lake Louise and Banff. We loved everything about it. However, we did have a terrible experience on our first day in Jasper.

We stopped very briefly at Maligne Lake, just long enough to enjoy an enormous chocolate chip cookie on the deck and use the rest rooms. We parked in approximately the centre of a long line of cars and trucks along the side of the road entering the parking lot. When we returned to our car about 20 minutes later, we found a card on our windshield. It stated:

“You Are Illegally Parked in Bus Parking. The offence carries a fine of $500. Your license plate has been recorded and your ticket is in the mail. Thank you for supporting our national parks.”

We were very upset by it, to say the least. Afterward, searching a bit, I saw two very small “No Parking” signs at either end of this long row of cars. We had not seen them previously. A tour bus was now parked several cars in front of us. I noticed the bus driver watching our reaction to the card on our window and overheard him say something about parking to ...cont. on A3

The Jasper Local //

Jasper’s independent alternative newspaper 780.852.9474 • thejasperlocal.com • po box 2046, jasper ab, t0e 1e0

Published on the 1st and 15th of each month Editor / Publisher

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Email us today...........................................................................ads@thejasperlocal.com cartoonist

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// Local environment

wednesday, august 1, 2018 // issue 126 // the jasper local// page A3

Council hears plastic bag presentation Walter Ostrander wants Jasperites to start thinking outside of the bag.

The 18-year-old is part of Create Change Jasper, a group which went to council recently to propose the community legislate a single use plastic bag ban. Members of Create Change suggested the most realistic step forward would be to give local retailers a one-year grace period before banning single use bags (with some exceptions).

“Plastic bags last in the environment for 100 to 1,000 years,” Ostrander said. “[A ban] just seems like the right thing to do.”

Retailer Silvie Walsh agrees single use plastic sucks, but she’s not sure how a ban could be implemented without a major disruption to her business. Walsh owns Ransom Clothing on Patricia Street.

Although her store’s policy is to make sure customers actually need a bag before employees give one out, plastic is still much more economicaly feasible for her business. She’s looked into buying the same amount of paper bags and the price was six times as much. Furthermore, she tried going bag-free in the winter and customers didn’t respond well.

“Some of them were definitely annoyed.”

Members of Create Change know there will be inconveniences, but they want to work with local businesses to mitigate the headaches. Together with Save Mountains of Plastic—another local group which has sewed hundreds of reusable bags

PAPER BAG PRINCE // WALTER OSTRANDER AND CREATE CHANGE JASPER ARE ASKING COUNCIL TO BAN SINGLE USE PLASTIC BAGS. / BOB COVEY

for retailers to eventually give to Jasper shoppers (the program hasn’t been rolled out yet)—they hope to change the culture of handing out a bag with every purchase.

“I think [that can happen] once tourists understand it’s a town-wide ban,” said Julie Des Becquets, who presented the bag ban idea to council alongside Ostrander.

Councillor Paul Butler said he was pleased that the group came forward, and said it’s time to have the conversation. He said he would like to see further community engagement before he can decide entirely how he feels about banning grocery bags.

“For now at least, I’m notionally in support of taking this step in Jasper,” Butler said.

For Ostrander, it seems like a no-brainer.

He’s had almost exclusively positive feedback from the petition.. He reminds those who are reluctant that other cities, with tourism-based economies have implemented plastic bag bans.

“I hope it comes to fruition,” he said. bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

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// Letter cont.

whomever he was talking to. We are lawabiding 70 year olds, who take seriously our responsibility to be good guests in someone else’s country. Certainly had we seen the no parking signs, we would not have parked there.

This ticket weighed on us heavily. I wrote a letter of protest. Seeking an address for where to send my letter, I stopped at the ranger

station and showed him the card. He said it was a scam and that he had seen cards like this before. I said I suspected the bus driver had put the card on our windshield.

This sort of mean-spirited prank could devastate many travellers. I would encourage you to crack down on whoever is perpetuating this scam on visitors.

- Annie Bilder, Pittsburg, U.S.A.

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Celebrating 25 Years in Canadian Fine Art

WILD AND SACRED PLACES AN EXHIBITION & SALE OF NEW WORK BY TOP CANADIAN ARTISTS

FAIRMONT JASPER PARK LODGE

Brent Lynch

Located in the Beauvert Promenade | Open Daily | 780.852.5378 Mounta in Ga lle r ie s a t the Fa ir m ont W W W . M O U N T A I N G A L L E R I E S . C O M Jasper Park Lodge | Banff Springs | Chateau Whistler

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wednesday, august 1, 2018 // issue 126 // the jasper local// page B2

Local athletes //

FRANCOIS DESJARDINS-TURCOTTE (SUPPLIED), LORRAINE WILKINSON, JEAN-YVES DOUCET, KATY POIRIER, DAWN GLOVER AND ALEXANDRE BANVILLE. // BOB COVEY

Runner's high: six soloists to battle Death Race Six Jasperites have signed up to solo Grande Cache’s Canadian Death Race, billed as one of the world’s toughest ultramarathons, on August 3-5.

