Raspberry Ridge June 27, 2010

I didn't want to waste a beautiful Sunday sitting at home so joined my friends on an easier hike to Raspberry Ridge Lookout. It was suppose to be easier but I struggled at times on the ascent because I was still recovering from the previous day's 10 hour hike. It looked different this time, we could see! The last time a blizzard blew through and also the prayer flags are new.

Memorial Lakes June 26, 2010

There was something about this day! It was surreal! It was magical! It was a day of taking chances and being rewarded greatly! We played and we laughed. We made this day memorable for ourselves in our own way.

Jasper National Park Day 2 June 20, 2010

We stayed at the Pyramid Lake Resort.  First thing the next morning, we went for a paddle boat ride around Pyramid Lake.  We had the Lake to ourselves except for a loon that kept us company.  

Later in the morning we drove to Maligne Lake.

Jasper National Park Day 1 June 19, 2010

R and I kicked off the start to summer with a weekend trip to Jasper National Park.  What is normally just under a five hour drive, took us ten hours.  We stopped at everything there was to stop at and saw everything there was to see.  The current photo at the top of my blog is Peyto Lake, one of the must sees along the Icefield Parkway.  These are two more places we visited along the way.

Columbia Icefield

Bow Lake

Weekend Roadie

I

spending time with my friends! R and I are going on a road trip this weekend!

We'll

sight-seeing along the Icefield Parkway on route to our destination of Jasper!

Let's

doing the fun things we have planned like paddling around on Pyramid Lake!

Two more sleeps!

Finding Passion

Life sure can be different when you fill it with things you are passionate about! More then anything for me lately, my passion is mountains. You probably already figured that out if you follow my blog. We headed up to the Moose Mountain Lookout today. We were in the trees for the first few kilometers then once we reached the tree line, we had amazing views in all directions. Once again, there is Banded Peak, in the center of the photo with the band just below the summit. Someday I will come visit you!

The topper of the day for me was when we got to witness the helicopter circle and then drop down to replace the propane tanks. The first time we were still a distance from the summit. The second time, the group had reached the top except for Agent-X and I. We were on the narrow ridge just before the top, staying low for balance as the helicopter flew over us and stirred up a hefty breeze.

A few minutes later we reached the Lookout. Mr. & Mrs. Lookout and the Lookout Dog were home so we were not permitted to go on the veranda. We picked the helicopter pad to sit and have our lunch.

Before sitting down to enjoy my Greek Pasta Salad, strawberries and two bite brownie, I signed the Guest Book. I put my name, the date, where I was from and a comment. My comment was "The helicopter made my day!"

Of course, I have to get my summit shot! The helicopter pad was a nice secure place to do my jump! It is pretty easy to get high off the ground when you are living out your passion!

Maybe you can find passion on Moose Mountain! It is there! Believe me! I put it there! If you go after passion, you will find it and it can make all the difference in the world to your life!

Some of us descended rather quickly over the first snowy steep part! My 60CSX told me I reached speeds of 15.8km/hr as I ran down through the pillowy lingering snow. I felt light on my feet and like I was floating on air. I found my passion!

On the Verge of Buller's Summit

I like when dreams come true!

My dream was to be on a mountain top today! Our goal was to complete a loop which would include North Buller Pass and Buller Pass. Due to conditions and timing, our final destination turned out to be just on the verge of the top of Mount Buller. This was my high point for today!

It wasn't easy to get to or return from! The first portion of the trail was snow-free and obvious to us but conditions changed as we gradually began to climb. First ankle deep snow, then knee deep, it turned to thigh deep at times and even to hip deep for some.

Once out of the trees and through the snow, we had a long, steep, rocky face to attack. At this point we could tell our destination for the day would have to be altered. A portion of our original plan that we could see in the distance appeared to be avalanche terrain.

We reached a safe spot on Mount Buller that had an amazing view, where we felt the sun shine on us and we were protected from any breeze that there was. We called this spot our lunch spot where we spent a significant amount of time. This photo also shows where we wanted to go which is on the other side.

I mentioned that our return was not easy! It wasn't easy but it was pretty!

It is a terrible feeling to see someone take a tumble down a mountain! When my friend did just that, the only thing we could do was watch and pray for movement at the end of the fall. We were concerned because a portion of the tumble involved being air borne for a couple of seconds and then landing head first. We held our breath then saw movement! Whew! We scurried down and assessed, then took a few minutes to gather our friend and ourselves before continuing on. I admire you, my friend, for your composure!

We made it off the steep section, then into the trees and the snow before arriving to the clear obvious trail. It was getting on towards 6:00 pm now and the lighting in the trees and by the creek made for some beautiful sights.

I have been very fortunate to be reaching so many high places in mountains! I am always amazed at the scenery. I never take any of this for granted and appreciate every moment. In my quiet moments I "dream" of what mountain I may be on next. I give thanks that I can live out my "passion"!

