Spring’s late-onset has done no great favour for mountaineering. A Cool April and May allowed late-season snow to add to an abundant snowpack, enabling cornices to persist beyond their normal range. Our quartet faced this when we set out to summit Malaspina Peak on May 22, 2022. Malaspina Peak is …
Marmot Mountain
When I posted Marmot Mountain to the club schedule, I enticed members with the promise, “Participants should be willing to participate in moderate bushwhacking to get through the lower areas of this route, and a few of the upper areas… and why not some more in the middle too?”. The …
Mount Apps
Dear Hemingway and Octavia, Most folks will agree that it’s more enjoyable to hike under clear skies than cloudy, but sometimes it rains. Let me make a case for the dreary day adventure. Though the views from the top of a mountain may be vast on sunny days, those sunbathed …
Pogo Mountain: A blast in the bush
additional photo contributions by Jes Garceau Pogo Mountain falls inside the Tla-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks. When hiking in these tribal parks, consider making a donation to the Tribal Park Guardians as we did. The Island’s backcountry isn’t immune to the sways of social media. It seems like every summer there’s a …
Mount Leiner and Phil’s beguiling smile
Mount Leiner is a surprisingly spectacular mountain. The most common approach begins on the outer edge of Tahsis, climbs Leiner’s southwest ridge and meanders several kilometres through the bush toward the summit. Considering its relatively low elevation, it holds a surprisingly high alpine character once you get beyond the shrubs. …
Volcano Peak – Unfinished Business
And so it was that on July 4, three adventuresome souls faced stifling heat and humidity, flies and bush, all in the name of tending to unfinished business: A successful summit of Volcano Peak. Back before the year that never was, before anyone had heard the word COVID-19, Matthew, Phil and Karl …
Paradise Meadows to Wood Mountain: A Family Traversing
Call it our wedding anniversary, the final weekend before school, an early celebration of Octavia’s birthday, or just Labour Day; on September long weekend, I led a group of families on a traverse of Strathcona Park. I’ve hiked the route between Raven Lodge and the Old Forbidden Plateau ski lodge …
Mount Cokely: The Kids Ontop
Dear Hemingway and Octavia, Time tends to run away from me when I’m not looking. Mired in the day to day conflicts that arise between parents and kids, it feels like we’re standing still; Like we’ll never get out of this stage –whatever it is– and onto the next. But, …
Mount Arrowsmith – My Mouth Is Full
On Sunday, August 9th, I participated in a club trip to Mount Arrowsmith. I had scheduled it in the before times, as a way to sneak in an extra day of weekend hiking with the promise that I’d take my two kids with me. They are always up for an …
Sutton Peak via the West Ridge
Sutton Peak is one of Vancouver Island’s illustrious 6000 footers. It’s a destination that I frequently poke Phil about doing; since he first summited – without me—back in 2016. Aside from its height, this route’s sparkling feature is the long west ridge that leads mountaineers to seek this summit. No …