What's this? Organizing two Wanderung hikes in the space of a month? I sent out a callout for Mount Seymour, seeing as Maria was occupied with various Morris dancing activities and got plenty of responses. After all, who could resist a hike on such a sunny day? And so it was that eight of us … Continue reading Mount Seymour, 10 Nov 2012
Our original plan had been to spend the weekend out on an overnight trip, but for various reasons we weren't up to that. Our re-scoped plans had us meeting Merewyn in Pitt Meadows and enjoying an easy stroll along the banks of Gold Creek in Golden Ears park. We were surprised to find the trail … Continue reading Gold Creek Falls, 16 Sep 2012
Finally, Friday! Alas all good things must come to an end, but we had the prospect of a hot shower and elk steak ahead of us, so it wasn't all bad :-) Somehow I was colder on this night than on the previous one. It wasn't frosty, at least not by the tents - only … Continue reading The Skyline: Day 3, 7 Sep 2012
Frosty Furzday OK so that's a really, really bad pun. But you should know that about me by now :-) I fully expected the night to be frosty – clear skies after rain and camping above 2000 m – but it wasn't until around 5 am that I began to feel the cold. Fortunately it … Continue reading The Skyline: Day 2, 6 Sep 2012
Wet Wednesday We stirred at 6 am on the Wednesday morning, scoffed some breakfast, and headed to the north trailhead. It had rained a little in the night, which had thankfully eased off as we packed away our gear, but it returned as we drove towards the parking lot near Maligne Canyon. We had 15 … Continue reading The Skyline: Day 1, 5 Sep 2012
The Skyline... Long before we ever started backpacking, we had heard great things about this hike and considered doing it as a guided trip. It seemed so risky to venture out into bear (especially grizzly) country with nothing but a nylon wall between you and the outside world - I distinctly remember being nervous at … Continue reading The Skyline, 5-7 Sep 2012
After yesterday's excursion to Wilcox Pass, we wanted to do something closer to home before we set out on the Skyline tomorrow. A quick discussion led us to opt for Indian Ridge as it was a highly-rated hike, plus it got us up into the alpine with little effort, thanks to the Jasper Tramway. On … Continue reading Indian Ridge, 4 Sep 2012
We did this hike back in 2009 after our Mount Assiniboine trip and, given its superlative rating by the Copelands, we wanted to repeat it and use it as a kind of in-your-face introduction to hiking in the Rockies for Susanne, Brenda, Jeremy, and Gabriela. Our plan was to take a steady drive south along … Continue reading Wilcox Pass, 3 Sep 2012
A weekend off hiking, a weekend on one of the southern Gulf Islands. Our plan was to unwind at the pace of Island Time, but we still found ourselves drawn to the highest-rated hike on the Pender Islands, Mount Norman. (Yes, there are two Pender Islands - north and south connected by a bridge over … Continue reading Mount Norman, 21 Jul 2012
The forecast was for rain, rain and - you guessed it - more rain, but I could see gaps in the clouds, and decided that it wouldn't hurt to walk in the rain anyway. I headed for Whyte Lake, a relatively new trail since the lake is officially in the West Vancouver watershed and was … Continue reading Whyte Lake, 16 Jun 2012
Being. Outdoors. 