Alberta floods

Bigfeet

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jan 24, 2013
Messages
127
Location
Alberta
Some of you may be aware, Southern Alberta has experienced floods the likes of which have never been recorded in the area before. Calgary continues to be under a state of emergency (although is recovering), and smaller communities around (the town of High River being the hardest hit) have had damage like no one has ever seen. I've heard it reported that we received over 375mm of rain (15") in the course of a couple of days last week in the mountain drainages. Not sure how accurate that is, but given the flooding and the volume of rain we saw, that number is definitely feasible. Many people have been seriously affected.

As well, I've learnt that large portions of our Southern Rocky Mountains are now closed to the public and completely inaccessible. Numerous roads and highways that lead into this country have been damaged, to the point where many bridges and parts of roads have been completely wiped off the map. While it is a small thing in relation to the loss many people are experiencing, quite a number of backcountry lovers will be shut out of this area for the foreseeable future. It may take many months, perhaps much longer, before access is reestablished.

Not really sure why I wanted to put this up. I suppose, just wanting to let everyone here know about the state of things up here. Many people have had their lives changed forever by this event. We are trying to help where we can and the people here are a tough, resilient crowd - we will recover from this. And, while it is a smaller thing in the grand scheme, those of us who crave the backcountry are also feeling the sting from the lose of doing something we love. Not sure what changes there will be in the mountains, but I'm sure it will be significant. Certainly feeling a little anxious about the damage to the country and wildlife in the area.
 

Slim Jim

WKR
Joined
Jun 7, 2012
Messages
2,360
Location
Las Vegas, NV
I've seen some of the damage on the news. One was a home being washed away under a bridge. Unbelievable how much rain you received in such a short time. Hopefully all is well to the families that lost their homes.
 

Manosteel

WKR
Joined
Jan 24, 2013
Messages
1,391
Location
Alberta, Canada
Sad state of things at the moment in southern Alberta. I have friends and family that have been displaced and it will be a while before they even know whats going on or where they will be living in the coming months. I don't hunt the southern rockies much but always wanted to, the Canmore Bow zone was always on my lists of hunts. I am doing more work in Calgary and surrounding areas and so was planning to do some scouting their this summer just to get a feel for the land. That plan is gone which is nothing compared to people who have to start from scratch. I figure for those who can and will still hunt the backcountry will head north toward the areas I frequent.

Crazy how fast mother nature can turn ugly. I was in Morely doing some work (20 mins from Canmore right at the mouth of the rockies), two mondays ago and it was business as usual and no signs of what was to come.
 
OP
Bigfeet

Bigfeet

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jan 24, 2013
Messages
127
Location
Alberta
Managed to get out for a look this last weekend. Here's a couple of pictures of the damage. This is the main road that leads into much of the country I mentioned. Not sure how much, or how long, it will take to fix. It will be a substantial amount of work. I only saw a small portion of this particular road and there more roads in the area in the same condition.
P7011221.jpg
P7011226.jpg
 
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