March 27, 2022
~ submitted by John Robertson
Only 2 braved the gloomy weather for this trip, but in fact, rain was virtually nil.
Three Lakes
Strata Mountain Snowshoe
February 26, 2022
~ submitted by Brian Flemming, photos by Brian Flemming and Matthew Lettington
I joined the Island Mountain Ramblers recently to branch out a bit, meet some new people, learn some new things and participate in some safe group activities and hopefully summit a few mountains I wouldn’t be able to do alone.
Today’s snowshoe was a good example of a hike that I wouldn’t have done alone because of the weather.
Continue reading “Strata Mountain Snowshoe”Mount Richards Grand Tour
–submitted by Mary Hof
Saturday Feb 26th was another wonderful day out for a hike. Rain was forecasted but we were very lucky and prepared. I had 8 people join in on my Mt Richard grand tour 15km 732m elevation. We stopped by Crofton Lake and Breen Lake and got to lots of view points, and to the summit of Mt Richards, where we had lunch.
Christie Falls, Thistle Mine, Camas Ridge
—submitted John Robertson
February 6, we opted for a circuitous route to Christie Falls, via the old railway, and Arroyo Road. Conversation made the kilometres pass quickly, and we were at the old cabin in three quarters of an hour. From there we continued to the falls. Several of the hikers had never seen them, and were suitably impressed.
We then continued to the abandoned Thistle mine. Those that wished to, entered and explored the mine. We had a snack, while idly searching the tailing pile for stray pieces of copper ore.
Next, we headed to the North end of Camas Ridge. The green of the moss was brilliant beyond words. As we continued along the ridge,the sun finally joined us, giving us bright warm sunbeams through the Arbutus trees.
On the way back to the cars, we diverted slightly, to the site of the old Regan resort, to explore what ruins remain.
Then we were back at the cars. We said our goodbyes and carried on with our Sunday.
Mount Manuel Quimper, Thunderbird Mountain, Ragged Mountain return on the flowline
On January 29, 2022, we finally caught a break. After what seemed like weeks of rain, it relented for a Saturday of hiking through the Sooke bumps. I relied heavily on the beta provided by a friend who frequents the area in planning the trip. I trusted he would provide us with some good routes to highlight some of the best features. He didn’t disappoint!
Goldstream Park Trail
–submitted by Mary Hof
The November 1, 2021 hike was wonderful, lots of waterfalls, leaves were beautiful, and even had a beautiful view of Mt Finlayson from Lookout Rock.
Mount Tzouhalem
–submitted by Mary Hof
December 20th turned out to be an awesome day for a hike. Thanks to those that ventured from Nanaimo and Victoria to join in.
We started at Kaspa Rd trailhead and hiked some trails then got onto the AWESOME trail, and that it was, Â with great views and a bench to sit on. We then took Field of Dreams to the far end and came on the Ridge trail, with great views. We had lunch in the sun and ventured our way back coming along side the Flower Reserve where only in a few months the flowers will be blooming.
Thank you for the wonderful people that joined in this hike. The hike was 10.5 km with 700m elevation gain
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Maple Mountain
—submitted by Mary Hof
Seven of us hiked from Chico Rd, Saturday, Feb. 5th. We started on the Blue, then yellow, then went up the cliffs to the Old Blue trail. We then headed Mary’s way (come follow me) and had lunch at Rainsford Lake. from there we headed back to the car, 11km and 700m elevation gain.
The Hordelski – Mt Benson
–submitted by Ken Warren
The forecast was quite grim for New Year’s Day. It called for overnight snow, light snow in the morning, and wind increasing throughout the day. Well there was no overnight snow which made access to the trailhead possible, it wasn’t snowing when we set out, and the wind and temperature were reasonable.
Gowlland Todd: A Ridge Ramble
—submitted by Mary Hof
January 23rd, I led 6 Island Mountain Ramblers, and 6 Outdoor Club of Victoria members, (I am a member of both); to a hike in the Gowlland Range.
The Gowlland Range is just east of Saanich Inlet and south of Brentwood Bay. I started at the Emma Dickson trailhead. We started in fog and even had some hail dropping on us, at times we got some sun. We were above the cloud, which made for beautiful views. I usually don’t take this many people, but I knew that on some of the trails I would take, we would not see anyone on them. It all worked out well.