Living the best adventure life, since 1958
July 3, 2023
~ submitted by John Robertson
Only 2 people arrived at the old Wood Mountain parking lot for an 8:30 start. The
colour of the sunlight betrayed the presence of a smoke haze in the air, and the
otherwise clear skies promised a hot day.
Continue reading “Maquilla Peak washed down with Mount Alston”
June 17, 2023
~ submitted by Mary Hof
I led (with Ray Billings help) a hike for 8 Island Mountain Ramblers that took us 9 hours and 15 minutes. 1100m elevation gain and 22km. This hike was a Ridge Rambler hike. The weather was good, the wind kept us cool.
[The below report is for the club trip done in June 2023]
The Nootka trail is a remote and rugged 40km through hike on Nootka Island. We accessed the trail via water taxi from Tahsis, starting from Yuqout with a pickup at Tongue Point. The trail passes through the Mowachaht/Muchalat First Nations territory. We planned a south to north hike with intention to conduct trail maintenance along the way. We brought clippers for clearing the trail, ropes for helping with steep sections, and planned to mark headland trails as well with buoys that could be found on the beach.
Day One: Travel to Nootka
After a long drive from Victoria with a pick up in South Nanaimo we arrived in Tahsis in the early afternoon. We learned a small plane had crashed in the area just the day before, so there was a fair bit of activity in town with first responders, reporters, and fire crews dealing with the incident. We were still able to board our water taxi and travel to Yuquot to begin the Nootka Trail from the south end. It was a short walk to our first camp where we spent the first night.
What a day to be in the mountains!
Nestled in a valley between The Cats Ear and the Mackenzie Range Peak, Canoe Peak is a hidden gem that is often overlooked due to its obscured location. Trust me when I say it’s worth the squeeze, but you’ll have to squeeze hard!
I led a hike from the trailhead of Mt. Holmes to Fork Lake, on the Gowlland Todd Provincial Park. It was 20km and 750m elevation gain. Hiked included the whole ridge, which gave outstanding views. We stopped at Jocelyn Hill, Squally Reach, and Mt. Work for longer breaks.
May 13, 2023
~ submitted by Ken Warren
The weather was gorgeous, if a little warmer than expected. Trail conditions were excellent with no snow on the trail, solid footing, and improvements on the lower section.
