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Writer's pictureTrail Mix Mel

Little Elbow to Romulus Campground

This 12 km (~7.5 mi) hike along the Little Elbow River, Alberta, takes you to the riverside backcountry Romulus campground, where you can peacefully watch the sunset through the mountain valley. A little peace of heaven.

Sunset; mountain; light
 

Hike details

  • Length: ~12 km one-way; 24 km total

  • Duration: 3-4 hours for casual hike; 2h 15 min if you push it.

  • Style: Out-and-back

  • Pros:

    • Easy trail

    • No navigation needed

    • Beautiful views

    • Not a popular hike, so never very busy

  • Cons:

    • Most of the hike is on a carriage trail

    • Not many places to stop for breaks

  • Of note:



 

The trailhead is at the Little Elbow Campground, which is very busy in the summer time. Sometimes a parks employee will direct traffic, ensuring everyone can find parking, but I would still recommend allowing yourself plenty of time to navigate the parking situation. And careful, there is a lot of foot traffic, lots of kids running around!



From the parking lot, head west along the gravel road or the parallel hiking path. Watch out for traffic if you opt to walk at the edge of the road, as you're still in the campground area. You're immediately next to the Little Elbow River, with its braided streams and gravel bars and you sometimes catch a nice breeze on a hot day! At the first gate out of the campground (and onto the trail in earnest), you find the trail map.


Map
Trail map

It's mostly flat for the first 5 km, and while you are on a gravel road, if you peek behind the first row of trees, you can see these absolutely magical, mossy ridges and streams. The sunlight pours through the trees in beams, illuminating parts of the streams as they pass under mossy bridges, sparkling in the sunshine. It really is beautiful and you can almost feel time standing still.


Moss; stream

moss; stream
Hidden worlds in moss

We came across many deer, birds and even a mother grouse with her baby chicks (all very camera shy!); even though you're on a gravel road, it feels like a forest hike for most of the way.


At about 5 km, you reach a bridge to cross the Little Elbow. This is a great place to pause for water, snacks and rest (for a list of the best vegan trail snacks, check this out). There is a bench and plenty of large rocks (on both sides of the river) to sit on. Or scope out the really cool cliff, if you're a geologist at heart like yours truly here. While we had our sustenance bars and some trail mix, we suddenly heard voices coming from behind us and what sounded like creaking... Turns out we were in time to meet the folks who carriage in feed for Mount Romulus Campground's sister equestrian site! Very friendly people.



river; cliff; rocks
Limestone cliff at the bridge over Little Elbow River

carriage;horses
Meeting some of the friendly staff

From the bridge, the trail starts to steepen, though not by much; there is the odd hill you hoof up (pun intended), and watch your footing on some of those cobbles, but this trail is totally manageable, even with a multi-day pack if you plan to camp. And it's worth taking pauses along the way to check out the beautiful wildflowers that line the trail.


flowers
Wildflowers along the trail

After a couple final hills, you reach the well-marked turnoff for the campsite. First you walk past the tent pads - so grab one if you're camping, dump off your pack and stretch your back! Then you pass the surprisingly clean pit toilets and onwards to the dining tables, fire rings and the river's edge! We opted to sit by the river and soak our feet in the cold water while we had our backcountry dinner.


camping; river; backcountry
Time for dinner!

If you're planning to out-and-back in the same day, then after some rest, turn around and head back the way you came! You'll find that the bridge rest area is perfectly placed for a brief snack on the return trip. If you're sticking around to camp, you'll be (weather pending!) rewarded with a beautiful sunset in the valley... and an equally lovely sunrise on Mount Romulus! I've camped here several times and highly recommend staying the night. This last trip, we were surrounded by animals at night (sounded like moose, could have been bears), so do beware that you are heavily in wildlife territory... but if you keep your bear spray and wits about you, the views, birdsong and peace that comes with this relatively quiet campground are well worth it.


sunset; mountain; trees
Sunset behind Mount Blane

sunset on a mountain by the river
Sunrise on Mount Romulus

HAPPY TRAILS!

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