Tag Archives: Hiking

Crown Mountain

22 Oct

Before the rainy months of Vancouver kicked in we decided to get out for one more summer hike. Brian, Adam and I jumped into my trusty VW and headed out to North Vancouver. We elected to take the BCMC trail up Grouse Mountain instead of taking the famous Grouse Grind where seeing high heels is not out of the norm. After getting to the top of the trail we continued to the start of the real hike out into the back-country. It was a gorgeous day as we trudged further away from Grouse Mountain Resort. We hit a very steep downhill section with some chains and I couldn’t help whistle the Indiana Jones theme in my head. We got back down the valley and started the accent of Crown Mountain. It was a touch slog but we finally made it to the top of Crown Mountain and were blown away by the view(yes of Brian).

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Looking south was a view of the city and then north was a sea of endless peaks.

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With Jello legs we managed to drag ourselves back to the pub at Grouse where the ice cold pale ales were exactly what the doctor ordered to nurse our legs back to health.

Until next time!

Foggy

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Adam taking in the view.

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Elfin Lakes

30 Sep

Itching to get out of the city again the boys decided to take a Friday night off drinking to get an early start Saturday. With coffees in hand Alex, Cormac, Mike and I were on our way to Elfin Lakes in Garibaldi Provincial Park. Just over an hour later we were at the trail head with back packs on ready to roll. There wasn’t much to look at the first half of the hike but it soon opened up to great views of Mt. Garibaldi.

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We eventually got to Elfin Lakes and set up camp on one of the wooden platforms.

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With some extra gas in the tank we continued on to Opal Cone to get a great view of the glaciers.

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After the long hike back it was time to dip into the beer rations for the night and enjoy a swim in the lake.

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The next day we woke up and enjoyed breakfast with one of the best views nature has to offer.

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After breakfast we hiked up to The Gargoyles these great lava formations above Elfin Lakes.

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On our way down we shared the trail with a black bear but luckily it was more interested in the foliage than 4 handsome young men.

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We packed up our gear and it was time to say goodbye to another great weekend spent in the British Columbia back-country.

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Until next time!

Foggy

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Black Tusk

29 Jul

Three weekends of partying in a row is pretty usual in the summer months but I needed a break. I called up my buddy Luke and we decided to get into the back country. Luke picked me up at 5am Saturday morning in his Jeep Cherokee and we were out of the city by the time the sun came up. 1.5 hours later we were at the trail head with our gear strapped to our backs and started up the path. The trail up to the Lake is nothing to write home about with countless switchbacks for the entire 9km. We got to the end of the trail and I was blown away by Garibaldi Lake. It was a gorgeous turquoise blue without a single ripple on it.

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Garibaldi Lake

Luke and I set up our camp and went right to the lake to cool down from the mornings hike. We made a make-shift cooler in the lake to cool our beers down and spent the day relaxing in the sun and jumping off the dock.

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Garibaldi Lake

We got up early the next day and started out on the trail up the mountain. Black Tusk has always been a bucket list item for me and to quote Sir Edmund Hillary today was the day I was going to knock the bastard off. This part of the hike was stunning as you are surrounded by lush meadows, wild flowers, streams and the back drop of the coastal mountains.

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Taylor Meadows

As you get near the top all sign of life disappears as a warning that the Tusk is not to be taken lightly. The terrain turns to shale and every step forward you slide a little back. Before you know it you are starring the last obstacle in the face, the dreaded chimney.

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Just below the Tusk

My heart was pumping with adrenaline as I started the climb knowing that any loose hold would send me barreling into Luke and take us both off the side of the mountain. We both managed just fine and were left speechless at the top. We took our time taking it all in, then came the obvious question of how are we supposed to get down?

 

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Black Tusk Summit

 

Until next time my foggy friends!

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Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

28 Oct

Getting to Buhoma where I was to stay for my gorilla trekking was interesting to say the least. It involved many “shortcuts” of muddy terrain going up and over hills while dealing with heavy rain fall. I eventually got to my destination 11 hours after leaving Kampala early in the morning.

The next day my group set out to find the Mubare family of mountain gorillas in the National Park. I was an easy target for the rangers as I was the only person hiking in shorts (there was no way I was doing that in jeans). Once we set off you found out why they called it the impenetrable forest as it was extremely thick bush. Two hours and a few bug bites later we reached the trackers who had gone out ahead of us. The next hour we spent hanging out with these huge animals watching them lie about and snack on the vegetation. Here is some video of the massive animals deep in the jungle.

Foggy

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Foggy’s Back!

11 Oct

Everyone’s least favourite travel blogger is back! Check out the new video put together by my good friend Andrew Noon, hope you enjoy!

