Dustin Lynx - Hiking Canadas Great Divide Trail

HIKING
CANADAS
GREAT DIVIDE
TRAIL

3rd edition

Dustin Lynx

For my family: Julia, Roche and Tenaya Lynx.
You are my true inspiration.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am extremely thankful to River Taig for his help with the third edition of this book. His app was as indispensable for me as I am sure it will be for future hikers. I also want to thank Alice Bodnar and Ryan Linn at Atlas Guides for granting me permission to use material from the app.

Many thanks to the Great Divide Trail Association for carrying the vision of a nationally recognized trail. I am thankful for the help and support of Brad Vaillancourt and Dave Hockey. Your contagious energy helped me to write this updated edition of the guidebook. And, I cant forget to thank the hard work and dedication of those volunteers who build and maintain the trail.

My gratitude goes out to others who have contributed to this edition. In no particular order, these folks are Ben Mayberry, Li Brannfors, Larry Tyler, Erin Wired Saver, Brian Tanzman, Ryan Silk, Liz Thomas, Naomi Hudetz, Wendy Bush, Canadoug, SpiritEagle (Jim and Ginny Owen), Jordan Tamborine, Dan Albert, Rogier Gruys, and Rick Bombaci.

I would also like to thank family, friends, and all those who contributed to previous editions of this guidebook. I appreciate all your help and support over the years!

Julia, Roche and Tenaya Lynx, Barbara Dewhirst, David and Diane Simon, Agnes Bauer, Aaron Phoenix, Roy and Jill Howard, the Hodges family, Mateo Antonelli, Jerry Auld, Doug Mouser, Randy Kading, Chris Townsend, Royce and Sherrill Robertson, John Dunn, Rich Botto, Wayne Van Velzen, Hugo Mulyk, May Torgerson, Brian Patton, Jenny L. Feick, Dave Higgins, Marion Harrison, Edwin Knox, Gillean and Tony Daffern, The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Paul Leech The Trail Wizard, Paula Duncan, Miro Rak, Carl Potter, Chris Willett, Jean-Guy Bergeron, Jim Thorsell, Bart and Barbara Robinson, Karsten Heuer, Marmot, Lindy, Michael Kwek, John Barge, Chic Scott, and Donna and Roger Nelson of Gemtrek Maps.

INTRODUCTION TO THE 3RD EDITION

If I wanted to keep things fun and interesting and
continue learning and challenging myself then I had
to break this mold of being an on-trail backpacker.
I needed to expand my horizons to get outside of
my comfort zone and do something different.

Andrew Skurka, from a 2011 National Geographic
Live presentation, youtu.be/hMf7TypZwtc.

It is a long time since I first thru-hiked the Great Divide Trail, in 1996. Much of the route I mapped is still considered main route and there are more protected areas such as Castle Wildland Provincial Park and Castle Provincial Park, north of Waterton Lakes National Park. There are more hikers now, and people are finding different ways to experience the GDT, such as trail running, epic equestrian trips or bringing their dog with them. GPS is omnipresent; so too is the use of smart phones and internet connectivity. As this book goes to print, there is a low-cost app available for the GDT. Most importantly, the Great Divide Trail Association has risen again.

What hasnt changed is the fact that once you commit yourself to the GDT you alter your journey in life, perhaps in a big way! You know you will experience a stark beauty and magnificence that perhaps no other long-distance hiking trail can offer in such abundance, but what you might not appreciate at the outset is how this route will push you out of your comfort zone.

In my own case, hiking the GDT led me to becoming an author, moving to Canmore, raising a family there and returning to the trail year after year for day hiking, backpacking, skiing, mountain biking, scrambling, climbing, packrafting, and trail running. Whenever it seemed I was growing complacent, my love of the route and for the Canadian Rockies would push me back outside of my comfort zone: getting certified as a hiking guide, becoming a board member of Bear Conflict Solutions Institute and even running my own businesses so that I could have more flexibility to enjoy where I live.

Where I suffered from a lack of information for the first edition of this book, I now have the opposite problem: there is so much information out there now. In truth, with all the online resources now available, including the app, I questioned the necessity of updating this guidebook. Amidst the praise were also harsh criticisms in reaction to the first and second editions of this book. In the spirit of stepping outside our comfort zone to invite learning and personal growth, I am listening to those who wanted this edition and giving voice to the critics.

In this edition, I am cleaning up the distances and aligning them with the Atlas Guides app and the GDTAs official track. Although this guidebook will remain a comprehensive resource, it needs to reflect the app and other resources now available, such as the GDTA website. Hikers have asked for and will receive here a better handling of elevations, including elevation profiles. I have altered the section distance outlines to better help with planning and booking campsites. The planning resources have ballooned by 50 per cent in this edition. Thru-hikers, please note: I have incorporated all the hiker notes passed down through the generations up to the 2018 season.

Since the second edition of this guidebook, there have been significant changes in the national parks in regards to planning your hike on the GDT. You can now reserve backcountry campsites online for Banff, Jasper, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks well in advance of your hike. Jasper National Park has rezoned its backcountry, meaning that much of the GDT route is now in wildland, or decommissioned territory, and Banff National Park seems to be following this example. Ive accounted for all these changes and I am happy to announce the addition of two major new alternate routes in Jasper National Park: Six Passes and Elysium Pass. These are my favourite hikes in Jasper and I hope you consider them when you plan your journey.

I wrote this edition of the guidebook nearly from the ground up for a wider audience. In summary, the third edition of Hiking Canadas Great Divide Trail is a better resource for planning your trip on the GDT.

Thank you.

Dustin Lynx

Quick glossary of terms

thru-hike: means hiking the entire GDT route

section hiker: a hiker who does a section or two each season

SOBO and NOBO: southbound and northbound hikes or hikers

zero-day: a rest day, when you hike 0 kilometres

yo-yo: thru-hiking the whole route and then going the other way, back to the beginning

WHAT IS THE GREAT DIVIDE TRAIL?

The GDT surpassed all my expectations and I had built it up pretty big in my mind. It has set the bar for what I want in a thru-hike. It had just the right balance of community, challenge, clearly defined trail, alternate routes, cross country, and solo hiking. More improvements are being made each year, and I highly recommend getting out there before the rest of the world finds out about it!

Erin Wired Saver, from a blog post after her 2015 thru-hike: walkingwithwired.com/2015/10/advice-to-future-gdters.html.