When I was invited to contribute to Mountain Voices: The Mountain Legacy Project and a Century of Change in Western Canada, I immediately thought of Bow Lake — a place that has shaped me more than almost any other. It’s where I’ve worked, lived, and returned to over and over again, learning something new each time. Writing about Bow Lake felt natural, and taking the repeat photograph that accompanies my essay added another layer of meaning.

For anyone who has been there in its 100-year history, Abbot Pass Hut is a remarkable place. For anyone who hasn’t been, a quick glimpse of its location might make one double-take. Perched upon an inhospitable heap of stone piles between Mts. Lefroy and Victoria on the border of Banff and Yoho national parks, Abbot Pass Hut has been keeping mountaineers warm and safe since its construction in 1922.

But that heap of stones proved to be unstable.