question about the huts .... if you're staying the huts do you need to bring your own cook stove ? pan ? utensils ? mug ? what do the public kitchens offer to use ? and if you don't need your own stove ...does that mean you have to wait and lineup to cook in the morning ? let me know . great vid !
The kitchens are pretty basic. Usually there was a giant pot of boiling water on the stove for everyone to use. We (and most people) brought all dehydrated foods so it was simply a matter of adding hot water. We also had our own mugs and utensils. We also brought a small jetboil to make hot lunch on the trail.
We did it in two days. Because we stayed in the refuge, we didn’t need to bring tents, sleeping bags or food so our bags were very light and manageable. The second day was about 26kms so it would have been a. Lot more difficult with a full pack.
Awesome trip. Did it the opposite direction about a month after you. Cold nights but no bugs. Should mention parking at Food is small. We Got there around 7am and basically got the last spot. Views would be better North to South I admit. I was underwhelmed by paint pots at first but had the tint on my shoes for the rest of my time up there and came to appreciate the history of it.
I don’t disagree, but it’s a hell of a way to do it. Plus, a weekend staying at an Airbnb in Vancouver or Kelowna would probably be more expensive than that!
The trail goes quite close to tumbling glacier, although we made a little detour by climbing up the glacial till and walking along the ridge. Once we got reasonably close to the glacier, we descended into the valley below and reconnected with the original trail. We went off piste a little bit, but it wasn’t much of a detour.
Like your review. The only other minor detail I would add is PERMITS..... as lots of youtubes, like this one, make the trail very popular . When Parks Canada makes its permits available online (usually January), the entire Rockwall inventory is gone for the summer on the first day.......just a heads up to everyone out there. You can repeat this comment for Lake O Hara as well.
Fantastic overview! When looking into the various backpacking options in Canada, this came in @ #1. I would have loved to take on this trail this year, but those in my party were not willing to take on that challenge. Hopefully I get a chance to tackle it in the future.
Awesome! I'm going to Landmannalaugar next week. I hope the weather will be fine! Where was that photo of your wife with the Landmannalaugar mountains taken? It's really breathtaking!
Awesome, you’re going to love it! That photo was along one of the trails surrounding the hut in landmannalaugar. It wasn’t a long hike and we did it as a little side excursion the day we got there. I do t remember what the trail or the peak was called though…
I'm set to do this very hike on the 3rd of July! Super excited as I've only really hiked up mountains in the UK. I'll be camping along the way, I've heard many people are advised to skip the first hut due to weather conditions, is this true?
Well, it’s a mountainous region and weather can be pretty unpredictable anywhere along the hike. If you mean the first hut at Landmannalaugar, then I definitely wouldn’t skip it. There are loads of interesting trails and views around that hut, as well as a really cool natural hot spring. Basically, you just sit in a hot stream surrounded by mountains. It’s a pretty cool experience.
Great video! I just got back from 6 days in Iceland. Some of the trails were still closed so we didn't get to hike some of the good trails. Do you know if we can get back to the start of the trail if we take a car? planning another visit next year..
Theoretically, you could rent an off-road vehicle and drive to any of the huts. Indeed, we saw lots overlanding vehicles near Alftavatn specifically. That said, the trail isn't a loop, so you'd need a couple of vehicles to do the whole thing and you're likely better off just taking the bus. I've been to Iceland twice and it's easily one of my favourite places to visit!
Awesome, you’re going to love it! Definitely bring a good camera and take your time. It is the most beautiful place in the world and worth savouring every moment! More practically, bring good rain gear. Weather can be pretty fickle there.
I have done it both directions on horseback. Up until about 1990 the shovel pass lodge was a horse camp with canvas bunk tents and a cook house. Booked Skyline campsites for August long weekend as part of hiking the great divide trail from Jasper to Saskatchewan River Crossing.
They’ve definitely upped their game since the 90s. It’s quite the operation these days. The owners are actually based near Vernon, I think and last I heard, they were trying to sell it.
My lucky day! I sat down with my coffee, and your channel popped up. I am doing this hike in August. Your pictures and breathtaking beautiful. Your description of the trail gives me confidence. I'm on the South end of 70 and an avid hiker in a high altitude state. I am so looking forward to this trip. Thank you for posting!
That's awesome! It sounds like such a cliche, but I wish I could go back and hike this again for the first time. You're going to love it! Are you staying in the huts?
Good luck booking it, with the new system it was booked until September within minutes for 2023. Had four computers going between a friend and myself. Better luck next year I guess.
The competition for camping has gotten worse and worse every year. I definitely agree with that. The nice thing about Shovel Pass Lodge is that it's a private owner so you don't book through Parks Canada. We had no issues whatsoever booking with them last summer: skylinetrail.com
@@trailunderfoot Thank you for the information. Probably the way go to and going to look into it. Hopefully next year as we ended up booking a different spot. Great Video!
I have done the skyline twice and I agree it is one of the best backpacking trails in the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks. Camped both times, but I don’t believe the lodge you referred to was there at the time (25/20 years ago). The fist time I did it solo in three days, two nights. First day was nice, but mainly in the woods. Second day was spectacular. Third day was torrential rain, so just hiked out as fast as I could go. The second time I did it was with a friend and I believe we did five days, four nights. Did lots of side hikes up to various peaks along the way. Weather was perfect every day and scenery was outstanding. If I could do it again, I would go the five day option. Got a bad knee now, so hiking with a back pack would not be an option. Small pack to the lodge and some day hikes would be interesting to try. It is a bit shorter trail to just get to the lodge is the ‘spur’ trail that starts just before Medicine Lake (might be called the watchtower trail).
I think the lodge has been there for quite a long time but I'm not sure for how long it's been a guest house. At any rate, it was super convenient and comfortable. There is a trail that hikes straight in to the lodge that the pack horses use to bring in supplies but I've heard it's not the nicest hike in the world.
Yup 2:10 is Numa Pass on the Foster peak side looking NW. Floe Lake would have been behind and underneath where we were standing/looking. Have you done the trail? It's one of the best hikes I've tackled.
@@rocksnowandwater Gotcha - you're going to love it. I think I have the full GPX trace route if you're interested. I've also posted a ton of photos on my Instagram (@trailunderfoot) if you want some inspiration. We went North to South and I'd really recommend doing it that way.
Most of the huts were full to capacity but the landscape is so vast that we hardly saw anyone else on the trail whilst we hiked. We went during the first week of September and the conditions were near perfect.
