Chris M. at Elfin Lakes:
“Eight snowshoers and a skier left the parking lot before 6 am! The clouds came in but there was still some interesting alpenglow. Enough soft snow to keep us all happy. We went out over the humps of Pauls Ridge then took the regular trail back. Home to Vancouver by 3 pm after a stop at Galileo Coffee in Britannia Beach.”
Rob M. on Mt harvey:
“It was a belated once-in-a-blue-moon hike – an overcast day with light precipitation expected around 4:30 pm. The freezing level was stuttering around 1200 m. Nine of us muscled our way up the logging road, shedding clothing along the way as the pace picked up. We managed to find the refrigerator sized trailhead of Harvey. Consensus was, we were glad to escape the logging road but concerned about the sudden and unrelenting increase in the gradient. All was forgotten when we came to the first lookout with clear midlevel views of the Howe Sound. The next piece of terrain drama was in that freezing level transition.
Some of us found purchase in offtrail snow while the rest of us bungled our way to a level where snowshoes were appropriate. There was some comfort in meeting the snowshoe hike description although around the tree burned ridge, there was 150m of elevation where the wind was acute in kind of an ugly way – enough to twist us about and make listening upwind difficult. Further along the ridge we took refuge and a break in a grove at the edge of the treeline. Gaining the first prominence along the ridge we looked up at Harvey and took a long gulp. The narrow ridge before us held 4 or 5 snowloaded steeplechase ridges and a summit that didn’t seem possible in 30 minutes.
I heard a voice rise up “let’s do it”. Unfettered by the 25lb monkeys on our backs we scrambled pell mell up the summit on our 4x4s. It was a race to the top as the ceiling was beginning to drop. Jiri, the first to summit had missed the 360 by a scant 15 minutes. We were able to tackle Harvey at an animated pace fuelled by a never ending stream of chocolates. Although standing on the small summit in a freezing jetstream wasn’t a compelling social environment, we were happy as clams. We did manage a toothy white on white on grey summit pic. The return hike was pretty much this TR played backwards. A light rain began to fall. It was 4:30 and we were back in Lions Bay. After a bit of exit finding we were in Horseshoe Bay for a celebratory hoist. I was impressed by the cultural diversity in the group and by how we all came together to make this hike successful.”
Carollyne at Elfin Lakes:
“Four of us headed off Monday morning on a trip with some surprises. I was quite worried about getting up the logging road in winter, but it was easy. The road up was easy to drive in a little car with snow tires – bare and frozen with some potholes, but not as many holes as on some summer trips. The 12 km winter snowshoe route was pleasant and uneventful, although the sky was overcast. Red Heather hut was warm for a break. Elfin Shelter was less than half full when we arrived just after 2 pm. Jeremy and Scott hiked about halfway up Columnar before light failed, while Su-Laine and I tootled around more casually. As the afternoon progressed, more and more skiers and snowshoers kept arriving at the hut, and we were glad we got our bunks early. Cards, wine, dinner and Jeremy’s excellent dice game made a really enjoyable evening. People kept arriving and we heard comments about how it was busier than on the lovely sunny weekend that had just passed. Everyone seemed to have had the same brilliant idea to avoid the Christmas weekend crowds, thus making a large weekday crowd, with someone sleeping on every patch of floor in the loft, and on all the picnic tables and benches downstairs as well. I slept more or less on top of my -20 bag, as it was about 20 degrees in the loft all night. Latecomers and snorers challenged sleep. The plan was to attempt Columnar again with at ETD of 8:30 am – but at 8:20 we were just getting out of our sleeping bags, all a bit tired. The weather was not with us anyway, as the whole area was quite fogged in – and although the fog lifted on our return to the parking lot, it was quite persistent to the north. Still, there were many beautiful views and the company was excellent. We all intend to return, equipped with earplugs.”
Rob M. at Garibaldi Lake:
“Today, the big white welcome mat was out for 4×4’s only. The only other vehicle in the lot was a tow truck that finally showed at 7pm. Slogging our way up the patchy Barrier trail through a temperature inversion, our body temperature was up and down like a toilet seat. Travel was gnarley in snowshoes until the Taylor Meadows junction when the snow pack began to lighten up. Sometimes waist deep in wind loaded powder we descended onto Barrier Lake staying in the treeline above the gully from the Barrier Lookout. The west face of the Barrier was an ominous frieze of textbook avalanche conditions. The absence of toques frozen into the lake gave us some assurance that the ice was safe. Each lake traverse gave us a greater retina jolt. The south end of Lesser Garibaldi was filled with large wind blown knolls. We followed its shoreline gaining the summer trail just past Taylor Creek. From here it was a cakewalk into that white icing spectacle we know as Garibaldi Lake. After a brief lollygag we were southbound and in the parking lot. This time we refrained from body surfing down through the switchbacks but I did a time-honoured face plant. Oh… did I mention the car battery was dead… Youch!!”
