On August 11, 1858 members of the Palliser expedition were camped at the Old Bow Fort here in the Bow Valley just outside of Exshaw. The remains of that Hudson’s Bay fort are unmarked and largely unknown locally but are still visible today.

The handwritten journals James Hector carried with him through Canmore and Banff on his way to the Kicking Horse Pass have been recently uncovered and transcribed. These journals are unknown to Canadian History and have never before been published.

Upon registration, everyone will receive password-protected documents from the mid-1800s where you can examine clues of where James Hector was kicked on August 29th, 1858.

There will be two versions of this hike. One is on the 165th anniversary of the incident and we will be at Wapta Falls on the exact time when Hector records in his diary he was kicked and the other is the weekend prior to allow more people to join. The Tuesday Hike and the weekend hike will be largely the same. 

All registrants will receive a Google Drive link with original documents and maps from the 1800s the first week in August so you will have roughly a month to develop your own theories on where the event happened based on Hector’s own hand-written descriptions.

The usual hiking items. 

Anything you feel would make your day more enjoyable.