Six of us met on a blustery grey morning to walk the mountain bike trails from North Gowlland Harbour Road. We parked at the Missing Links trail parking lot. We made a loop up Little Black Dress and returned via Back Door and Silk Stockings.   It was a beautiful meandering path through mixed forests and rocky outcrops. Along the way we passed the remnants of an old copper mine. We were quite protected in the forest and it was more  foggy and misty than rainy.  There is no signage on the trail and several T-junctions.  We were reminded of the importance of waiting for the group at each intersection, so that the group stays together. There was some timely conversation about basic safety equipment for day hikes. We hiked 6.8 km in 3 hours 20 minutes, including a stop for lunch.

Diana

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Hiking – Little Black Dress & Silk Stocking Loop – 22 Nov 2017

Hiking – Alternate Morte Lake Loop – 1 Nov 2017

The cold front and rain passed in the night, so in the morning we had beautiful fall day.  Nine of us hiked the path from Village Bay Lake, passing by Vic’s Marsh and the old cabin to the pond viewpoint.  From there the trail heads north through the forest into Main Lake Park.  Although neglected for some years, the trail is now quite well flagged and maintained.  We passed through the junction of the old logging roads to the south and east of Stramberg Lake and we continued on the eastern road headed north.  With the sun and recent rain, everything was vibrant green.  The mushroom, mosses and liverwort were abundant.  We crossed the little creek and climbed up to the old growth grove.  After admiring the old trees and stopping for lunch, we followed the loop through the glade and retraced our path back to the vehicles.  About 12 km, 5+ hours.

– Norris

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Hiking – Stramberg Old Growth Grove – 25 October 2017