Ha-Ling

Ha-Ling peak. Also know as China mans peak (slightly less PC now) is one of the first “go-to” hikes of the Bow Valley. This peak sisters East end of Rundle overlooking the town of Canmore, and by no means is a walk in the Park.

To get to this hike you need to go up Spray Lakes Road, past the water reservoir until reaching a car park on the right with a washroom. The hike starts directly opposite the carpark up the gravel road and across the walk bridge.

I, myself have done this hike multiple times. Each a different experience but both with equal admiration of the surrounding mountains. My first hike of the 2018 Summer season.

The first time I went up this hike with my friend Annika, was under less than ideal situations. I had on the previous day done the sister hike of East End of Rundle and then decided to go out for a few beers (steins) at The Banff Brewing Co. SO needless to say I was a little hung over and dehydrated. Many stops were taken on this trip.

Recently I had done it again with another group of girls, this time not hung over. This time I was more appreciative of the shorter up-hill slog that Ha ling is. You firstly start out in the woods winding your way through the tree roots up constantly until reaching long switch backs. The switch backs start out in the trees with minimal views and carry on for at least an hour and gradually as you get higher get sneak peaks of the views. There is the odd out-crop area where you clamber over rocks but nothing strenuous or too scary and out of reach (coming from a short girl). This hike if rather steep and constant so it took the girls and myself a little longer than desired (also note one of the girls was hungover!). At around 3/4 of the way up you reach the tree-line. At this stage you see the loose rocks which you will go through and it begins to be hot with sun exposure. Rather than hiking straight up the scree follow the path to the right and wind up through the compact rocks through a switch back all the way to the ridge line(not the peak). At this edge you get a sheer drop down on top of the Grass-Lakes area and a view over Canmore. Many people choose to stop here. To the left is the peak. This looks more strenuous and harder than it actually is. I would recommend following the pack down paths as the loose rock is hard to walk accross. From here going up is over loose rock and slabs which are grippy. I kind of followed a path until reaching a rock slab and chose to clamber up. There is not one define path to the top rather a maze of paths set out separeted by grip like rock.

The views on top of Ha ling are amazing and well worth the slog. You get different views of Rundle, Lady Mac Donald, Goat’s Peak and even Sulfur Mountain (seen from Banff). The views of Miners Peak from Ha ling almost looked like it is striped with colour. It is from up here that you realize the size of Canmore.

On the way down I would recommend following the path to the right (when looking down). This is as it is packed and a lesser of two evils. If wearing runners this is ideal as the grip rock is rather hard to go down without extra foot support and loose rock is even harder. Going down Ha ling is super quick and you get down in no time. Legs start shaking however. The first part of the descent is the hardest as it is through loose rock and relatively steep, once past that it is a breeze.

To anyone starting the hiking season or after a decent hike over a short trip I would highly recommend this hike. But ofcourse need a decent fitness level as this is not a beginner hike, unless you plan on taking a long time. My friends and myself are at a decent fitness level and it took us 3 hours and 15 minutes with a decent lunch stop at the stop and also half way up.