Inspired

Besides being an active, outdoorsy, granola-type girl, there is also some creativity inside me that tries to made an appearance every now and then. I have put pen to paper, watercolors on canvases, threads through materials of all sorts and even put in a significant amount of time scrapbooking.

I have been inspired lately! Firstly by http://summitstonesadventuremusings.blogspot.com/2008/04/finding-kananaskis.html who I don't know how they could possibly paint such a beautiful mountain scene on a little stone. Secondly I have been inspired by Adventure Designer. Now her idea of putting acrylic inspirational words on stone is more within my capabilities. This evening I gave that a try! I have work ahead of me to hone this craft but this is a start.

My inspiration for "Passion" comes from Jamie Clarke's "Power of Passion" and "Dream" comes from "Believe Imagine Dream".

I understand about "leave no trace" and I respect that but need to contemplate it a little further and find a comfortable place in my beliefs so that I can pass along "Dream" and "Passion" to others.

From Winter-Like to Summer-Like

How could yesterday be so UGH and today be so YIPPIE! My original thought was to cancel out of today's hike but I am so glad I second guessed myself! Today on Forget-Me-Not Ridge was absolutely gorgeous!

It all started at that pink bridge!

Once you find that and cross it, then you are on your way! To the river crossing that is! I wore my low riders for this and should have worn my flood pants. I did roll them up but not far enough! I misjudged the depth and force of the river!

But, what's a little water! Once on the other side, I changed into my boots, rolled my pants down to dry and carried on with the steep ascent. It was slow going up this portion and we took a well deserved break at the opening before heading for the summit. I was curious as to what was on the other side of the rocky ridge!

This is what I saw!

When we finally reached the ridge, we had views like this so thought this would be a good place to have lunch. We stayed a little while and played around taking photos too. You can see Banded Peak on the left of the photo with a band around the top.

Here it is up close! There is something about that mountain! It intrigues me!

After lunch, we carried along the ridge to a place where we could do a tiny little scramble to take us even higher with greater views. This portion was my idea! It was fun to do! This is also where I did my summit jump! We are at an elevation of 2258 meters here, which is 690 meters higher then the trailhead.

This was my fourth time on this ridge and today was my most favourite of them all! I would still like to go back up there and carry on the ridge for another few kilometers. That would be best suited for when the snow is gone!

On the return trip, for a portion, we hiked higher along the ridge where we could have views to the east and the west. Then found our tracks in the snow again and aimed for the trees to begin our descent. Just over fourteen kilometers and almost seven hours later, we were back at our cars.

My summit fever was cured! For this weekend!

Snow YES! Summit NO!

The bright yellow "*" marks our destination for today! This is the no longer in use Cameron Lookout on the top of Mount Burke as seen from the trail head. It looks doable! Heaven knows, I have done stuff like this before, but it was in the middle of winter.

A couple of us summited this in the past but that didn't help when it came to finding our turn off point to start our ascent. My GPS gave me grief today, so packed it away in my backpack. We relied on the GemTrek Map and eventually after an extra 30 minutes of route finding, we found our route!

Shortly into the obvious switchbacks, they were no long obvious with the amount of snow and no trekkers having gone before us since the last big fall. From here on in, instead of route finding, we made our own route by post holing the balance of the way. A few took turns trail breaking, I lasted about 10 minutes when it came to my turn, so I wasn't much help.

We finally reached the tree line and the view opened up wide. We could once again see our destination and at this point we were questioning if in fact, it would be doable! We continued straight up ahead, very slowly, still post holing. The consensus was with it being early afternoon already, we should stop for lunch and maybe call our lunch spot our destination.

The lookout looked so close but yet so far and we realized it would be better to be safe then sorry and save the summit for another day. This is my non-summit shot! You can see the lookout, it is the little dark dot on the top of the mountain at the left of the photo.

We had gorgeous views as we dined, along with bits of blue sky and thankfully no wind.

We had fun taking some group shots after lunch then began our descent.

The texture of the snow had changed since our ascent and we all looked tipsy on the way down, slipping and sliding all over the place as we tried to follow our own foot tracks back. I realized I had enough snow and didn't care to be in it again until next winter. On the drive to Longview for a beverage and food, I told my friends I would be backing out of my hike planned for tomorrow. I just couldn't handle anymore post holing! I had lots to say about that! I wasn't the only one with lots to say!

I live for being out in the mountains! I appreciate the scenery and I always enjoy seeing wildlife at a safe distance. I like the fun folks, the chats we have, even the quiet times when we are too tired to chat. By the time I got home this evening, I already got over my post holing experience and my no need for more snow. I better get my gear together for tomorrow! I changed my mind and will go for more punishment!