Jasper Quicksand Pit

[stevensenechal]

If you have ever looked through photos of quicksand you may come across one entitled Jasper Quicksand. The photo is actually of a small pond ( no more than an acre ) of water in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada. The pond's real name is Ochre Lake and it is literally a stone's throw from the Lake Annette beach. The photo was probably taken in the spring as the pond/lake empties of water slowly and by August a fairly substantial area of quicksand is exposed. The stuff has the consistancy of runny oatmeal and thickens slowly as greater depths are reached. Because of the particular mixture of glacial sediments in this part of the Rocky Mountains, the sand has little organic matter in it and has a 'silky' feel. During the day, stepping over the low barrier which separates the pool from terra firma invites screams from tourists enjoying the Lake Annette beach and quick incarceration by the Park Wardens. On warm summer nights, however, the area is closed by a gate over a kilometer away as the beach area is 'Day Use Only' and closed to the public....

[Boggy Man]

Click the picture for the Panoramio webpage containing the picture which you can click on for a larger version (it got cut off when I tried putting it up here so I used the smaller version), as well as a Google Map of the area!

[stevensenechal]

Excellent work Boggy Man! I will get you a pic this August when the water drops!

[Duncan Edwards]

Hey Boggyman - Please as soon as you can contact me at mduncan36@msn.com or through the board private message system or both.

Thanks - Duncan

[101rocks]

Hi Guys,

Tried sinking in this place Oct 13th. It was pretty cold at night. The gate was actually open to cars still but I biked there to avoid having to park. It was a quick walk around the lake to see that many of the places were still covered in a thin layer of water but not 2-3ft like it normally is during summer. It was cold AF but jumped in. It was very thin on the top layer. Very fine sandy mixture and then under that was very thick creamy mud. Almost feels similar to the mud you find under a bog. If it wasn't for the trees that outline the perimeter that stuff would be very tough to get out of. Espcially in the summer when the water is deep. Dangerous combo for sure. Would deffinalty recommend playing in it if the top layer was fully exposed though. That could be fun.