Over the course of 125 km and 17,000 verticalfeet of elevation change, the race takes runners over three mountain summits and one major river crossing.

“Even though my heart is beating faster out there, I always feel very at peace.“

The Jasper Local spoke to each athlete to get a sense of what inspired them to sign up.

In 2015, Lorraine Wilkinson was running the Canadian Death Race when she noticed a fellow runner was injured. Stopping to help— call it nurse’s instinct—she spent 25 minutes with the woman before further assistance showed up.

Her compassion was surely appreciated by the runner, but she missed the cut off to continue the fourth stage by 10 minutes.

“I was kind of kicking myself, but what can you do?” she said.

This year, she’s hoping she’ll be able to concentrate on her own race.

“I want to finish, and do so uninjured,” she said.

Alexandre Banville might be new to Jasper, but he’s not new to marathon running. A triathlete and former Ironman competitor, Banville has always been attracted to endurance sports.

Nevertheless, the 22-year-old is relatively new to mountain terrain.

“I’m starting to realize the Death Race is not just a next-level marathon, it’s a few notches up,” he said.

Originally from Ottawa, Banville is pumped to test his mental game against one of the toughest courses out there.

“I’m quite excited to put all that into play,” he said.

Katy Poirier has been to the Death Race several times. As a

member of a five-person team, she’s run every leg except the last.

They then introduced those standing as the future soloists.

“Leg two is brutal,” she recalled. Indeed, the 27 km, 6,000 ft-elevation change “Slugfest” includes the most dangerous and the most technical parts of the race—a steep, rocky downhill pitch on which runners must be careful not to lose their footing.

“However, after completing the leg, I promptly dismissed the thought,” she said.

Poirier attempted the solo Death Race three years ago. Like Wilkinson, she came just shy of the cutoff time. This year, her goal is to cross the Smoky River with the infamous grim reaper boatman. Doing so gives passage to the finish line.

“The goal is to give that guy the coin,” she said.

Jean-Yves Doucet has made his mark on several ultra marathons, but he has yet to have a solo battle with Death.

When he does so, he wants to have fun with it.

“My goal is to go out there and have fun because that’s what running long distances is all about,” he said.

With great results in recent races, Doucet should be considered a threat to earn a podium spot. But he’s not thinking about that. He’s focusing on his support team, some of whom are coming from New Brunswick to cheer him on.

Eight years later, the idea is back. She’s been training hard. Her body feels strong.

Still, she doesn’t want to inflate expectations.

“There are so many variables,” she said. “I don’t want to be disappointed by not meeting time goals.”

Instead, her goal is to finish the race.

Glover has loved running since she was a child.

Her favourite t-shirt as a kid said “Run For Your Life.” Now she will.

“Even though my heart is beating faster out there, I always feel very at peace,” she said.

Francois Desjardins-Turcotte started running seven years ago to save money. Instead of taking the four kilometre bus ride to work, he figured he’d run. He got hooked, started doing marathons, and now has to buy a new pair of shoes every two months.

“No money saved,” he said.

These days, running has allowed him to travel, to discover new trails and to be alone with his thoughts.

“When I hit the wall this weekend they will be the ones helping push through the pain,” he said.

“Running is a moment of meditation,” he says.

“The runners’ high is a real thing and it is very awesome.”

In 2010, Dawn Glover ran leg four of the Death Race. At 38 km long, it’s the longest and arguably the most difficult leg of the event.

At a pre-race meeting for athletes at the time, organizers asked leg four runners to stand up.

bob covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com

The Death Race will be Francois’ first race over 100 km. He’s excited.

“I am experiencing the same feeling now as my very first race,” he said.

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page b3+B4 // the jasper local // issue 126 // wednesday, august 1, 2018

FEATURE // PHOTOS BY BOB COVEY & ARTWORK BY RICO SATOKO

o r h t e o Tip t tulip

In the decade or so that I’ve lived in Jasper I’d never taken the Library’s Secret Garden Tour.

