Ahmad on Mt Seymour:
“The snow was hard but unpredictable in some places. There are icy sections in some places and soft ones in others. There are many path ways and the trail is only marked to Brockton Point. If you are new to Seymour or not too familiar with it, it will be hard to find the main route. I was impressed with the two people that I was with. They were new to snowshoeing and also to Seymour but their determination to summit was motivating.”
Category Archives: Snowshoe
Mt St Benedict 05/04/09
Ahmad on Mt St Benedict:
“We were lucky to follow a well packed track for about 4/5 of the trail. It saved us a lot of time especially as we started late at noon because of an unexpected car problem. We broke trail the last 1/5 of the way. Avalanche risk was my constant concern because of high temperatures. There was debris from one big avalanche just on the shore of Mckay Lake and two smaller ones along the way. It tooks us 3:30h to summit it. The views on the top exceeded my expectations.”
Joffre Lakes 04/04/09
Cara at Joffre Lakes:
“Chris, Donna and Scott joined me on an early morning trip to Joffre Lakes. The weather was sunny and crisp, above freezing at the lower elevations and at mid day, but below at the top lake. The snow was deep and varied with elevation but thankfully a path was somewhat packed down so we didn’t have to break trail. Snowshoes were definitely needed and the lakes were still crossable, though this won’t last long. Joffre was pretty quiet. A handful of backcountry skiers were in the area, and two snowshoers later in the day. We easily made it to the top lake and enjoyed the stunning panorama before heading back to extricate the car from the parking lot (this required a shovel, chains, and 3 people pushing) then headed to Squamish for a nice dinner to polish off the day.”
Hollyburn Peak 29/03/09
Chris on Hollyburn:
“Cara, Christian, Leticia, Ming and Rob joined me on a quick trip up Hollyburn on Sunday. The weather was, of course, beautiful (hope I can keep this up all year). The snow was firm on the way up and softening in the sun on the way down. Snowshoes weren’t needed but it was slippy on the steep bits. The place was a zoo – many people on the trail and at the peak. In the shade, the air was definitely cool to cold but in the sun, it was almost shorts weather. The sliding on the way down is best near the top where it’s steep.”
Garibaldi Lake 29/03/09
Rob M. on (yes, on) Garibaldi Lake:
“We drove up the Sea-to-Sky enjoying the remarkable vistas surrounding us on a day that easily exceeded our expectations. A flagon of caffeine in Squamish and we were on our merry way. A 2k walk to the trailhead and we were met by the forceful rushing sound of Rubble Creek and the Barrier standing majestic and articulated in the bright sun. Myself and Jamie quickly made our way up the Barrier in hikers while Mel, Sarah-Jane and Dan were strapped into pace-setting snowshoes. With a chorus of oohs and aahs, we perched ourselves for lunch on the Barrier enjoying the shenanigans of Whisky Jacks. Fully sated, and after hours of single track hiking, we descended through a few feet of fresh powder onto the wide expanse of Barrier Lake. A few minutes later we entered and exited another creek to be met by the larger Lesser Garibaldi Lake surreally covered in large puffs of pristine snow broken by rivulets of streaming water. Just before the canyon, we engaged the summer trail and were soon rewarded by the sight of Garibaldi Lake – we descended onto miles of flat searing white snow surrounded by Panorama Ridge, Gentian Peak, Garibaldi Mountain, Mount Price and Clinker Peak. Small pixels in the distance gained substance over time to become a couple of hiking/skiing clubs. We sucked in the grandeur of it all in and let it burn into our retinas and eventually returned. Boot-skiing our way down the trail as much as possible, we made excellent time – enough to enjoy a hardy meal and a brew in Squamish. Total elapsed time – just under 9 hours.”
