Merewyn at Brohm Lake Interpretive Forest:
“We spent the gorgeous fall day meandering through the Brohm Lake Intepretive Forest, exploring different leaf-covered paths to viewpoints of the Tantalus Range and the rock bluffs overlooking Brohm Lake. We were pleasantly surprised by the terrain and the variety of landscape we hiked through. A note to those planning to hike there in future, there is a lower trail around the lake and an upper trail. The lower trail (the route we took originally) was a bit challenging with minor scrambling over rocks and crawling over/under trees, etc. We didn’t get all the way around the lake due to time constraints and then discovered the upper trail on the way back and quickly realized that was the main route – very wide, fairly level with no obstacles. It was an adventure though (and swimming in Brohm Lake was superb!) Big thanks to Gabriela and Victor for driving!”

Michelle at Goat Mountain:
“The seasons have officially changed! We were surprised to find that the trail was white in many sections with snow and plenty of ice. Poles can be useful as it can be a little slippery to navigate in places. We were also surprised to be caught on candid bear camera! We came across curious black boxes mounted on trees in a couple locations along Goat Ridge – with notices posted upon further investigation stating that they were monitoring black bear activity in the area (oops, too late, we probably triggered the motion sensor and were on someone’s university dorm room computer). Figuring the bears must like to picnic and play cards in the grassy meadows of the ridge we moved on to take in the other lovely views from Goat Mountain itself and enjoy lunch.”

Pablo at Rainbow Lake:
“The turkey sale call-out worked perfectly. At 8 am sharp, eight of us were ready to go shopping…I say hiking. We met a 9th hiker at the trailhead (who went to the turkey sale the night before) and at 10 am sharp we started going up towards Rainbow Lake. It took us exactly 6 hours to do the hike. Exact time by the book. We reached freezing level at the first bridge with lots of ice crystals on the ground. Soon we started finding snow patches and up to 5 cm of snow at the lake. There are lots of wood platforms and bridges and many are not even, often leaning to the sides and with the snow and ice it was kind of slippery. After the hike we ran to the turkey sale at Whistler. Only one of us got a pair of gloves at a store nearby, not at the ‘official turkey sale’ and we bought a lot of burgers in Whistler.”

Carollyne at Howe Sound Crest Trail (South):
“Ivy, Joss, Ming, Yaniv and I enjoyed hiking to St. Mark’s Summit and the south peak of Unnecessary Mountain. On the way, we attempted to see Bowen Island from the lookout recommended in Dawn Hanna’s book, and seemed to lose all our elevation gain before giving up, after small glimpses of the water. This lookout trail isn’t worth the effort when the excellent views from St. Mark’s are so close by. The trail, as far as St. Mark’s is now muddy, frosty and icy in parts, but was still in good condition. After St. Mark’s, the trail deteriorates, with long stretches of sometimes steep, tangled roots and several blown down trees to cross over or go under. We briefly lost the trail three times, missing switchback turns – as the trail looked so similar to its surroundings. The rocky, open stretches and views were worth the workout, however. The Unnecessary Mountain area was quite busy with hikers, some on the steeper north peak. We decided one more descent and ascent was one too many, and we had no regrets as it took almost as long to retrace our steps back to the parking lot – eight hours in total, including lunch and breaks.”

Chris on Mt Seymour:
“Cara, Dean, Ivy, Joss and Trudi joined me on a trip up Mt Seymour. Even at 10 am, the parking lot was cold. There was a fair amount of running water on the trail from the recent rainy weather but no mud and no water got in my light trail shoes. We didn’t see any rain but we had a couple brief intervals of light snow (!) and visibility dropped to 100 m when the clouds moved in. The clouds tried to lift when we got to the summit and we saw a brief bit of sun on the way down but it remained cool most of the day. The estimate of 5 hrs for this trail seems very leisurely and stronger hikers will be able to do it in less than 4 hrs even with lots of breaks. The km markings on the signs seems wrong most of the time – two signs about 500 m apart both noted 1.6 km to the summit.”

Susie D. at Tricouni Meadows:
“What a beautiful day for a hike. It felt like a gift from the gods. We saw a red fox on the way to the trailhead – an unusual sighting, at least for me. Once we’d negotiated the logging road, it was on with the boots and gaiters and into the mud holes. They actually weren’t quite as bad as usual, probably due to the fact that the road had been closed by a rock slide for the previous month. We hiked through the pretty meadows and forest alongside the creek that drains Kathryn Lake, and stopped for a snack to admire the beautiful blue of the lake and the island in its centre. Peaks all around – beautiful meadows – rock hopping to reach the second lake – what more could you want? We enjoyed the second lake so much that we elected to stay there and bask in the sun rather than continue to Cypress Lake. Maia impressed us by taking a swim. On the way back to the car we fulfilled Cheryl’s 5 year dream of seeing a bear while out on a hike. The bear was just where you want to see one – on the other side of the creek, minding his own business, turning rocks over and looking for grubs. Thanks to Astrid, Maia and Cheryl for the good company.”

Carollyne at Garibaldi Lake:
“Nine familiar and new Wanderungers had a great hike to Garibaldi Lake and Taylor Meadows in sunny, crisp and exceptionally clear weather. A Helm to Rubble Creek trail run was just finishing when we got there, making the parking lots almost full. A few glowing runners were still on the trail for the first 30 minutes, but there was enough room for everyone. There were great views, including from the Barrier viewpoint. No snow was seen at the lake level or on Black Tusk, although Panorama Ridge had a heavy dusting of fresh snow. Two backcountry hikers who had been up to Helm Glacier said it was very icy, but it looked beautiful from the lake. There seemed to be more backpackers than day hikers – busy but not crowded. Fall colours made up for the absent flowers. An exceptionally good day with great company.”

Laura at Lake Ann:
“Four bubbly hikers left from the Sexsmith Park-and-Ride to meet up with the remaining two hikers in Abbotsford near the border. It was a fantastic group to travel with and everyone got on well (we laughed till our faces hurt). Reminder to me for the next hike at Baker: Check on the Harley Davidson website for conventions south of the border – we had a 50 minute wait at the border and there were 50-60 bikers all trying to get through as well… Some of them were even queue-jumping, but who were we to go and sort them out??

The weather was glorious, the snow had all but vanished except for a small patch near the lake, and the blueberries were everywhere (so we feasted). The trail was in good condition, albeit a few slippery mud patches from recent rains. A bear was spotted nearby, so this prevented us from taking the trail to the Lower Curtis Glacier. This being the last weekend in September, there was no US$5 fee for parking, something offered ever year. On checking with the rangers, the park will stay open until the first significant snowfall, and the Monday prior to us getting here they already had snow that had to be cleared from the road. Take clothes for all conditions when travelling here. It is a long day to drive and hike here, but everyone on this trip will tell you how it was well worth it. Thank you to David our driver – what a trooper!”