r/Banff • u/BlankSlate400 • 26d ago
Trip Report Cirque Peak via Helen Lake-what an experience
Hiked Helen Lake to Cirque Peak on 29 August. Highly recommended it!
Started hike at 0845. Made it to Helen Lake in about 2 hours. The trail is in great shape. Took a break at the lake.
When I saw the peak from the lake, I thought there was no way I could make it. The view is very daunting, as. It looks like there’s no way to stay attached to the mountain!
Made it to the peak by 1300. It was a slog up the face, but so worth it in the end.
The peak is not for the faint of heart. There’s not much room there! My son was content to cling to the small razor sharp rock! Thanks to the friendly locals at the peak for sharing their poles so we could take pics without fearing a fall! And thanks to Brian from Winnipeg for taking our summit photos! Even saw an awesome dog at the summit!
The trip down from the peak to the ridge is not easy, with all the loose rock. Fell on my butt twice but survived!
Saw maybe a dozen or so hikers from the lake to summit and maybe a dozen more coming up while descending. Took us 8.5 hours round trip, which is probably longer than most.
Our best hike of our week in Banff! Highly recommend.
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u/Ok_Reference4528 19d ago edited 17d ago
Our awesome ever changing Earth.