Mt Seymour 22/03/09
Chris on Mt Seymour:
“Cara, Christian, Eric, John, Ribeka and Rob joined me on a trip up Mt Seymour where snowshoes really weren’t needed (but crampons would have been good). Despite a not great forecast, the weather was stunning. On the way up, the snow was of a styrofoam consistency – pretty solid with the tiniest bit of give. The marked route takes you to within 10m of the first peak (pump, whatever you want to call it). We ventured on to the second peak. From this point, the route to the final peak requires crossing some VERY steep terrain. A couple of us decided to attempt cutting a route but most people were quite happy to sit and enjoy the view here. On the way back, we sought out every butt- and boot-skiable slope available.
The afternoon snow was pretty sloppy in places as the temperature rose and, off the beaten path, postholing became frequent. In the shade higher up, some areas had a solid crust of slick ice.”
Dog Mountain 02/01/09
Michelle on Dog Mountain:
“We had become so accustomed to the -12 weather of December that we all felt like we were snowshoeing on a balmy summer day. However, it wasn’t so warm as to have any issues with melting snow dropping down off of tree branches (or anywhere else) along this heavily forested trail. Seymour was absolutely packed with all the powder it could hold – beautiful but easy to see why there have been prevalent avalanche conditions. The Seymour advisory signs were posted as “Moderate” risk. Ahmad may have liked my snowshoes’ rooster tail show, but John truly had the Cadillac of snowshoes. Great views, great company.”
Hollyburn Peak 26/12/08
Steve on Hollyburn:
“I admit it, I picked a really bad meeting spot. West Van has a pretty good bus system for getting people from the city to North Shore meeting spots but the parking lot I could see on Google maps was gone! Plus snow made it hard to just wait by the side of the road in a car. I strongly suggest Park Royal as a West Van meeting spot due to the bus hub, and quick access to the highway.
Thanks to Tim for the avalanche warning posted here: https://www.avalanche.ca/CAC_Bulletin_Regions. I simply would not have guessed the North Shore would have such extreme conditions. We decided to go as far as the signs and see what the rating on the trail was. There, it was rated `moderate’ and we took a heavily treed route, so we pressed on. The snow was blowing quite a bit and there were no views today, but plenty of recipe swapping and shower-curtain tobogganing. As Rich put it, any day on the mountain was better than the best day at work, and this Boxing Day was no exception.”
Elaho Valley 21/12/08
Christian at Elaho Valley:
“After 1 hour of white-knuckle driving on unplowed highways before dawn, Stuart and I were on edge, as we were each feeling apprehensive about this trip!! We each traveled from different places to reach Squamish. Along the way, we encountered ground blizzards, covered signs, and could not see the edges of the road at times. We met at the Tim Hortons in Squamish and chatted about the weather and conditions before dawn. By dawn, the wind was gone and visibility was great. With a safety plan in mind of being back at the car before dark, we set out for the Elaho Main road. We saw some amazing eagles along the way. I was surprised to see six eagles in one tree (see Flickr). By the time we reached 28 mile, the snow was deep enough that it limited our vehicle speed to 25 km/h. We calculated that we would be spending more time driving than hiking. No fun there! So we turned back. Quickly found a great alternate hike at Alice Lake park. We decided to do the 8 km Lake loop. We broke trail for two hours and had a marvelous time. On our hike in the park, we encountered many families with their little pre-schoolers taking advantage of the small toboggan hills. It was a great day to be out! After our 2 hour hike around the four lakes, we went to the Brackendale coffee shop. We easily chatted away two hours of the day, long before dusk. All and all, a good time spent in Squamish on the Winter Solstice.”
Dog Mountain 20/12/08
Michelle on Dog Mountain:
“The -7 / -12 with wind chill factor definitely had us wondering and we were definitely a little on the cold side starting out (our toes were already cold from just standing outside the shopping mall!). But instead of bundling up more, we quickly heated up on the trail and inevitably began the customary strip routine by the time we hit First Lake. However, after reaching our end destination we didn’t stick around to enjoy the sunny view for very long: though the winds were calm it was just too darn cold to sit around for more than a cup of tea and quick nibble. The winter route is now marked and well trodden (although a couple of alternate routes have also been stomped out past First Lake). Good snow coverage save for a few steep, exposed, iced-over root patches not yet filled in. Good parking lot coverage too (of the vehicular type) as to be expected on a sunny day.”