I got out yesterday to record a GPS Hiking Track  at Carburn Park.  It was a beautiful sunny day with the temperature just above freezing at +2C.

Directions for starting point of GPS Hiking Track: Carburn Park

Carburn Park is in Calgary SE.  From Glenmore Trail, go south on 18th Street to Rivervalley Drive SE and turn right (at the Riverbend Community Association Building) then continue to Riverview Drive SE and turn left.  Continue down Riverview Drive SE and the park entrance in on the right.

I started the GPS Hiking Track at the park entrance and walked by the skating ice surface that the city has set up on the first pond.  I walked around the 2nd pond.  I did not circle the 3rd pond.  Hope to get to that another time.

The city has set up a skating rink on the first pond at Carburn Park.  That is new this year!  It looks great and there is a set of stairs with skate guard material on the steps leading down to the ice surface.  There are also some temporary flood lights set up to illuminate the area after dark.  The lights and stairs are located right next to the public washrooms at the park.

For more information on Carburn Park, see the city of Calgary’s website.

The paths are plowed by the city and are relatively clear. There were some snowy patches in the shady areas of the path, but I felt secure in my footing and didn’t worry about slipping.

Quick highlight of GPS Hiking Track

It was 1.9 km round trip and took about 30 min.  It was pretty much flat with no significant hills up or down.

My companion for the walk to record the GPS Hiking Track

Hiking Baby (HB) was securely attached to me in my Ergo (soft structured carrier: SSC). I wore HB on my front so I could also wear my jacket and keep us both warm. I have been experimenting with different strap positions for the Ergo and I have found that with the front carry it is much more comfortable to have the straps in a crossback style.  It gets the weight distributed more evenly across my core rather than just on my shoulders.

HB was comfortable and warm and fell asleep for most of the walk.

 

Here is a photo of me and HB. HB is asleep and I have the sleeping hood on the carrier snapped in on one side. The ice rink at Carburn Park is in the background.

 

 

 

 

 

Have you been outside hiking or walking or even skating this winter?  What is your favorite trail?  Have you recorded any GPS Hiking Tracks?

Wowee it’s snowing outside today! I’ll need to get my snowshoes out for the next GPS Hiking Track. We got around 10 cm last night and it is still falling. The temperature is also falling, it is a chilly -11C (and with windchill it feels like -21C).

I’m very happy that I took advantage of the great weather we had yesterday and went for a walk with Hiking Baby to the Glenmore Reservoir. It was a sunny beautiful +6C. Birds were signing, snow was melting, everyone was smiling…

Directions for starting point of GPS Hiking Track: Glenmore Reservoir (South side)

To get to the walk, start out in the parking lot of the Glenmore Landing shopping area. Head towards McD’s, there is a path behind, by the drive thru, that takes you out to the reservoir.

The paths are plowed by the city and are relatively clear. There were some snowy patches in the shady areas of the path, but I felt secure in my footing and didn’t worry about slipping.

I continued along the south side of the reservoir to the sailing club.  At the sailing club I turned around and headed back.  The beginning of the path has a slow incline.  Closer to the sailing club there are a few ups and downs. See the GPS Hiking Track in this post.

Quick highlight of GPS Hiking Track

It was 3.6 km round trip and took about 50 min.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My companion for the walk to record the GPS Hiking Track

Hiking Baby (HB) was securely attached to me in my new Ergo (soft structured carrier: SSC). I wore HB on my front so I could also wear my jacket and keep us both warm. HB does like back carries these days, but I don’t have a jacket to keep us both warm for a back carry. I also have a carrier cover to put over HB’s backside to keep warm.

HB was comfortable and warm and fell asleep for most of the walk.

 

 

Here is a photo of me and HB. HB is asleep and under the black hood. The Glenmore Reservoir (frozen) is in the background.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you getting out much this winter?  How do you keep warm?  Are you out there recording GPS Hiking Tracks in the snow?

 

Bragg Creek is a short drive from Calgary. Maybe I should explore that area a bit more.

Here is an eZine article with an intro about Bragg Creek.

 

 

Welcome to Bragg Creek! Bragg Creek is located in the Rocky Mountains in Alberta Canada. It must be by far one of Alberta’s best kept secrets. From it’s scenic beauty to it’s one of a kind shops and restaurants, Bragg Creek has something for everyone.

 

Recreation:

Because Bragg Creek is in the Rocky Mountains is has a wide variety of outdoor sports for any type of audience. Scenic walks to extreme mountain biking, and climbing. To list some other activities that can be done at all levels around Bragg Creek [http://www.bragg-creek.com]: hiking, running, bird watching, orienteering, photography, sightseeing, picnicking, kayaking, golfing, paintball, swimming, horseback riding, fishing, skating and many more!

