Tag Archives: Swimming

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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The Backpacking Trap

3 Dec

Sometimes on the road you run into a place that it is very hard to leave but Mombasa Backpackers is a whole different animal. People arrive here expecting to stay a few days and end up staying months. I was supposed to stay here two days and ended up staying two weeks. Within the massive walls you have a very family feel as the backpackers itself is in an old family mansion. Don’t let the family atmosphere fool you though as bathing suits are forbidden after dark in the pool (for some reason only the guys follow this one). Beers are cheap and a few sunrises on the beach are always in the cards. Brush up on your beer pong skills as games are a nightly occurrence. I managed to finally peel myself away but I have the feeling I left numerous brain cells and a large chunk of my liver there.

Foggy

Mombasa Backpackers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beer pong

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't lose beer pong

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The Dutch Doctors

17 Nov

I had reached Zanzibar the place in Africa to drink copious amounts of beer and swim in the very warm Indian Ocean. The only problem was that I developed an ear infection essentially blocking me from these activities. I was a little bummed about it but figured it wasn’t the worst thing in the world. I luckily bumped into 4 Dutch doctors all my own age down in Africa on their final internship. They went over my symptoms and informed me that beer and swimming in the ocean were both fine to do. I was of course ecstatic and waltzed up to the bar to grab an ice cold Kilimanjaro. A huge thanks to my Dutch friends for keeping my party going!

Foggy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Rafting the Nile

29 Oct

If you are looking for a little adventure in Uganda make your way to Jinja. It is the adventure capital of the country. I booked with Nile River Explorers and they came to pick me up in Kampala. $125 will get you a full day of rafting which also includes three meals. We got lucky on our boat and got the river manager of the company Jane as our guide. With over 21 years of guiding experience all over the world she definitely knew her stuff out there. We were a little sticky for her in the boat though as she kept trying to knock us off in the rapids and couldn’t quite manage, she eventually gave up and told us to jump out on the last rapid so we could swim through it. Until my next near drowning experience!

Foggy

Nile River Explorers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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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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My Wellington Farewell

24 Sep

I may have had a few drinks my last night in Wellington with the boys and forgot a couple things in the apartment when I left New Zealand for good. Luckily Will made a visit back home and returned my trusty handheld and I found this gem on there.

Foggy

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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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Queenstown

29 Feb

The alarm buzzed and it was time for Will and I to drag our hungover bodies out of bed. Took a taxi to the airport and we boarded our flight to Queenstown. We went to go rent our car and we were both surprised they still gave it to us after our comments of finding out we had full insurance, which included “well now we can really smash up the car” from me and “I really dinged up the last rental car I had” from Will. We checked in at the hostel and then drove to the top of Coronet Ski field to have a look. We then drove to Arrowtown for some adult beverages then up the lake to Glenorchy. We got back into Queenstown and started to really get into the party. We cruised around town buying round after round until it was time to pull the shoot on the night as we had a long drive the next day.

We set off at 9 in the morning after a mandatory McDonalds breakfast for Milford Sound. It was a great drive out through the mountain ranges and 4 hours later we reached our destination. We got on our boat and did a tour of Milford Sound and checked out all the waterfalls and sights it had to offer. I had wanted to do this trip ever since I watched the snowboard movie That’s It That’s All where they did a helicopter shot over the fjords. The cruise was amazing and I strongly recommend it to anyone going to New Zealand. We finished up the cruise and took our time getting back to Queenstown with a few look out spots and swimming holes. A great night of pool and beers rounded off our Sunday night on our successful trip down to Queenstown. Then 12 hours later I was back at work wondering where my weekend had gone.

Foggy

New Zealand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Zealand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Zealand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Zealand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Summer Vacation…

9 Jan

Surfboards on the roof, camping gear in the back, Tom, his brother James, his girlfriend Bridget and myself started our drive up North to the Coromadel. We drove to a friend Mitch’s holiday park and picked up a buddy Redo on the way. We set up camp and went to go watch the India vs. Australia test cricket at Mitch’s cabin. For dinner we had fresh fish and chips that Mitch’s family had caught that day. We had a great night full of beers and cricket and then headed off to bed. That night the sky’s opened up and our trip got thrown for a big loop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With our tent soaked in the morning and more rain coming down, we decided to pull the plug on camping in that spot. We loaded the car and drove back to Thames, to head to the east coast of the Coromadel. We then found out there were severe weather warnings on that side so our trip was diverted back south to Waihi Beach. We got there and the weather was the same so we all decided to drive back to Taraunga and rethink a plan. After being back in doors for a night we packed up Mitch’s van and were heading for Lake Rotorua, the only problem was that we found one of the hoses for the radiator was loose. 4 hours later the problem was fixed and we drove down to the lake to meet a friends family in their cabin on the lake. We had a big dinner waiting for us and then were shown to our own cabin.

The next day we went out on the boat and then the rain started coming down, Tom and Redo were in the back of the boat and had to block their faces from the onslaught of rain pelting them. We drove to a great cliff jumping spot and then went to warm up in some natural hot springs on the lake. Night came and we jumped into the hot tub, and all we could do was laugh on how hard the rain was falling on us. The countdown to New Years came and we exchanged kisses before hitting the water slide naked. It was such a simple night but we all had an awesome time playing in the downpour. We stayed a couple of more nights and then went back to Tom’s house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next morning I caught a bus up to Auckland to meet up with my friend Meghan. Meghan is one of the girls I stayed with in Dubai and she was in Auckland for the night as she is cabin crew for Emirates. It is always great to see somebody from home and we went out for dinner and beers. The next day we said our farewells and I boarded my bus for Wellington. A long 12 hours later I arrived back home to start work the very next day.

Foggy

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