At 9:23pm on Saturday August 29th 2026 I completed the Crowsnest High Five in a time of 21 hours 23 minutes and 00 seconds.
I began at spry running store in Blairmore, AB Saturday morning at midnight. Joined by my friend Austin Sedgwick, I made my way up Turtle Mountain first. I had just done this mountain in the dark with Joanna Ford during her High Five effort a week prior, so I was confident I would be able to navigate the tricky ridge between the false and true summits with little trouble. We made a quick ascent and an even faster descent, earning a few new personal best efforts on these segments to put me approximately 45 minutes ahead of my goal pace. Skylar Roth-MacDonald met us at the bottom for resupply and I began the long, solo trip out to Mount Coulthard around 2:50am.
I had another resupply opportunity with Skylar on York Creek road, which allowed me to pack light for the run across town. This next section would be several hours before I have another resupply opportunity, so I packed extra calories and prepared for the only section of course I hadn't done in advance. Recent grading on the ATV trail leading up to Mount Coulthard made this trip even easier than my previous efforts and I was grateful for the relatively smooth jog. I reached the summit of Coulthard a few minutes after 6:00am, punched my High Five card, and made my way down to the bowl as the sun began to rise.
The connection between Mount Coulthard and the Andy Good Basin is a route I have been eyeing for a while, but I hadn't had the opportunity to complete it yet. Although it was steep, the connection was as rewarding as I had hoped, dropping me into the Andy Good Basin and on to the 7 Bridges trail for a most spectacular downhill jog to Highway 3 where I met with Skylar again, this time joined by his partner, Laura. A quick resupply and I set off for the third mountain of the day, Mount Tecumseh. Jamie Lowe-Wylde started about 30min ahead of me to allow himself time to rig up a 70 meter rappel line on the east aspect of the Tecumseh summit, allowing me to make a speedy, direct descent into the East bowl and out towards summit number five, Crowsnest Mountain. I had scouted several route options for traveling up-and-over Tecumseh and despite the additional logistics of involving ropes, this was the optimal route and saved more than 5 kilometers of travel over rough, rocky terrain. I reached the summit at 11:30am, approximately 75 minutes ahead of my plan, so I took this opportunity to slow down and consume a few extra calories. The rappel itself is not very steep and could be down climbed without the rope, but we decided the extra work was worth the safety-insurance after more than 12 hours on my feet.
After leaving Tecumseh, I navigated my way through a few ATV trails, a short bushwhack, and a knee deep stream crossing to reach the Crowsnest Mountain Trailhead where I was greeted by my friends Bill, Kevin, and Shirley. During my resupply I took note of the very full parking area, knowing I might have some trouble passing others on the trail. This mountain is notoriously dangerous for rock fall in the busy season. Kevin would join me for the first mile of the trail up before I began the technical ascent. I met ten people coming down the chimney, the most I have ever seen, so I was grateful to have my helmet as I followed non-typical ascent lines to avoid climbing under or over others. As I began approaching the summit, I could see storm clouds in the distance and I was inspired to push through this one quickly to avoid potentially being caught in a storm on this very exposed summit. The effort paid off as I managed to return to the trailhead before any of the climbers I saw descending as I was ascending. Not that any of them knew this was a competition, but I felt pretty proud of myself in this moment to have moved this quickly, setting a new personal best on the descent route with nearly 70 kilometers and 4 summits in my legs.
The final summit would require another long run back to Blairmore. In 2025, this 23 kilometer jog is where my run fell apart. With the end in sight, I pushed too hard and didn't fuel properly, leaving me nauseas on the final push. So, this year I did exactly the same thing, but this time it was part of my plan. Knowing I had only the easiest of the five summits remaining, I planned to use this opportunity to empty the tank on the easy, net downhill trails leading back to town. Skylar joined me for this section and cracked the whip whenever my walking break lasted a little too long. We arrived at the Bluff mountain trailhead a few minutes after 7:00pm, nearly 2 hours ahead of schedule. As expected, I was starting to dip into the well at this point, and with a sour stomach developing, I was struggling to stay on my nutrition schedule. Laura and Bill met us for a resupply and some encouraging words. I drank 1/2 a soda, ate a gel and committed myself to finishing before the sunset.
The climb up Bluff was slow, but efficient. I was grateful for dirt-covered trails after a long day on the sharp and unforgiving talus rock that defines the Rocky Mountains of southwestern Alberta. I did my best not to stop for too long on the ascent other than to put on my jacket for the wind near the top. I signed in to the register and punched the final summit on my High Five card before making the descent. I how did in my mind that I would reach the bottom without a headlamp, but the final 400 meters of thick forest forced me to make one last stop to retrieve my headlamp from my pack. Bill was waiting for me at the trailhead so we could finish the final kilometer back to spry running store and close the loop I began exactly 21 hours and 23 minutes prior. I stopped my watch just in time to watch the last light disappear on the horizon. A perfect end to a most perfect day. Super stoked to have surpassed my goal by a significant margin and inspired to set my sights on sub-20 in a future effort.