Endless alpine meadows

Taken on 13 July 2012, when a group of eight of us walked uphill from the upper locked gate to the beautiful alpine meadows of Plateau Mountain. You see the almost flat top to this mountain, a unique area that was spared during the Ice Age. (Location on my map is only very approximate!)

"This nearly flat high-elevation plateau is recognized for several unique features. There is an internationally recognized ice cave with ice crystals, curls, sheets and pillars (ice crystals are so fragile that a temperature increase of one degree Celsius can cause melting). The periglacial features (known as "patterned ground") in the reserve include active permafrost, sorted stone circles, polygons, steps and frost boils. The area also contains critical winter range for bighorn sheep." From www.albertaparks.ca/plateau-mountain.aspx

There are no public roads in Plateau Mountain Ecological Reserve; the road to the mountain top is leased by Husky Oil; to prevent vandalism to natural gas production facilities and to lessen impact on the area's natural features, access is controlled by the locked gate; travel in the reserve is by foot only; there are no facilities on site and overnight camping and open fires are prohibited.

Plateau Mountain Ecological Reserve occupies the top of Plateau Mountain and the mountain flanks down to the streams in valleys on the north and south ends. The mountain plateau is a relatively flat area from one to two kilometres wide and about eight kilometres in maximum length. The plateau rises gradually from about 2,280 metres in the north to 2,519 metres at the summit near the south end of the plateau. The flanks of the mountain are steep cliffs with numerous block and talus slopes below them to the north, east and south sides. The west slope is gentler."

www.albertaparks.ca/media/2741526/plateau_mtn_mgmt_plan.pdf