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August 7, 2025 In Outdoor Edventures

Piper Pass Hike

Where:

  • Piper Pass

 

When:

  • August 5, 2025

 

Where:

  • Ed, Craig, Neil, Dave, Janet

 

Trailhead:

  • on Highway 40, drive south from the Trans-Canada Highway for 62 km (50 minutes)
  • the parking lot is on the left hand side of the road
  • the trail starts behind the outhouse
  • the turnoff (left) for Piper Pass is 1.4 km past the turnoff for Edworthy Falls and is marked by a cairn (we turned too early and ended up on a non existent trail despite it showing on AllTrails, so we had to backtrack, which added about an hour to our trip)
  • it’s another 5 km to the pass

 

 

Degree of difficulty:

  • 22 km
  • 1000 meters
  • 7 hours total time on the trail, given our wrong turn, so we could have done it in 6 hours
  • it is a steady climb out of the parking lot for 1.6 km to Elbow Lake, where we pushed our bikes most of the way
  • beyond Elbow Lake, it is relatively flat, and we were able to bike most of it other than a few rocky sections and some small water flows
  • after the turn off the main trail, you enter dense bush for 3 km before it opens up into an alpine meadow flanked by towering peaks
  • once you clear the trees, you are heading for a giant boulder at the bottom of the dark colored scree slope in the distance
  • the final ascent to the summit gains 200 meters of elevation over 500 meters of distance on a scree slope, so it required every ounce we had left in the tank and some motivational banter
  • there are eight water crossings after you leave the main trail, but only the first one across the Elbow River requires water shoes
  • we did part of the trip by mountain bike, which saved some time and effort, other than for Neil on his gravel bike
  • this is the longest time and distance hike I’ve ever done but there is a gradual elevation gain until the final gruelling grunt up to Piper Pass

 

 

Interesting notes:

  • the naming of Piper Pass is unknown but it may be named after Pipers cabin
  • the trail can be quite busy up to Edworthy Falls and then it lessens significantly
  • the alpine area is full of wildflowers in the spring and early summer as well as numerous mushroom patches
  • there are beautiful views of Mt. Rae, Elpoca Mountain and Tower, Mount Burney, Mount Jerram, South Schee and Tombstone Mountains
  • depending on the snow depth you might need to wait until July to do this hike
  • you can also access this trail from Highway 66 west of Bragg Creek through the Tombstone Lakes area

 

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