Garibaldi Park - June 11-13, 2010

One of the things I forget too often is how much, in the moment where I am trudging up hill with 35 lbs on my back, I really do hate hiking. Ok, so "hate" might be a strong word but I do have a certain distaste for it and I very seriously consider why I am putting myself through the pain.

Then, of course, I am reminded of the exact reason for my continued persistence - the spectacular views and the sense of achievement that ensues afterwards.

To look down from the tops of the mountains and know that I am at one of the highest points in the the surrounding area brings with it a certain intrinsic 'high' of it's own.

Later to look back up upon the mountain I have just climbed, I still find it hard to believe that I, only hours before, was one of the tiny black dots that can be seen slowly moving up or down along the ridge line towards the summit.

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This past Friday Devin and I along with our friends Deb and Carl left the comforts of city life for the snows of the Garibaldi Provincial Park. Having departed the North Shore a little later than anticipated, we headed out on the trail up to the Taylor Meadow's campground around 7:30pm. Somewhere around the 5km mark we hit the snow line where we decided to put on our gaiters and headlamps as the snow was looking mushy and the daylight was quickly disappearing. As we slowly climbed higher and higher, we quickly realized that this was going to be Deb and Carl's first experience with snow camping. We also realized that we had greatly under-estimated the volume of snow that was still covering the area. By the time we reached the shelter at the campgrounds around 11pm, there was over 10 feet of snow still blanketing ground. Thankfully, the campground is well used year-round and there were some relatively fresh steps dug into the bank of snow surrounding the shelter. Since it was quite late already and the air temperature was below freezing, we quickly decide where to pitch our tents. By 11:45pm I was in bed asleep.

I have no idea what time we woke on Saturday morning but the sun was up and it was a beautiful day. Having never been to the Garibaldi park before, Deb and Carl were amazed at the spectacular surroundings.

After boiling a pot of water for tea, Carl set to work preparing our breakfast: grits with cheese and TVP bacon. Being slightly hesitant at first (I don't think I had had grits before), I must say it was fantastic! Collectively, I believe we consumed every single last morsel of the breakfast. After cleaning our dishes and tossing our packs into our tents, we got ready to head out onto the trail and make an attempt to reach Black Tusk.

The weather could not possibly have been any clearer and very quickly we began peeling off our excess layers and seeking refuge amongst the scattered trees as we crossed the main plateau. As we began to climb higher toward the tusk, the trees became scarcer. Fortunately, a lovely breeze picked up as we traversed the face of the mountain beneath the tusk and we all remained sufficiently cool.

By 1pm we reached an outcrop of rock just beneath the tusk where we rested while we enjoyed our lunch and the spectacular views. Garibaldi Lake was still frozen solid so, unfortunately, Deb and Carl missed out on seeing the amazing turquoise blue so commonly seen in glacial lakes. After posing for some pictures, we continued our climb to see how much closer we could get to the tusk.

Unfortunately, we were unable to make an attempt on the summit as we suspected the edge of the valley to be corniced (overhanging snow ridge), however, we were able follow the ridge line to several more view points.

As the snow was starting to get very mushy, we glissaded down the face of the mountain and returned to camp for some refreshments and a well deserved nap in late afternoon sun.

For dinner (around 7pm), Carl provided us with another of his wonderful creations (a mix of rice, lentils, cranberries and spices). It was delicious.

We all turned in early to bed, exhausted from the day and still knowing there was more hiking to come the following day.

We woke Sunday morning to discover it had clouded over and rained overnight. Fortunately, our tents are mostly waterproof thus we all remained dry.

Breakfast was a delicious pot of apple dumplings which we all devoured (Thanks again to Carl).

Following breakfast we started the process of packing up our camp and preparing for our final descent back to civilization. After the rains overnight, I think we all really appreciated the cooking shelter as a dry location to re-pack our gear and roll up the tents.

By this point, the sky began to clear again and the sun re-appeared once again. We were ready to head down.

We arrived back at the parking lot, tossed our gear in the back of the truck, and headed out towards the highway. Just before reaching the highway, however, Devin noticed a bear in a clearing on the side of the road. We pulled a U-turn, turned off the truck and watched him/her for a few minutes.

Once back on the road, we decided as a final reward for our efforts, we would drive north to Whistler to have dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory in the Village.

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