The Forest In The Fall

Looking up into the tree tops and the sky while hiking Jack's Trail.

The forest was particularly pretty on Saturday. We borrowed the hiking partner's dog and went for a 3 hour wander in the woods.

A Walk In The Woods

On the weekend, we went for a walk in the woods. The vine maples had become a lovely yellow. It looked as if someone had turned on the lights under the canopy of fir trees. I wouldn't be surprised if those maple leaves lit up the forest at night.

The Stawamus Chief

We hiked up to the second peak of the Stawamus Chief yesterday. It was 11 kilometres of gruelling uphill hiking, hanging on to chains and climbing ladders. A few sections were extremely technical for me, but I made it to the top relatively unscathed.

Elfin Lakes

On Sunday, we hiked 22 kilometres up to the Elfin Lakes in Garibaldi Park. Lots of snow, fabulous vistas and such a sense of accomplishment!

A Lake of Rainbows

On Sunday, September 27th, three intrepid souls hiked 8 kilometres up a 10% grade to Rainbow Lake. After a taking a few photos and eating a quick lunch, they hiked 8 kilometres back down again.

Stunning Joffre Lakes and the Matier Glacier

This Is Where I Live

The intrepid hikers tackle Crumpit Woods on a rainy day.

We had planned to hike the Joffre Lakes trail today. To get to the trail head on the Duffy Lake Road, one must drive 2 hours north of here. The hike itself takes about 4-6 hours meandering around three lakes with the Metier Glacier as a backdrop. I was reallllly looking forward to it!

But alas, the weather did not cooperate. At 7:00am the rain was slanting sideways, the trees were bent over and no one in our hiking group was keen to drive 2 hours in the rain to hike 4 hours in the rain, then drive another 2 hours home in the rain.

So we adapted our plans. We met at our place at 8:00am, had several cups of Joe's famous coffee with toast and jam (thanks Colleen) and then hiked 2 hours in and about Crumpit Woods. After baking in the sun and heat all summer, it was surprisingly lovely to be in a wet forest again. To make ourselves feel better about not experiencing the Joffre Lakes, we made up a list of the positive things about hiking on the local trails....

• our carbon footprint was smaller because we didn't have to drive very far.
• the fern fronds and vine maple leaves looked beautiful glistening in the rain.
• the air smelled wonderful.
• the fungi we saw was fluorescent orange.
• once we were finished the hike, it wouldn't take us long to get back to our cozy homes for a hot bath and a nap.
  

We are going to take a look at the long range weather forecasts and pick the next dry Sunday for another attempt at hiking around the Joffre Lakes.

P.S.
I must acknowledge Sue Shalanski for single-handedly getting me interested in hiking. Sue is a physiotherapist here in town and is currently organizing a '100 Day Wellness Challenge' starting on September 23rd. If you are interested in finding out more about it, please click here.