Rocky Mountains

Athabasca Falls and Mount Kerkeslin

The lookout at Athabsca Falls is popular in the summer but largely empty on this winter day. Mount Kerkeslin is in the background. The photo was taken a bit more than an hour and a half after sunrise - the sun is lighting up the trees in the background. It's tricky to get a consistent light in the river gorge beneath the falls - lots of contrast between the brigt white snow and shadows. Oddly enough, I can't seem to find a reference for why Kerkeslin got its name. It was named by James Hector, part of the Palliser expedition. (Hector was the fellow who was kicked by his horse - hence the name "Kicking Horse Pass".) One theory for why Hector named the mountain Kerkeslin is that he named it after a native word for wolverine which was similar. Hector's party encountered wolverines while travelling through this area. http://www.peakfinder.com/people.asp?PersonsName=Hector%2C+Sir+James

athabasca fallsjames hectorjasperkerkeslinmount kerkeslinwinter