King Creek Ridge Hike Guide In Kananaskis Country
King Creek Ridge is a bit of a classic ridge and summit in Kananaskis. It’s known for its wild ridge-top views of Kananaksis, which include the lakes and notable peaks. The ridge top features some wild geology with a nice mix of alpine meadows for wildflowers.
All that said, it’s a notably steep ascent which can feel gruelling, but that also means it can be conquered in a short amount of time. We had long known it would be a steep day, so we had put off the hike for years, despite its popularity.
It was not as bad as we expected, but that’s often the case when you come in expecting the worst. That means we feel confident in saying it’s a mountain hike that’s well worth the effort to garner some wonderful views.
King Creek Ridge Hike
Trail Stats
Route Description
The route up to the ridge begins at the King Creek Day Use Area along Highway 40 in Kananaskis Country. At the trailhead, the hike follows parallel to Highway 40 before reaching a small junction that leads up through the forest. While the start of the hike is very gradual, it doesn’t last for long as it immediately begins gaining elevation once in the forest.
It’s a relentlessly steep route up through the forest and various drainages with significant trail braiding. Generally, the best route was the steepest option, as various goat trails went off to nowhere. This is most pronounced at the start of the trail.
The good news is the trail does cross multiple openings in the forest where you can take in the views and enjoy wildflowers. The bad news is that the openings are brutally hot in the sun when it’s warm.
As the trail gets closer to the ridgeline, it becomes more defined and gradual. At around 2 km and 600 meters of elevation gain, the trail finally reaches the ridge and becomes a gradual singletrack. At a fast pace, this can be gained in an hour and even more modest pace in around two hours.
Once on the ridge, the trail really begins to open up with wonderful views and pleasant hiking as it moves in and out of the forest. It’s another 1.5 km of ridge hiking to reach the summit, and the views only get better as the trail moves further along.
The trail leads first to a false summit marked by a large cairn — a spacious, grassy bump where most hikers stop. The true summit sits less than 200 m further and about a dozen metres higher. There’s a small summit register that, at the time of our visit, was quite full due to the popularity.
As it’s a pretty short hike, we went for an afternoon start to enjoy the evening light. It would also make a nice hike for an alpine start to enjoy sunrise, since it’s a fairly simple objective. The challenge of the hike really comes from the steep approach through the forest, but it is short-lived.
The return to the trailhead is the same route as the ascent. It was notably more challenging to us than the ascent due to the small loose rocks on a well-packed trail—not many options for scree running here.
Best Time To Hike King Creek Ridge
It’s best to hike King Creek Ridge from early June to October. However, it’s possible to tackle the hike even in May, but it depends on the season. July is the best chance for wildflowers in bloom, but the alpine at the top is pretty limited and rocky.
Things To Note
The trail is really steep on the approach, so hiking poles are a really important tool. If going for a winter or spring ascent, we would also add micro-spikes as it would be very dangerous with ice.
While poles are great for ascents, we find them even more helpful for the descent as the trail is hard-packed dirt from the traffic with loose rock and dust. It’s a bit like waking atop marbles on a tiled, steep ramp, not pleasant.
Our Thoughts on King Creek Ridge
King Creek Ridge is a great workout as you can complete the trail pretty quick and steep ascent is serious. The trail has earned a solid reputation for both its steepness and epic views from the summit which we find to be true. There are certainly more pleasant hikes in Kananaskis, but this is a worthy addition to any hike list.
Crowds are pretty manageable if you time it right and if you have poles for the descent it’s not altogether unpleasant. It’s very similar to neighbouring Grizzly Peak and Opal Ridge. If we were to rank the three hikes, it would be King Creek Ridge, Opal Ridge, and Grizzly Peak. Which makes sense considering King Creek Ridge is likely the most popular option of the three hikes.
Kananaskis Conservation Pass
Visitors are now required to hold a Kananaskis Conservation Pass. The area covered in the pass includes Kananaskis and the Bow Valley corridor. Passes may be purchased online and are attached to a license plate number. Requirements are around vehicles and parking, not the individual.
This is a new law in effect for 2021, and we hope the newly generated revenue increases the budget for Alberta Parks. Better conservation and visitor experience is a win for all.
Kananaskis Conservation Pass Prices
- Daily Pass: $15 (registers one vehicle)
- Annual Pass: $90 (registers two vehicles)
Hiking Gear We Recommend
It’s tough to beat the comfort and stability of the Speedgoat. A more technical shoe would be the Salomon X Ultra.
It’s always jacket season in the Rockies. We always carry a down jacket on every adventure.
This nifty clip from Peak Design secures a camera to my backpack strap for easy reach. No more digging in the backpack!
A lightweight backpack is perfect for most hikes in the Rockies. We suggest keeping it simple and carrying the basics.
In case of emergencies, we carry a GPS-enabled emergency beacon. Solid for regular backcountry users.
