On May 30th, the ABJK (Alberta Jeep JK group) hosted an open invitation to join in on a multi day camping and trail run event in Central Alberta to Limestone Mountain and surrounding area.
I was able to join in on the run starting on a Saturday and a small few of us convoyed down from Edmonton to meet the rest of the group on the Forestry Trunk Road (FTR) West of Bearberry (named because of the bears and the berries found throughout the area).
We then traveled South along the FTR and started the easy trek up Limestone Mountain. For the most part, it’s a well gravelled road way – so stock Jeeps and many other vehicles are quite capable of this run.
Letting a bit of air of out of your tires will help absorb some of the rough road, but it isn’t necessary.
A short while in we reached the first set of radio towers and paused to have a discussion about what would come next – some slightly more challenging areas, and the entrance into ‘restricted space’ – as there are rare wildflowers that apparently grow in this area. Staying on the trail is a must to avoid damaging the environment.
There are a few steep rocky areas to traverse, but 4wd easily handles the terrain.
A bit further in and the rocky paths change to partially washed out dirt.
After a few fairly steep twists and turns, we make it to the main mountain top level where you are awarded some amazing views of the country side.
I had a look around for the rare flowers, but perhaps they weren’t in bloom yet – but then, I had no idea what I was looking for, and these tiny red flowers could very well have been what I was looking for. If anyone knows, please leave a comment below!
On a lower section of the mountain, our group stopped for a lunch break, and a bit of playing around on the rocks.
This solitary ground squirrel watched on in amazement.
I took quite a few photos, and you can see some of those on the Facebook Album page here.
My two GoPro cameras were also running and here is the video I put together. Be sure to change the settings to watch in 1080 HD and turn your speakers on for the music!
I’ll add another post with the remainder of the day – and my weekend, but the initial run to the mountain and down made for a great scenic trip.
This looks like a beautiful drive; I’ll have to add it to my “trips to do” list.