| Activity | Hiking |
| Destination | Village Bay Lake trails |
| Date | 2 Feb, Wednesday |
| Trip Coordinator | Norris Weimer |
| Contact Info | norris.weimer@ualberta.ca or 3710 Please contact the coordinator by Monday night. |
| Description | Starting on the Surge Narrows Rd, we will hike up a logging road and continue on a trail through a lovely forest near Village Bay Lake. We will re-join the logging road for a while and then follow another trail which connects with the route along Vic’s Marsh. There is lots of variety on this short loop. The route is in good condition, but expect wet and muddy sections especially along the marsh. About 5 km. |
| Meeting Place | Heriot Bay store parking lot. We will drive out in a group. |
| Departure Time | 10:00 |
| Difficulty |
Easy |
| Costs | None |
| Trip limits | None |
| Dogs? | |
| Notes: | Bring gear appropriate for the weather and trail conditions, as well as a snack. |
Category Archives: day-trip
Hiking – Fir Crest/Haskin Farm Trail – 25 Jan 2022
| Activity | Hiking |
| Destination | Fir Crest/Haskin Farm Trail |
| Date | 25 Jan, Tuesday |
| Trip Coordinator | Les Hand |
| Contact Info | 285-2029; lhquadra@gmail.com |
| Description | Easy hike and course will depend on snow. Only about 1 1/2 hour |
| Meeting Place | Haskin Farm trailhead (Smith Rd. & Heriot Bay Rd.) |
| Departure Time | 10:00 pm |
| Difficulty |
Easy |
| Costs | None |
| Trip limits | 8 |
| Dogs? | O.K. but not back and forth through group |
| Notes: | Bring a snack if you like, but will not stop for long |
Snow – Mt. Washington – 19 Jan 2022
| Activity | Snow shoeing |
| Destination | Mt. Washington |
| Date | 19 Jan, Wednesday |
| Trip Coordinator | Valerie van Veen |
| Contact Info | vvv@qisland.ca; 250 285 2329 |
| Description | Snowshoe Mt Washington trails. There is a trail pass charge (see below). Mt Washington trails are excellent and very beautiful. |
| Meeting Place | Parking lot just off highway at Mt Washington turnoff |
| Departure Time | 9:00 ferry |
| Difficulty |
Moderate |
| Costs | Ferry, fuel and Mt Washington show shoe trail pass $12 |
| Trip limits | None |
| Dogs? | No |
| Notes: | If you are new to snowshoeing please contact coordinator, I would love to take you out on Mt W trails. Snowshoes can be rented at the Nordic Centre, https://www.mountwashington.ca/snowshoeing.html to book ahead. Must register by Monday night to participate. Bring lunch, snacks. Participants are expected to carry the usual winter safety gear for this sport. |
Hiking – Campbell River Waterfront – 9 Feb 2022
| Activity | Hot Chocolate Walk |
| Destination | Campbell River waterfront, to FoggDukkers, return |
| Date | 9 Feb, Wednesday |
| Trip Coordinator | Valerie van Veen |
| Contact Info | vvv@qisland.ca; 250 285 2329 |
| Description | This will be a brisk walk along the CR waterfront to FoggDukkers for Hot Chocolate (or ?), probable return on 1:30 pm ferry. FoggDukkers will open for us, on request, regardless of weather. Seating will probably still be only outside, current VIHA Covid restrictions. If weather is really awful, we will follow Plan B and turn right instead for a shorter walk, and take our own thermoses (or pick up a hot chocolate at the new coffee shop in Discovery Plaza) to Dick Murphy Park at the Spit, and return. |
| Meeting Place | Ferry Terminal , CR, sidewalk at walk off area |
| Departure Time | 10:00 ferry |
| Difficulty |
Easy |
| Costs | Ferry and hot chocolate |
| Trip limits | None |
| Dogs? | Leash only |
| Notes: | Dress for the weather, and especially for sitting outside. Maybe bring a waterproof sit-upon. Those taking their cars must phone coordinator before Wednesday to arrange a meeting place. Must register by Monday night, phone or email coordinator. Participants will be notified by Tuesday night if Plan B is decided. |
Trip Report – West Road Woodlot – 29 Dec 2021
Due to the snow and cold, the planned trip to Village Bay Lake loop was saved for a better day. The road conditions, the busy holidays and water pipes freezing in the cold kept the group small. So three of us did a short local hike on logging roads instead.
