The Fortress - Headwall Lakes to Chester Lake Loop

The Fortress is an intimidating summit when viewed from Highway 40 in Kananaskis. From the east it's nothing but huge vertical rock faces. Fortunately you can pretty much walk right up the backside with only one section of easy scrambling right at the end.

We only planned to hike to the Headwall Lakes that day and had no intention of climbing The Fortress. The terrain is just so appealing that it continually drew us forward until we found ourselves so close to the summit that we had no choice but to top it out.

Park in the Chester Lake trailhead parking lot. It's a big lot and popular trailhead. The Chester Lake trail departs the lot from the back left corner of the lot but you'll want to find the Headwall Lakes trail on the back right side of the lot. The trail starts out as an old road that serves as a cross country ski route in the winter. Follow the trails in a generally southeast direction. Eventually you will cross a fair sized creek on a wide bridge followed by a moderate climb for a couple hundred feet. At the top of the hill you'll find a single track trail heading into the brush on the left. It should be marked with a cairn.

Take this easy to follow trail. It will lead you up the valley. The only portions of this part of the trail that are even remotely strenuous are the when it climbs the headwalls before each lake. Once you reach the second Headwall Lake the vegetation will disappear and the valley will open up providing great views of The Fortress ahead.

Follow the trail as far as you can but it will disappear after a while, then just stay near the bottom of the valley floor. If you venture too far up the sides you may find you'll have to return to the base as rock bands will interrupt the sloped sides of the valley periodically and can prove difficult to navigate.

At the end of the valley the goal will be clear. Ascend to the col on the shoulder of The Fortress. From the col there should be a clear trail beat into the scree. The summit is only a couple hundred meters from the col so you should be there in no time. Just a few meters from the top you'll need to scramble up a small ledge but it shouldn't be an obstacle. If you're afraid of heights you may not want to get too close to the edge as the far side of fortress is nearly vertical.

To return we recommend going through Chester Lake. The route is a little shorter and we prefer to make a circuit when we can. Drop back down to the col on the shoulder of the summit. From there descend on the opposite side you came up. The scree is good so the descent should be fast and easy until you reach the heavier talus at the bottom. It's a narrow valley with a clear exit so head that direction until you can pick up a trail.

Once off the talus the trail becomes nice dirt trail that's easy on the joints. You'll be at Chester Lake before you know it. From here you can detour to the north to see the elephant rocks but that's better left for another trip to fully explore that valley as well.

After Chester Lake the trail widens and twists its way through the forest back to the parking lot. It's an easy trail that allows you to cover ground fast. We hadn't planned to do the full circuit so we returned to the car just as the sun set and it was dark by the time we pulled out of the parking lot. We drove back to Canmore along the Smith Dorien Trail and have never seen so much wildlife in one trip. There were moose, elk, deer, bears and porcupine along the road. A perfect way to end a spectacular trip.

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