Rob M. at Elfin Lakes:
“From the snow-free parking lot we boot walked easily on compacted snow to the Red Heather hut. On snowshoes now, we took the extra wide poled traverses up Paul Ridge and to the winter route crossing some active and icy steep slopes before gaining the open ridge top with the eye-popping views as we approach the hut 6 km away. Three-and-a-half hours from parking lot to the Elfin Lakes, we drop our gear in the near-empty hut, carb up and head out. We sight a long line above the numerous gullies and below avalanche debris leading to the saddle. From the south end of the Columnar Peaks we gain a small shoulder where breaking a crusty trail, fierce winds and waning light force us back into the shelter for some fine wine, food and cards. A plan to be back at the trailhead by 3 pm and a persistent overnight howl didn’t hold us back from being on the trail at 8 am the next day, aiming at the south Columnar Peaks. Shortly before gaining the south ridge we realized the crust is getting thicker and that a fall might end up in a toboggan run into the hikers-hereafter-forevermore. We opt for a single line of tree wells leading close to the south peak. Out of the trees, we’re down on all fours buffeted by gale force winds along a very narrow exposed ridge to the peak for a harrowing but impressive 360. Returning, we take the aggressive gluteus line for the longest ass-wiping ever. We’re out of the hut by 1 pm. After two short breaks and one face-plant we’re back in the parking lot by 3 pm for pitchers and buffalo burgers you know where.”
Carollyne on Hollyburn Peak:
“We enjoyed hard-packed, but not icy snow and a perfect blue sky on our snowshoe to Hollyburn Peak. The clear sky made for great views. The trail was popular with snowshoers and a few skiers as well. The snow was so hard-packed that snowshoes were not really needed, except for their grip on the steeper parts. One of us (not me) was smart enough to bring crampons, which were ideal for the conditions – except when sliding downhill. Excellent company made for an even better day. Trail to peak is open to Feb 1.”
Cara on Hollyburn:
“This trip was an absolute blast! Eight of us headed up the peak under brightening skies and light snow. The fresh snow on the trees was beautiful and a nice change from the rain of the previous trip. The creeks were almost covered up, though not quite. At the peak we enjoyed a quick snack, and Giri pulled out some home made gingerbread – yum! The real fun began on the way down as we jumped, somersaulted, slid and crashed our way down the mountain. We didn’t leave much “fresh stuff” behind. We rounded out the afternoon with a quick snack at the black bear pub in lynn valley before hitting the road for home. Thank you all for an awesome trip!”
Cara on Dog Mountain:
“Zoltan, Marisa, Alex, Tom, and Gareth joined me on a fun but very wet snowshoe to Dog mountain. There was about 1 m of snow at the parking lot and it was raining heavily. The trip through the trees was beautiful, with the stream crossings still not completely covered. At the view point the wind picked up so we took a quick group shot, considered joining the crazy campers in their two-man, and beat a hasty retreat to the trees for some lunch. On the way out we detoured past First Lake and broke trail up to the junction above the parking lot. By the time we reach our cars, the rain/hail mix had turned into a determined downpour and we were completely drenched. Hot coffee provided a nice opportunity to chat before we packed up and headed home.”
Ahmad on Mt Sproatt:
“We were lucky in many ways of how our hike turned out. We headed first to Whistler Olympic Park. I was surprised by how little snow existed there at altitude 850 m. The forest looked too thick to be bushwhacked and the snow conditions looked bleak. We headed then to an abandoned gold mine which I thought would be better approach as it was located at 1000 m and it was on a more direct route. We parked at about 960 m where the snow line started. We were then pleasantly surprised to find a road that took us all the way up to the ridge (it is possible that this is drivable to about altitude 1250 m in summer. I also think that this road is used by snowmobiles in winter). Soft and slushy snow on the ridge took a big toll of energy from us. It was not sunny but it was definitely a hot day. We got to 1 km away from the peak at altitude 1720 m but we then decided that it was not really worth it to complete the hike. Instead we headed to a false summit at 1750 m and we called it a day. I am very sure that we could have made it.”
Ahmad on Cloudburst Mountain:
“Dan, Trevor, Tamsyn, and I summited after six hours of hiking. The trip started by a maze of logging roads. We found the right one fairly soon after two trial-and-errors. I parked just before the snow line which was at 600 m altitude and 3.2 km from start of the logging road. We walked along the road which ends at 7 km. No marker after that. The next stage was to find a reasonable opening in steep rocky slopes which perhaps was the hardest part of our hike. Once we got to altitude 1200 m snow quality improved, slopes ranged from gentle to steep (but not too steep), and it was fun to snowshoe. There is only one short very steep section to gain the summit ridge. Route finding was essential. On the way back, We slid almost 400 m of elevation. It took us 4 hours to get back to the car.”