(click on photos to enlarge)
- Gowlland Harbour
- The fairy house
Hiking – West Road Woodlot – 29 Dec 2021
This is a last minute substitution.
| Activity | Hiking |
| Destination | West Road Woodlot |
| Date | 29 Dec, Wednesday |
| Trip Coordinator | Norris Weimer |
| Contact Info | norris.weimer@ualberta.ca or 3710. Please contact the coordinator before the trip. |
| Description | We will walk down a few of the out-and-back logging roads. The route includes mature forest, replanted forest, a view of Gowlland Harbour, and a meandering trail. About 3km; 1 hour. |
| Meeting Place | Park on Gowlland Harbour Road, near the junction with West Road, by the transformers. |
| Departure Time | 10:00 |
| Difficulty |
Very easy, but expect winter conditions – cold and snow covering some ice. |
| Costs | None |
| Trip limits | None |
| Dogs? | |
| Notes: | Bring gear appropriate for the weather and trail conditions. |
Hiking – Quinsam River Trails – 23 Feb 2022
This trip was originally scheduled for Jan 5th.
| Activity | Hiking |
| Destination | Quinsam River Trails |
| Date | 23 Feb |
| Trip Coordinator | Debbie Quigg |
| Contact Info | debbie.quigg@ualberta.ca; 250-285-3710. Please contact the coordinator by Monday evening. |
| Description | We will hike along the east side of the Quinsam River, using mountain bike trails and logging roads. This follows a variety of terrain down to the river. Expect some muddy conditions. |
| Meeting Place | QCove ferry terminal; after exiting the ferry, we will drive to the parking area together. |
| Departure Time | 10:00; drivers will need to be early to ensure that they can board |
| Difficulty |
Easy |
| Costs | Ferry |
| Trip limits | 10 |
| Dogs? | |
| Notes: |
Trip Report – Gowlland Harbour – 21 Dec 2021
Paddle into Winter (Solstice)
A very nice winter day provided an opportunity for seven club members to get together for a 2 hour paddle to celebrate the Solstice. With an icy boat launch at April Point and a skim of ice in the harbour it was a wintry day. We paddled out of the marina on calm seas, overcast skies and temperatures around freezing. The three paddlers that put in further east in Gowlland, paddled against the current in the channel and met up with us for the trip out and along Gowlland Island. We rounded the top of Gowlland with Steep Island on our port side and then altered course towards the smaller island group and away from a cold northerly breeze.
The group split up again and four of us rounded Doe Island and headed for April Point and rode the ebb current through the channel.
The highlight of the trip was watching the efforts of an eagle in its attempt to snare a cormorant for its afternoon meal.
Vic
(click on photos to enlarge)
- Leaving April Point
- West of Gowlland Island
- Steep Passage
- Gowlland Harbour
- The eagle hunting
Trip Report – Rampart Hill – 15 Dec 2021
It was an adventure; not everything went smoothly. First we missed the 10:00 ferry, thinking mistakenly that it wouldn’t be a busy sailing. After waiting an hour for the next departure, the three of us drove up the Strathcona Parkway. For this time of year, there is an amazing amount of snow, nearly down to the highway. The road up to Mt. Washington was good enough, but there was so much snow, we decided to snowshoe at Rampart Hill instead. It was snowing hard and we had lunch in the car before heading out. Although the logging roads had snow packed down on the weekend, there was no visible trace and we were doing some serious trail breaking. Once we left those packed roads it was even more challenging, because the snow was so unconsolidated, especially around brush. Norris fell through twice, the first time down over a metre and he had real difficulty getting the snowshoe back to the surface. Then Bonnie fell through and we decided we had had enough trail breaking for the day, so we headed back, rather than forward. We never encountered anyone else on the trail. It was beautiful in a monochromatic way and very quiet. 4 km, 2½ hours.
Debbie
(click on photos to enlarge)
- After digging out
- Cheerful but frosty
Trip Report – Drew Creek and Rebecca Spit – 11 Dec 2021
On Saturday nine people decided to try a hike even though rain was threatening. To start we did the small trail at the mouth of Drew Creek. This is a wonderful little trail. It even has benches to sit and watch the creek roll by. The tide was extremely high and had the creek backed up for about 150 m.
We then walked to Rebecca Spit and turned south along the ocean down to the Sasquatch sculpture. It was about here that the heavy rain showers started off and on. We proceeded down through the new camping spots that have been developed very well. On the way back to the vehicles we were treated to a rainbow. 5.2 km about 1½ hours
Les
Thanks to Les and Norris for the photos.
(click on photos to enlarge)
- Bridge over Drew Creek
- Elkhorn Lichen
- The Sasquatch
- Shoreline trail
- After the showers




























