Ptarmigan Cirque Trail – Peter Lougheed Provincial Park

On the educational Ptarmigan Cirque Trail you can learn about high-mountain flora and fauna. As you venture through alpine forests and meadows, flowers, conifers and diverse wildlife await.

The Ptarmigan Trail starts at the Highwood Meadows car park, where the crisp, thin air is immediately apparent – the hike begins at around 2,300 metres (7,550 ft) above sea level. The ascent is steep, so take it easy, and be sure to stay on the marked paths – just one wrong footstep can destroy a plant that has grown up here for 20 years.

There are 12 stations with information about the local nature along the route. You’ll learn to recognise the difference between fir, spruce and larch just by looking at the needles or find out why trees no longer grow above the treeline. You’ll discover fossils from corals that lived here over 350 million years ago in the mountain rock. Keep your binoculars at the ready for the ptarmigans that can be spotted in this area. For more information on what you can discover, and where, see: https://www.albertaparks.ca/media/125782/peter-lougheed-pp-ptarmigan-cirque-trail-interpretive-pamphlet.pdf

The trail takes you into alpine terrain where the conditions can change in an instant and temperatures can plummet even in midsummer. Take warm layers and a hardshell jacket. You’ll also need the Kananaskis Conservation Pass to use the car park.