The Razor’s Edge Trail is one of the most technical trails in the Bow Valley and considered a crown jewel for mountain biking in Kananaskis Country. Hikers have long enjoyed the route for its stellar views and rugged terrain as it winds along McConnell Ridge. In recent years, the trail has evolved into a popular mountain bike trail for advanced riders who are drawn to its highly technical nature.
Accessed from the Quaite Valley Connector trail east, then following the Quaite Valley trail to the Prairie View/Jewell Pass Junction – Razor’s Edge branches left off Prairie View approximately 450m from the junction, weaving in and out of Bow Valley Wildland Provincial Park and Public Lands.
Although popular, this trail is undesignated / unsanctioned which means it is not formally recognized or maintained by Alberta Environment Parks (AEP). In 2017, AEP, the Friends of Kananaskis Country and the Canmore Area Mountain Bike Association partnered to address the trail’s use, safety, and options to formally designate this multi-use trail. For example, the existing Razor’s Edge alignment descends a steep slope off McConnell Ridge to Highway 1. One of the key elements to completing this trail is building a new 1.9 km section of trail that will direct users off McConnell ridge and offer a loop route back to the Quaite Valley Connector trail (and avoid travel along the highway ditch and shoulder).
The new connector is primarily descending, with a few short climbing sections to enable the trail to traverse across the slope and utilize nature features. The point at which this new trail leaves the original trail was carefully chosen to allow users to experience the majority of the technical sections that Razor’s is famous for. The new trail aligns with the style and character of the original trail, and will enhance the user’s experience. This phase of the project is critical to provide users with a better quality, longer and more enjoyable trail experience over the original line and offers a safer route back to the Quaite Valley Connector trail.
The 1.9km Connector trail (red line in below map) was completed in 2020.
2021 Work Plan: We will work on Phase 2 of this project which will focus general trail maintenance on the original Razor’s Edge trail, improving technical features (#1-5 on below map) and rerouting the Loam Forest (#6 on below map).
Make sure you check out the ‘calendar‘ for upcoming volunteer trail events for this project.