Maybe that’s because in my mid-20s I couldn’t appreciate the time and effort it took to create and tend to a garden, or maybe it’s because I figured I’d feel out of place sipping tea and trying to make flowery conversation about perennials and the understated beauty of rhubarb. How times have changed. Today, as a gardener who has experienced the satisfaction of the annual vegetable harvest, as a homeowner who is starting to appreciate the meditative qualities of backyard landscaping and as a parent who understands the value of having an oasis from the everyday demands of life, I figured the Secret Garden Tour would be right up my alley.

I wasn’t wrong! While I couldn’t get to all of the gardens (my apologies, Lynda and Greg Key), I was happy to visit seven of the eight on offer and get a peek into the places and spaces that offer solace and serenity for the gardeners who grow there.

cocktails or canapés, there’s a seating area for every occasion. Her backyard on Miette Avenue is like something out of the Great Gatsby—complete with her stylish flapper hat. A “salad bowl” planter boasts plenty of fresh greens and because it’s on wheels, if one were so inclined, they could transport it to the next sunny spot and pick fresh sprigs of mint for their mojito.

A progressive pathway Nancy Garnham’s home at 711 Miette always turns heads—it’s quaint and cozy but also intricately designed and decorated. The same can be said for Rita Hindle

An eclectic escape Besides the odd flit of a butterfly or a hummingbird, all is still in Dale Karpluk’s backyard. And that’s just how she likes it. At one point, the upper terrace of her spacious garden was wall to wall soil—but the amount of labour to keep things tidy amidst the bounty of growth was getting to be too much, she said. What’s in place now is an eclectic and artistic space, a refuge from restlessness and a peaceful pathway where one can’t help but stop and smell the flowers. The inukshuk in the rock garden out front beckons you in to where time stands still in the cedar grove out back.

Seating for every situation Coni Bowen loves to entertain, and depending on where the sun is positioned in the sky, how many guests are in her garden and whether the party is on

her garden. It takes a slow stroll to appreciate how many varieties of plants are prospering alongside the path leading to the backyard. There, giant lilies soak up the sun while hosta varieties are more suited to the shade. Figuring out which ones do best, and where, has been a 30-year endeavour for the Garnhams. Their attention to detail is unquestionable and yet the space has a relaxed air about it.

Coni Bowen

History in the humus

Nancy Garnham

When Janice Yeaman and Wayne Kennedy bought their home in the early 1980s, little did they know the rich history it contained. Doris Kensit, who skied, hiked and rode horseback into local lore, planted the original garden in the

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e h t h g u ro lips 1930s. Since inheriting the plot from Sue and Burt Rowan, Janice and Wayne have tried to nurture the past while providing their own touches. The result is a homey, down-to-earth space where guests are welcome to pick a snap pea while admiring the 75-year-old birch that—as the story goes—came to Jasper as a sapling in a suitcase.

Stories in the shrubbery Rita Hindle is an original, and her garden is no different. Each flower, it seems has a story, and if you catch Rita watering, she’s more than happy to tell them to you. Tiger lilies dug from

“Welcome,” he says, pumping my arm, as his wife Lessia shows another guest the showpiece at 806 Patricia, a great vine which encompasses the front porch.

The Kontos are used to visitors.That’s because unlike most gardens, theirs is in the front yard.

As such, the multitude of flowers backdropped by tasteful rock features are a gift to folks strolling by.

“Our garden is open,” Lessia says. “There is no gate.”

Every evening, John spends up to an hour watering the garden. The couple loves to pass the time with visitors who compliment the space as they walk by. Lessia explains that her Ukrainian mother, Maria Jydky, started the garden.

“The garden is Ukrainian style,” Lessia says. “All colours are welcome.”

Austrian energy Each morning, Annelies Laggner rises at 6 a.m. Each evening, she hits the pillow at midnight.

Whereas some people find her bustling garden relaxing, John and Lessia Kontos this 75-year-old finds it Wayne Kennedy and Janice Yeaman invigorating.

“To me it means exercise, energy, joy and peace,” Annelies says.

Annelies is known in Jasper, among other things, as a talented singer. Anyone who’s been in her backyard knows that her garden sings, too.

It seems Annelies has thought of everything in this space—and everybody. Dozens of bees were finding sanctuary in the assortment of blossoms. She’s got houses for cats, birds and butterflies. She even recalled helping a spider and its hundreds of babies spin their way to freedom over the course of three days.

To Annelies, the garden represents possibility.

“It is my paradise,” she says.

Dale Karpluk

former neighbours’ prize plants, carnations mailed across the country in a moist napkin and a variety of flowers uprooted from the various Jasper National Park warden stations where she once lived, all adorn her garden.

