Category Archives: day-trip

Trip Report – Mt Washington – 6 Dec 2016

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The weather was absolutely fabulous for our first snowshoeing trip of the year. Even the ferry ride was beautiful. The four of us snowshoed from Rampart Hill, following broken trail on the old logging roads and untracked slopes on the open and sunny bluffs. We had light, dry snow on top of very compact snow, so the conditions were good. The views of mainland and Vancouver Island mountains were wonderful.

We worked our way south, stopping for lunch with a Whiskey Jack, dropping down into the steep gully and returning in a loop to the parked car. Although the trail was quiet, it was very busy at Rampart Hill chain-up area, with people snowshoeing, snowmobiling, children sledding, and an enthusiastic husky team pulling a sled. 5.2 km; 2¾ hours.

Debbie

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Snow – Mt Washington 7 Dec 2016

Hiking – Granite Bay Rd Jct Area – 30 Dec 2016

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Activity Hiking
Destination Granite Bay Rd Jct area
Date 30 December, Friday
Trip Coordinator Debbie Quigg
Contact Info 285-3710 or debbie.quigg@ualberta.ca.  Please contact the coordinator in advance of the trip.
Description There are lots of possibilities in the area, so we can choose based on the weather and conditions.  We might hike the trail along Open Bay Creek, or the logging roads east of Beaver Lake or the mountain bike trails nearby.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store parking lot for car pooling
Departure Time 10:00
Difficulty
 Probably easy, but who knows?
Costs none
Trip limits none
Dogs?
Notes: Bring a lunch and gear for the weather.

Trip Report – Heriot Ridge Route – 30 Nov 2016

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Six hikers and Luna dog enjoyed a two and a half hour hike on one of our best weather days this fall.  The trip was delayed until the afternoon to let the rain subside and sky to clear.  Starting at the Thompson trailhead, we hiked Thompson Trail to the Heriot Ridge Trail, following it south along the bluffs.  Facing the sun, hikers got a good dose of much-needed Vitamin D.  Slippery rock was negotiated with care, and a few puddles were skirted around.  We stopped near the Hopespring Trail viewpoint for a breather and admired the views to the west, north and south.   A cold wind blowing from the northwest by then kept us moving on.  At the Hopespring Trail junction we turned west for a short distance on the Hopespring Trail, then onto a route south along an extension of the main ridge to Homewood’s High Bluff Trail.   A short climb took us to the top of High Bluff for a rest, snack and view after bundling up against the wind.  We retraced our route north along the ridge at a different bluff level, then had a pleasant downhill walk to Hopespring Road and back to the vehicles.  The glorious sunshine, at times warming us in sheltered areas, was the highlight of trip.

Janis

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Hiking – Heriot Ridge Route – 30 Nov 2016

Hiking – Chinese Mountain – 14 Dec 2016

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This hike will be postponed due to snow, but there may be a substitute hike.  Phone the coordinator.

Activity Hiking
Destination Chinese Mountain
Date 14 December, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator Les Hand
Contact Info 285-2029.  Please contact the coordinator in advance of the trip.
Description We will go up the south side of South Chinese Mtn. and stop at the view point for a snack. Then we will come down the north side. This is a short hike so if the group wishes we will also go up North Chinese Mtn.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store parking lot for car pooling
Departure Time 10:00
Difficulty
 Moderate, but up and down
Costs none
Trip limits none
Dogs? Okay, but must not go back and forth through the group.
Notes: Please contact the coordinator 2 days in advance so he will have your phone number if trip is postponed due to weather.

Snow – Mt Washington – 7 Dec 2016

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Date changed to Tuesday, 6 Dec.

Activity Snow
Destination Mt. Washington
Date 6 Dec 2016, Tuesday  7 Dec 2016, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator QIOC
Contact Info qioutdoorclub@gmail.com;  please e-mail by Sunday night
Description Activities and destination will depend on the interests of the group.  Mt. Washington is scheduled to open on Dec 9th, so the nordic area will not be officially open and rentals will not be available on the hill.
Meeting Place Quadra ferry terminal to Campbell River.  Car pools should be arranged in advance.
Departure Time 9:00 ferry to Campbell River.  Those taking cars need to be early enough to get on the 9:00 ferry.
Difficulty
 Up to the group.
Costs Ferry and shared fuel.
Trip limits Availability of cars going up to Mt. Washington.  Vehicles are supposed to have good tires and chains available if necessary.
Dogs? No
Notes: Bring equipment, warm clothing and lunch.

