Pharaoh peak, Banff National Park - Sept 4th 2022

This was an epic day!! Very hard hike physically but nothing too technical. We parked at Sunshine ski resort and hiked from there via Healy pass. Total distance was 35,7 km, 1914 m elevation gain, 55830 steps, in 9h52 total including lunch break at Scarab lake after summiting Pharaoh peak. We got up at 4am, left Cochrane at 5am and started our hike at 6h18. We were back to Sunshine ski resort at 16h11. We added Egypt lake and Scarab lake to our hike, adding an extra 1 km to this adventure. The smoke really wasn’t bad at all. We saw some fresh bear scat but no bear. This was a very difficult day, I would recommend doing this in 2 days and camp at one of the 2 backcountry campground on that trail. One located at about 5 km passed the trailhead and the second one just before Egypt lake (that one would be my choice). The challenging part of that hike is the distance, the 356 m uphill on the way back (which feels like climbing Everest 😂 even though it is an easy gradual ascent) and the steep straight forward ascent to Pharaoh peak (No switch back!). Overall, it was an amazing day with stunning views but I ended up loosing my big toe nails after that hike!lol