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Noosa National Park

10 Apr

The four Canadians piled into the car and we took the 40 minute drive from Mooloolaba to Noosa National Park. It was a gorgeous 4000 hectares nature reserve right on the Sunshine Coast. We took one of the trails that took you by all the different beaches until getting to Hells Gate which gave you a view of Alexandria Beach. Sadly I didn’t have my perving binoculars out though because it is known as a nude beach. We doubled back and settled down at Tea Tree Bay which the girls were quick to point out also had some nice pairs on it. A lot of people were surfing but we just hopped in for a dip and then lounged in the sun. I really recommend anyone who is up the coast in Australia to head there and take in the walks through the park, and hopefully you will get luckier than us and actually see some wildlife besides bigger than life spiders.

Foggy

Noosa National Park, Hells Gate

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A Foreign Christmas

5 Jan

Will, Tom and I piled into the car on a perfectly sunny day and hit the road to drive up North. We had the windows open and I felt that summer had finally arrived in the South Pacific. A few hours into the drive Tom announced we should go bungee jumping, and my heart sank immediately. Bungee jumping is definitely on the bucket list, but I thought I would have more time to work up the courage. We stop in the next town to grab some of that courage in liquid format and continue on our voyage. We arrive at Lake Taupo and get kited up for the jump. Will jumps first and hits the water. Then it is my turn, my heart racing I stand at the ledge and look down and heave myself off the ledge. Tom went next in his waist harness (Tom had dislocated his hip years ago in rugby and was talked into not doing it from the ankles) and then we were back on the road as fast as he had gotten off of it. We dropped Will off with his Dad and then drove the rest of the way to Tauranga.

I woke up at Tom’s and his Mom came in with a little cupcake and candle on it for my birthday. It was another beautiful day so we went for a hike up Mt. Manganui for a view up and down the coast. Next up was a swim at the beach and then continued on to Simi’s house. We picked him up and went for a drive in the sunshine and stopped by at a local pub for lunch. This was special for me as it is a tradition to do this back home on my birthday with my friends. We went back for a swim in Simi’s pool before heading into town for a night at the bar.

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I woke up at Simi’s for Christmas and his mom had made us a great breakfast. The champagne was opened and we gathered around the tree for presents. I opened all the ones from my family, and then to my surprise the Simister’s had gotten me a few things as well. It was pretty amazing to feel a part of the family so far away from mine. We then carried some food next door to grandma’s and set up for Christmas lunch. It was quite the spread with turkey, chicken, beef, ham, lots of different salads and veggies. After lunch I skyped the family and we chatted for a while. It was great to get them all together at the same time and talk to them (even though my mom couldn’t hold up the ipad without crying), after a few numbers from my nieces which included a brush up of my ABC’s I left them back in the snow of Whistler. We then went and grabbed Tom from his place where I had a few more presents waiting for me from his family. We drove back to Simi’s and started to play a little BYC* with the boys. Christmas ended with us lounged out on the couch watching movies with stomachs to full to do much else.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This will definitely be a Christmas that always stands out for me. I thought my first Christmas away from home was going to be tough but it turned out to be an amazing experience. The Simisters and Culleys went well out of their way to make me feel like part of the family and I greatly appreciate that. I know I have said it a lot but the way New Zealander’s make you feel welcome is out of this world and that is something I will take with me the rest of my days. A huge Thank You to both families and I hope to one day pass on the kindness they showed me.

Foggy

*BYC – Back yard cricket

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Dana, Jordan

7 Aug

I met a girl named Randi from Denmark and we decided to do a trip from Amman somewhere. We chose Dana in the south and packed our days packs and went to the bus station. It took a good 2 hours for the bus to fill up but finally we were on our way. A long bus ride later we got to the town of Dana, where we were picked up and driven to our hotel. The town only had 3 families left living in it and was situated on the edge of a hill. It was amazing to see this green nature reserve when all we had seen so far in Jordan was desert. We got settled into our room and went for a hike up to a spring to watch the sunset. We were invited over by a group of Bedouin to wash our feet in the spring and watch the sunset as we tried to communicate through broken English.

Back at the hotel we met a couple from Canada/Israel and decided to split a guided tour in the park with them the next day. After a great dinner, Randi and I went out for a walk to check out the stars and on the way back we got invited to a fire with some guys drinking tea and smoking Sheesha. We joined them and learned they were part of the Jordanian Special Forces, through lots of effort we managed to have a conversation. We finally excused ourselves to head back to our room.

We were eaten alive all night but managed to get up in the morning to go on our hike. Our guide was great and we had a nice tea break half way through. After the hike the couple drove us a couple of towns over and we caught the bus back to Amman. We were quite happy with our decision to leave the hustle and bustle of the big city, even though we managed to get much less sleep there.

Jordan Foggy

 

 

 

 

 

 

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