Category: Activity

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Peak 5040

August 3, 2024

~ submitted by Evan Martin

I met Christine, Dean, and Sarah at the start of Marion Creek FSR at 10:00. After quick introductions we proceeded to drive to the trail head. We took two vehicles – a small truck and an SUV – neither of which had any trouble on the FSR. It was in very good condition. We parked at the large pullout on the right hand side at the top of the hill near the 10km mark. After gathering our gear we proceed to walk another 400m up the road to the trail head. It was 10:30 by the time we left the trail head. Not quite the alpine start Dean was hoping for, but coming from Victoria I was happy to have a good night sleep.

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Mount Benson from the Southeast Approach

June 27, 2024

~ submitted by Ken Warren

Well the weather was better than forecast for our mountain adventure. Five of us headed up Benson from Morrell at a respectable speed.

By the time we got to the viewpoints the fog obscured our views. We ground on with only a few wrong turns and made the summit by noon. We sat around as the fog got thicker and the temperature dropped. Our wildlife sightings were limited to frogs  and grey jays.

We made good time on the descent and arrived at the parking lot tired, stiff, and quite happy.

 Thanks all for your company.

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Mount Cokely from the CPR Trail

June 20, 2024

~ submitted by Ken Warren

The weather was good. Mostly sunny with some clouds, but nice and cool.

I mean what can I say about Mount Cokely via the CPR Trail other than it’s longer and steeper every time I do it … oh, and there are killer views. Dean joined us for the first part of the hike before moving on ahead. Trail conditions were good until the snow on the final approach, and really the snow was aesthetically pleasing.

Three of us summited and lunched at the top and enjoyed the view – Arrowsmith is beautiful from Cokely.  The descent was uneventful. We all enjoyed the day.

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Mount McQuillan from China Creek Main

June 15, 2024

~ submitted by Matthew Lettington

It was an excellent day in the mountains despite the weather’s best efforts to confuse us.

While we had dreams of much grander mountains, because of the crappy forecast, we decided to reroute and head over to Mount McQuillan. I’ve done this before from Father and son Lake, but this time we wanted to do it a little bit different. From previous research, I knew that there was an easier route from the north ridge. 

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SSI Hiking Fest – Two Summit Hike

June 7, 2024

~ submitted by Leslie Gardner

This was Day 2 of the Salt Spring Hiking Fest and one of two hikes that were offered that day. Nine of us set out from Burgoyne Bay with the goal of bagging two summits – Mount Sullivan, 3rd highest on Salt Spring at 609m, and Mount Bruce, the highest at 709m. We lucked out with the weather – warm and sunny throughout the day.

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Mountain Improv with Island Alpine Guides

June 1, 2024

~ submitted by Su Castle

7 of us met Jan Neuspiel, owner of Island Alpine Guides at the Comox Lake crags for our day of instruction.

He ensured we all got what the course promised to deliver at a follow-able pace. Additional knowledge was shared as response to our many questions! Jan was friendly and incredibly knowledgeable. We had a mix of theory and hands on practice. The instructor was able to deliver to the different levels of experience within the group.

Minimizing risk in the mountains was emphasized with many relevant examples and stories. Participants were actively involved and I think we all got what we wanted/needed from the course.  It was a lot of information and we were encouraged to practice and contact IAG with any questions in the future. So worthwhile!

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CPR Trail – Arrowsmith Lookout Loop

April 13, 2024

~ submitted by Clint Millar

We made our way up the CPR trail continuing on the east side of the Arrowsmith lookout Loop. We were in and out of fog and cloud. It eventually blew out and we had clear blue sunny skies.

As we continued toward to west side of the loop, by the old ski hill road we hit the snow and it was quite cloudy again and cold. Making our way along the west side back to the CPR trail the skies opened up against and we enjoyed a beautiful decent. The whole hike was amazing.

Look forward to posting it again and taking another group up!