Rob M. on Coliseum Mountain:
“We first laid rubber an a rolling, museum grade asphalt road, biking towards an underrated jewel on the North Shore, Coliseum Mountain. After this idyllic 9 km, a 1 km Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Logging Road change-up ends at an unmarked but obvious trail. The overtaped Christmas Tree look beginning belies the rugged and unrelenting ascent festooned with small root and rock scrambles through new and old growth hemlock. The trail from the 1000 m Paton Lookout takes you down into a small valley then a grind up through a bolder field and the 1441 m summit of Coliseum. The forces of good prevailed after a dramatic struggle between sun and cloud and we were awash in warm light. Lotsa blueberries along the way and hence one bear encounter, who had better things to do than deal with humans. The Coliseum to Burwell (1521 m) hike is a must-do over a large field of smooth open granite for a modest net elevation gain. We met one intrepid hiker travelling incognito with full pack from Cathedral Mountain. The rangers here are kept busy de-taping The Needles to Cathedral Mountain corridor made by renegade hikers. There are a couple of large, deep R&R tarns before stumbling down the slicker-than-heavily-oiled-banana-peel descent. To take us out of our (dis)comfort zone, Eric led us on an off-trail bushwhack around the summit. The bike ride back was a scream! A full 10-hour day.”
