If I said I hiked to the summit of Tokyapebi ipa today, you might be puzzled. If I said Yates Mountain, you might still look at me strangely. If I said Barrier Lake Lookout in Kananaskis Country, Alberta, you’d probably be able to find it on a map. It crossed my mind today that clarity is key in communication.

Barrier Lookout Summit

Stoney names are familiar to Stoney tribe members west of Calgary; not so well-known outside this close-knit group. While historians and ranchers in western Alberta might know of Emily Yates and the Diamond Cross ranch she ran (now the site of the YMCA’s Camp Chief Hector) below today’s summit, most hikers commonly refer to this hike as Prairie View and Barrier Lookout. Know your audience and write accordingly, I thought to myself.

I also realised that I would like to let other hikers know that Prairie View trail from Barrier Dam (7.7 km, 500 m elevation gain) was almost dry in the lower sections, while mud and snow patches are still prevalent in the upper. The short 0.6 km (125 m elevation gain) section up to the lookout saw 0.5 m snow drifts. Packing gaiters and boot crampons are a good idea. Need to blog, tweet and share.

Snow lingering in high country.

Now you’d think with all this climbing up the trail, trekking through snow, and thinking about posts and tweets, that’d be enough. Not so! Queries were drafted, snippets of articles were re-evaluated, and future blogpost ideas were stored. Seems this writer’s mind is fuelled by foot power.

What motivates you to compose in your head?