 

Trip Report – Coppermine and Deepwater Bay – 23 Nov 2016

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Seven of us hiked from Deepwater Main to the old copper-mine. There was water on the old road but not as much as expected considering the heavy rains Quadra has been experiencing. It is only about 1.5 km to the mine but the road is steep. The main shaft entrance has fallen in but there is a good view from the side shaft.

We then returned to the Deepwater Main and hiked down it to Deepwater Bay. The creek was running high and the two waterfalls were beautiful. We encountered our only shower of the day on the way down. At the beach we could not believe our good fortune as we ate our lunch in the sunshine before we returned to the vehicles. The whole trip was about 7 km with 335 vertical meters up and down in about 3 hours.

Les

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Hiking – Coppermine and Deepwater Bay – 23 Nov 2016

Trip Report – Bike Loop from WalCan Rd – 16 Nov 2016

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Seven of us started from the parking area where the WalCan Rd crosses Hyacinthe Creek at the end of Reed Lake. We followed Janis up Straight as a Dime in very light rain and low cloud, and continued until we joined Silk Stocking.  At the end of Silk Stocking we walked down the logging road to Bite the Bullet. We crossed the bridge and took Lady Lumps to Cash Only, and then Rick’s Ride to Yellow Mud, stopping at the beaver dam. This is a very lovely loop. There are great mossy bluffs, historical open copper mines with some old mining artifacts, open forest, and wet lands, complete with ducks. 10.9 km; 4 hours.

Debbie

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Hiking – Bike Loop from WalCan Rd – 16 Nov 2016

Trip Report – Karst Formations – 12 Nov 2016

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After yet another night of heavy rain, the weather improved and four of us went on an impromptu walk in the afternoon to see the karst features off the Granite Bay Rd.   We followed a sketchy route along the sinkholes, climbing down into the depressions and exploring the insurgences and resurgences.  There wasn’t as much water flowing as we had hoped, but we enjoyed the water disappearing and reappearing in the Quatsino limestone.  We then walked over to the falls into the really big sinkhole off of North Mtn Hookup. About 2 hours.  On the drive back we stopped to see the Chum spawning in Haycinthe Creek.  Though many were dead, some were still fighting their way upstream.

Debbie

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Naturalist – Karst Formations – 12 Nov 2016

Hiking – Coppermine & Deepwater Bay – 23 Nov 2016

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 Change of meeting time to 9:00

Activity Hiking
Destination DW1 Copper Mine and then Deepwater Bay
Date 23 November, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator Les Hand
Contact Info 285-2029.  Please contact the coordinator in advance of the trip.
Description We will be able to take 4-wheel drive vehicles to DW1 Road. It is about 4 km round trip hiking. If you would like to see some pictures of the mine check out prior trip report of Mar. 2, 2016.
We will then hike to Deepwater Bay, about 5 km round trip. It will be good to see this before the new logging starts to the south of the road.
These are both old roads but may have lots of water on them.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store parking lot for car pooling
Departure Time 9:00 10:00
Difficulty
 Moderate, but up and down
Costs none
Trip limits none
Dogs? O.K. Please keep them from running back and forth through the group.
Notes: Bring a lunch and hopefully we will eat by the ocean.
I will bring a rope for those who want to get down to the side shaft.

Hiking – Bike Loop from WalCan Rd- 16 Nov 2016

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Activity Hiking
Destination Bike Loop from WalCan Rd
Date 16 Nov, Wednesday
Trip Coordinator Debbie Quigg
Contact Info 285-3710 or debbie.quigg@ualberta.ca.  Please contact the coordinator in advance of the trip.
Description We will start at the parking area on the WalCan Rd near Reed Lake.  Depending on the group’s interest, we will follow mountain bike trails, including Silk Stocking, Bite the Bullett, Lady Lumps, and Yellow Mud.  This will be a fairly long hike (4 to 5 hours), unless the weather is poor in which case we will do a shorter version.
Meeting Place Heriot Bay Store for car pooling
Departure Time 9:00
Difficulty
 Moderate
Costs none
Trip limits none
Dogs?  yes
Notes: Bring lunch and gear for the weather.