“My garden is a mosaic of plants that I begged, borrowed and outright stole from old friends,” she laughs.

bob@thejasperlocal. com

gardeners’ gift for the passing public John Kontos’ deft touch with his watering wand belies his crushing grip strength. As I extend my hand to shake his, I fear he will crush it.

Annelies Laggner

TOLFA Law Office & EED

Barristers | Solicitors | Notaries

JASPER

780 852-2242

HINTON

780 865-1070

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page B5 // the jasper local // issue 126 // wednesday, august 1, 2018

Local literature //

Sky Writings: Reasons, rationale and random ramblings contained in a local summit registry There is something about mountains that makes you want to climb them.

This spring, 700 people summited Mount Everest; one was a 70-year-old double amputee. A 48-year-old Sherpa reached the top of Everest for the twentysecond time. This record number of summiteers could partly be due to the Hillary Step, the iconic 12 metre difficult rock feature just below the summit, now being a mere staircase up a 30-degree snow slope. It’s possible the 2015 Nepal earthquake caused a huge chunk of Everest to slide away down the Kangshung Face.

The gong show on “Big E,” where climbers can pass within spitting distance of bodies of those whose luck ran out, illustrates the pull mountains have. With Everest, of course, the cachet is that this is well and truly Mecca, Top of The World—you can’t find any higher.

But it’s not just the big ones from which the Sirens are calling to come on up.

Twenty kilometers from Jasper is Morro Peak, a small bump at the end of the Colin Range. Liam and I had hiked the peak a dozen times, but now we were camping on top for a couple of nights. It was December.

The wind whistles straight down the Athabasca valley, and it’s always windy on Morro Peak. The gales were howling worse than ever when we got to the top. We found a place for the tent, sheltered by a rocky rise, just below the summit. Although the jet stream roared above and violently shook the tops of the trees, the tent walls hung like sheets of nailed tin.

The sky had thickened to chicken gravy by morning; it was snowing heavily, the wind sifting powdery snow along the ground like smoking snakes. Rime, the congealed argentine vapour of winter’s decoration,

coated trees and rocks and the wooden cross on the summit.

It was a day for hanging around the tent.

Liam climbed trees, then built a fire to cook the bacon, and I fetched the register from the summit cairn and copied some of the comments into my journal.

When asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest, George Leigh Mallory replied: “Because it is there.”

Many have considered this famous answer wholly unsatisfactory, reasoning that such a grand adventure needs a grand reason. They would rather the answer more ambiguous, more complicated, cryptic—spiritual even—something akin to the Four Noble Truths (arya satya) of Buddhism, which academia could attempt to quantify and debate ’til all the mountains toppled to dust. But, “because it is there”? Really!

Mallory, who along with Sandy Irvine disappeared into the clouds, and legend, somewhere below the summit of Everest, never to be seen alive again, was only stating the obvious. We had also come up Morro because it was there. If it wasn’t, we would have gone some place else. Simple as that.

The sky writings in the summit register gave colourful insight on the thoughts of those who had struggled to the top, thereby revealing a fundamental truth as to why we climb mountains: to feel what it feels like.

“It is better for the emissaries returning from the wilderness,” said philosopher and writer Loren Eiseley, “to record their marvel, not to record its meaning.”

Some wrote: “Many times have I rounded the bend below and wondered what the view would be like from this vantage point . . . There are few rewards greater in life than the top of a good climb, other than the cup of tea

at the end!”

“A windy day. But my good old dog Dixon and I made it. What a Day. WOW!” “Best way to forget a woman, walk it off . . . God! I love this country.”

“ULTIMATE!” “Soaked to the bone but always worth the hike.”

“I’m on top of the world—At least that’s what I feel like . . . What an adrenaline rush—I love it.”

“First summit. I have a wedgie.”

“Windy, sunny, beautiful blue sky with alto cumulus standing lenticular clouds. Is this where Jesus was crucified?”

“Finally at the top! No words to describe the view or the feeling—so peaceful and somewhat magical.”

“Today I completed one of my dreams to climb a mountain and now I’ve done it. It feels great and alive.”

“What a trip! Beats the Hell out of watching a movie and drinking beer.”

“Wild, windy, and damn cold.”

“Bloody steep mountain. Thank God the guys kept me going. The view’s spectacular!”

“I have found the perfect cure for a hangover.”

“Nicole loves Duncan.”

“We can’t think of anything to say to sum up this moment of being on top of this mountain. We’re feeling the pressure of writing something meaningful & deep—but the words are just not flowing. What’s there to say but HOLY [expletive]!

Some wrote of love lost: “ . . . I can’t believe that I hurt her so much. Sorry Cindy.”

Some wrote of love missed: “ . . . only wish the one I love could be here with me.”