 

Restaurants:

“The Steak Pit” is Bragg Creek’s signature restaurant. With live music and fine dining at a reasonable price it’s definitely not something to miss. If your looking to grab a quick bite to eat there are several bakeries, and places where you can grab a quick sandwich or snack. Another place worth mention the cinnamon spoon coffee shop. Starbucks and similar have been overdone and if your looking for a nice place, a place with personality, to grab a coffee or a snack, Cinnamon spoon is the place to go.

 

Facilities:

Bragg Creek has every type of facility to enjoy a great visit. Everything from a Grocery stores, parks, and information services, to a fire hall, and gas stations.

 

If you are ever in the Alberta Rocky Mountain range, I wouldn’t miss visiting Bragg Creek. It’s a beautiful town with a lot of personality. You won’t be disappointed!

 

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Feel free to reprint this article as long as you keep the following caption and author biography in tact with all hyperlinks.

 

Ryan Fyfe is the owner and operator of Bragg Creek [http://www.bragg-creek.com]. Which is a great web directory and information center for Bragg Creek and related areas like Cochrane and wintergreen.

 

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ryan_Fyfe

 

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/34297

 

Time to start a library of GPSHikingTracks for Bragg Creek!  What trails do you recommend in Bragg Creek that are kid friendly?

 

Well, we’ve had a bit of cold spell here to really prove to us that it is winter.  A Chinook (warm wind from the west) blew in and we are going to sit around ~0C for a day or two.  Looks like a good time to get out and do a bit of walking.  Not sure I’ll get to the mountains, but probably a park in town.  I have a new carrier cover to keep Hiking Baby warm while we are out.

Are you looking for information on which GPS to purchase?  I am using the Garmin eTrex Legend HCx.  I do like it, but I am tempted by some of the newer GPS models out there.  I’ll have to do some looking and comparing to see if it is worth upgrading or not.

Here’s a short video I found with some of the highlights of the Garmin eTrex Legend HCx model.

Which GPS do you use?  Why is it your favorite?  Are you thinking of upgrading?

Leave a comment below so we can all determine the best model to use to record GPS Hiking Tracks.

I tried out another recipe for a hiking snack.  This time Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies!

This is a very tasty cookie and will transport better than the muffins I made earlier in the week.  Similar to the muffins, these cookies also have oatmeal in them so they are a good hiking snack.

It is always important to keep up your energy while hiking and recording your GPS Hiking Tracks.

Do you have a favorite hiking snack?  Any recipe suggestions?

On Friday I got out to a gathering for babywearing.  It is International Babywearing Week!

I got help in trying a back carry with my mei tai.  This will give me more options to chose from for hiking trips.  Using a babywearing carrier I can keep my hands free to set GPS Hiking Tracks while ensuring Hiking Baby is secure.

How do you hike with your children?  Do you use a babywearing carrier?

I made some muffins with my leftover cranberry sauce from my Thanksgiving dinner.  They are tasty, but I think they need a bit more spice.  Maybe a bit more cinnamon or some nutmeg.

These muffins will be good as a snack on my next hiking trek with the oatmeal in them.  They will help me keep up my energy while recording GPS Hiking Tracks.

We got out hiking to the Grassi Lakes hike and set down a GPS Hiking Tracks.  This hike is from page 53 in Lina Pianosi’s book.  Grassi Lakes is by Canmore, past the Nordic Centre.

Here is the Grassi Lakes GPS Hiking Tracks for the ‘easy’ option of the trail to the first lake.

3.4 km with 270 m elevation gain.  We spent just over an hour on the trail, there and back, but it could be a much longer hike with little ones walking and exploring.

It was an easy enjoyable hike – very short.  At least short compared to the trails I did before Hiking Baby arrived.  I’ll have to get use to the shorter hikes to accommodate feeding / napping routines.

I was carrying Hiking Baby with a front carrier, but there were many families on the trail with small children walking.  It is quite a popular hike for families with small children.

The water in the lake was superbly clear and we could see fish swimming around.

There are even a few benches around the lake for resting and sitting down for a snack.

This is also a popular place for rock climbing.  We saw two climber scaling the rock face.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grassi Lakes GPS Hiking Tracks

I have come across a good reference book for hiking with children, http://www.takeahikewithyourchildren.ca/, “Take a hike with your children” by Lynda Pianosi.

I’ll try to go on some of the hikes and set GPS Hiking Tracks for them.