Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Lots of them. The sheer number of great views and the number of peaks was staggering and every day brought more. I think for me the most spectacular was the walk on day 4 taking in Moraine Lake and the Valley of the Ten Peaks.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Renée and Catherine our guides made the trip. They were simply excellent and worked tirelessly from dawn until night. Nothing was too much trouble or effort and breakfast, lunch and dinner were magiced up effortlessly without a repeat meal in the whole trip – the standard was excellent too. Their local knowledge of the trails, wildlife and fauna was also top notch making the whole experience even better. Many thanks to them.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Nothing is going to challenge the regular traveller too much but the weather was mixed from very warm to snow so you need to be prepared for it all.

Suggestions

Simply that it was great so don't miss it!

Most Inspirational Moment

What was great about the trip was that each day's walking brought something new.  The walking was hard at times, but the views always very rewarding and the beer back at the camp felt well deserved.  It's pretty hard to beat walking in mountains, with views of glaciers and stunning glacial lakes to keep you company, with clear blue skies and constant sunshine.  I think we were definitely seeing it at its best!The walks were well chosen to offer the chance to see all that the Rockies have to offer.  It was remarkable how quickly you could get away from the crowds on the walks - we often had stunning mountain top views to ourselves.  There was some serious elevation gain in most of the walks, and we all soon learnt not to believe the Canadian version of 'flat'!      As always, a good group of people to share the experience with.    

Thoughts on Group Leader

Renee and Katy were excellent guides and looked after us extremely well.  The cooking was exceptional - what they produced on camp stove was consistently delicious.  They knew the area and walks well and looked after us well on the walks, tending to blisters and generally keeping the show very successfully on the road.  Thanks to them both for making the holiday so memorable!

Advice for Potential Travellers

The walks - particularly at the beginning and end of the trip - are quite long days, with lots of elevation gain, so do take the challenging rating seriously, a decent level of fitness will help.   Quite a few of the walks are through bear country, the group does need to walk closely together to keep the bears away.The campsites all had very good facilities and it was easy to set up and move camp the few times we needed to.  It did get cold at night- the campfire was a great help, but pack enough warm layers.  

Most Inspirational Moment

At walking level the inspiration was the quality of the scenery that we could access for "only" a few hundred meters hieght gain. Move on to a high ridge and you see how far the Rockies goes in every direction. At a social level (I was travelling alone) just as good as previous Exodus trips. I always hope a group of like minded people doing something they love in some of the most impressive scenery on this planet is going to produce a happy and fun party. This was a happy and fun group.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our leaders were Renne and Katie. They looked after everything and produced a great trip. Clearly capable of handling anything that was thrown at them and as they have done the trip many times knew the best routes, the best places to stop, even the best bars! The food was excellent and being out doors did not stop an impressive list of dishes arriving every mealtime and I mean every.   

Advice for Potential Travellers

I was on the September trip and we had clear skies day and night. This resulted in warm/hot days 25 - 28 degrees, but very cold nights with temperatures down to freezing. A Down sleeping bag was a must and evenings in camp needed a serious number of layer to keep warm - preferably a Down jacket. If the weather had not been so clear then it may be less cold in the evenings/night. Go prepared. Compared to remote trekking, access to the comforts of modern life is available so one can relax about forgetting something on the trip. The minibus can recharge phones etc, supermarkets are never that far from the camp site or are passed on way back from walking each day, even liquor stores. If you need something (exra clothing - see above) then is is usually available to get.As this is not a trek from A to B to C etc there is the option of not doing all of the walks. Once you have a taste of the scenery you probably will want to do it all - but not compulsory.

Suggestions

Demanding walking - generally on good trails, rewards on gaining a ridge or summit easily out weighs the effort. If you want serious mountains without any altitude issues then the Rockies are a "must do".

Most Inspirational Moment

Travelling up the Icefield highway it was lakes, glaciers and mountains 360 degrees as far as the eye could see.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Brilliant, let's hope you get Renee as your leader if you go on this trip. She knew her stuff, thoroughly competent and her cooking was delicious. Plus she joined in the banter around the campfire (and half managed to understand some Yorkshire folk!)

Advice for Potential Travellers

Most of the walks are quite long so you will probably enjoy it more if you are quite fit. I have done many trekking holidays before and this was equally energetic, the walks are mostly circa 20km and involve plenty of altitude gains.

Suggestions

Hope you have a good a holiday as i did!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent. Audrey was very well organised (and amazingly fit!). We also had Fernando on the trip to learn the ropes, and they made an first rate team, complementing each other very well. Both had a good sense of humour and were immensely patient and encouraging even when the group was feeling a bit low due to occasional wet weather, tiredness and mosquito bites.  They were flexible in responding to individuals' requests. The cooking and catering was superb.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The trip notes suggested that regular walkers in Snowdonia (which we are) could easily manage this trip. In fact we found the altitude made quite a difference, although we did acclimatise as the holiday went on. There were no drying rooms in any of the camp sites, which we understand is standard for Canada. Apart from the odd thunderstorm, we enjoyed excellent weather. All the walks were first rate, and very different from each other.Air Canada wre friendly and efficient  and the Canadians really are amazingly polite and welcoming. Going through Canadian Security at the airport was a pleasure (a rare one for most of us). 

Suggestions

The trip notes said we would be housed in 4 man tents and this was a consideration when we booked. In fact we were supplied with 2 man tents, which was very cramped for 2 people.I discovered Ben Gadd's Handbook of the Candian Rockies on the internet and got a copy sent over before the trip (the latest edition is not available from on line booksellers). This is the "bible" (our guides had a copy) and I think should go on the recommended book list.