It's been many, many months since I put together an official hiking event. I wanted to share this Canada Day with others who are as passionate as me about being out there doing what we love in a place we are proud to call our home and native land! I picked our celebration to take place up on Guinns Pass & Mount Kidd Outlier. An effort would be necessary to get there, the views would be grand and the summit space is large enough for us to spread out. It all came together nicely!
We went for an early start which for me is the only way to go these days. That afforded us a very quiet parking lot, the opportunity to own the trail and to enjoy our summit celebration under ideal weather conditions. While gearing up I scanned the sky and the mountain peaks.
We hit the long winding trail following Galatea Creek all the way up to Lillian Lake, crossing many bridges. The campground area was quiet. Some backpackers had already vacated their spots while others we think were still sleeping. We carried on by the campground then ascended up to where the intersection is for either the Galatea Lakes or Guinns Pass. This is the trail we took towards Guinns Pass.
looking back down at Lillian Lake
The wildflowers were beautiful. The slopes were covered in forgetmenots, glacier lilies, anemones, and many others flowers that I have no idea what they were. You can see behind me, that brown peak on the middle right, well that is our destination.
a glacier lily
My favourite part on this new trail is after you pass by the last of the small tree sections and then you have this grand wide open view where you can see forever. Guinns Pass is at the V in the middle and Mount Kidd Outlier is at the top on the far right.
view from Guinns Pass over to Buller Pass
There was still a good amount of snow at Guinns Pass.
We opted to capture our celebration photos at Guinns Pass.
The weather was perfect as was the backdrop and we could safely all be together in one spot.
We donned our colors and proudly displayed our flags.
true patriot love
We continued ascending following along the edge to where we could witness Ribbon Lake below.
looking back at Lillian Lake and the trail we took to reach Guinns Pass
It's always nice when you can take a few minuntes to relax on a sofa!
a view off to a landscape filled with many colorful layers
We reached the summit of Mount Kidd Outlier and then carried on a short distance down past it. The location offered up a more wide open space and some shelter. This was my dining view. What more could you ask for? We got the front row seats to a private prime time presentation!
from far and wide Oh Canada
I proudly displayed a banner on the back of my pack.
my summit shot on Mount Kidd Outlier
with glowing hearts
We began the trek back after a nice long lunch break.
That's Mount Kidd as the backdrop.
lots of wildflowers amongst the rough and rugged rocky ridge
We reached the junction and then made our way back down to Lillian Lake passing by it this time and then began the long descent along the creek, through the forest, over the bridges. I savoured this one last view before it was time to focus on my foot placement skirting mud and stepping over large rocks and roots.
What a great day we shared in this beautiful place we get to call our home.
glorious and free
Oh Canada
Happy Birthday
A brilliant way to celebrate!
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