Some waxed poetic: “Tell me not mournful numbers Life is but an empty dream.

For the soul is dead that slumbers And things are not what they seem.”

Out of scores of entries in the register, only one, a minister, left a business card (he left three); no doubt in case the experience of being that bit closer to God made you want to look Him up.

No one said it was a waste of time coming up, no one turned their nose up at Morro Peak’s diminutive stature, not even Lok belt Rana from Nepal: “Arrived 1415 hrs fantastic view lovely place. lovely climate—all OK.” All OK. All OK—That’s mountains for you. __________________________________ David Harrap // info@thejasperlocal.com Jasper’s David Harrap is the author of The Littlest Hiker in the Canadian Rockies. Like the wind, he too whistles straight down the Athabasca Valley and gets stronger as he gets to the top.

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wednesday, august 1, 2018 // issue 126 // the jasper local// page B6

local learning //

FINDING THE RIGHT GEAR RATIO: What’s in your bag?

In the summer of 2016 I had a date with my surgeon in mid July to repair a torn ligament in my knee.

I wasn’t looking forward to another long recovery, so I planned a week-long remote climbing trip with a good friend before going under the knife. On day two of our trip, I got careless, stepped on a loose rock while scrambling and bashed my shin. After catching my breath I thought to myself, “well, it’s a long way from my heart,” a saying I heard frequently from one of my mentors. The next thought was “I’m sure glad I decided to bring the first aid kit!” Without it, I would have had to walk back to civilization and miss out on the rest of the trip. Instead, good memories got me through the initial drudgery of healing from knee surgery.

When I think of all of the situations I’ve had to manage, they rattle off in a pretty long list. Broken bones, lightning strikes, unplanned bivies, getting lost… like, really lost…and the list goes on. I started playing around in the hills at a time when communication to the outside world just wasn’t possible in the backcountry. Lugging around a heavy pack to be self-sufficient in an emergency was the norm. Maybe it’s because of those heavy packs that for several years, I found myself playing the odds at times, sacrificing emergency gear for traveling fast and light.

Lately, I find myself putting that emergency stuff back in my pack. Here’s a basic list of what goes in my bag to make sure I’m prepared: Communication is a must. We have world-class mountain rescue specialists here in Jasper National Park, but to help you out of a jam, they have to know where you are and how to respond.

I simply would not go into the backcountry today without being able to call out for help.

With the spotty coverage in our huge mountain parks, a cell phone is often not reliable. Satellite phones are more accessible these days, and if you’re a member of the Jasper/Hinton section of the Alpine Club, you can rent one for $5/day.

VHF radios can also be very useful if you can get a hold of the appropriate frequencies, and SPOT or In Reach devices are a more affordable option for sending out emergency texts or using their SOS buttons. Everything is getting cheaper, lighter and easier to access.

First aid kits are also invaluable, and if you’re wondering what you should have in that kit, it’s time to take a first aid course or refresh the one you took a while ago. It’s a scary feeling when

you have a friend in need, and you don’t have the means or the knowledge to make the difference.

Another key item is a tarp.

A light tarp is truly worth its weight in gold.

Look for sil-tarp (silnylon) material, which is super light and perfect for draping over a small group to wait out a storm. My dome shaped tarp can fit up to four people and packs down to about a third of the size of my gore-tex jacket. A good tarp combined with a toque, mitts and a light down jacket make spending an unplanned night out quite reasonable without weighing el burro // For most trips in the mountains, At least one party member you down. Add should be carrying a First aid kit, comms, and a tarp. // nicole gaboury a bush saw and what you can. With the proper gear and lots of some fire-starter, practice with it, you’ll find that even in less-thanalong with a light therma-rest and spending the ideal conditions your confidence in taking care night out in colder weather can actually be pretty of yourself and others in tricky situations will go comfortable. A couple of people under a tarp can up. It’s not a matter of if something will happen, easily get you another 10 degrees Celsius of heat. it’s a matter of when. How prepared you are will make all the difference.

Repair kits are handy, but I’ll be the first to admit, the contents will vary from absolutely nothing on shorter day hikes, to quite a bit depending on how reliant I need to be on my gear.

Tenacious tape and cloth hockey tape can go a long way to fixing stuff, but if I really need my gear to survive, I would want a more thorough repair kit specific to that piece of gear. An example would be a stove repair kit specific to your brand of stove.

It may take some time, so start accumulating

matt reynolds // info@thejasperlocal.com

Matt Reynolds is a Jasper based ACMG certified Mountain Guide. Matt specializes in custom mountain adventures for small groups in alpine terrain.