Trailing Tradition: A Horseback Adventure with Timberline
The crest of Deception Pass was just out of sight as we climbed the steep hill towards a bright blue sky. I leaned into the slope, as I had been instructed to do, as my horse zigzagged upwards. When the path levelled out, the vista of the Skoki region of Banff National Park unfolded before me: a treed valley ahead, impressive craggy peaks above, and around us a forest of larch trees turned golden as autumn settled in. I looked ahead to our packer and guide, Sydney, as she tended to the horses by checking their loads and tugging on straps.
In that moment, I saw how my trail ride into the backcountry was not only part of the longstanding horse culture of the Canadian Rockies, it was essential to its continuation.
Alberta’s Horse Culture
Alberta has strong ties to horse culture that goes back to the early 1700s. Horses were domesticated by Indigenous Peoples and Europeans alike, and used for a multitude of purposes, from overland travel to trade to hunting. Fast forward to our modern day and Timberline Tours, based in Lake Louise, Alberta, offers trail rides, day trips, as well as overnight horseback riding adventures in Banff National Park. Timberline taps into a particular tradition of trailing in the Rockies — the kind of operation that supported multi-week exploratory journeys of settlers, surveyors, mountaineers, and explorers. Apart from the use of lighter weight panniers, the western packing techniques, including the loading of horses using the famous “diamond hitch,” remain mostly unchanged.
Curious about Mary Schaffer Warren’s experience with horsepacking for Wildflowers, I embarked on an overnight trip from a trailhead near Lake Louise through the Banff backcountry to Red Deer Lakes, a ride of about 20 kilometres, one-way. Though I am an experienced outdoorswoman, this was my first-ever time on a horse in the Rockies.
A Backcountry Journey
I was excited but apprehensive when our group of six set off, including Sydney at the front guiding our pack string, K.C., our cook, bringing up the tail, and our small film team, including director Trixie Pacis, cinematographer Jamie Wensley and Skoki unit co-producer, Caroline Whyte. I knew I was in good hands, though. Timberline has been operating for over 40 years, and the heritage of its owners, Paul and Sue Peyto, is strongly rooted in local lore. Paul’s great uncle “Wild” Bill was one Banff’s first guides, outfitters, and national park wardens.
Horseriding is a unique way of experiencing mountain terrain. Your body is working with the horse, but because the horse is doing the walking, the rider has time to look out at the scenery and see what’s ahead. We enjoyed packed lunches at Ptarmigan Lake, roughly halfway in, and proceeded through vast passes, narrower tree-lined sections, and finally open meadows to a secluded camp set up in the woods near Red Deer Lakes.
Arriving at camp revealed that the riding was only half the experience with Timberline. Cots and mattresses were set up in vintage-style canvas wall tents, ready for our sleeping bags. A short walk away was a cook tent, complete with a wood-burning stove that would later delight us with a perfect cooking of hefty steaks, baked potatoes and more. We needn’t be worried about attracting wildlife; the entire campsite was encircled by an electric fence.
“I hope we can continue on the tradition of doing this, being able to show people the way of life, how it was, and how it still could be.”
Steeped in Tradition
In the morning, Sydney and K.C. greeted us coffee, eggs, bacon and toast. Rays of sunlight danced with the smoke from the cook tent when we sat outside with Sydney to learn more about the history of trail culture.
Guides, packers and wranglers make their job look easy but it’s thanks to their hard work that horseback riding is still alive and well in the Rockies. Timberline is one of a few remaining operations that give visitors a chance to venture into the backcountry by horse, and enjoy camp life almost as it was a century ago. “People love seeing the horses when we come by. Pretty much everyone stops to ask you where you’re going, tell you how cool it is, and take your picture,” said Sydney. “I hope we can continue on the tradition of doing this, being able to show people the way of life, how it was, and how it still could be.”
Article by Meghan Ward
Video:
Footage by Jamie Wensley (Peakline Films) & Trixie Pacis (Figment Films)
Edited by Trixie Pacis