San Juan Islands: Island Hopping & Cycle Touring
May Long Weekend is usually the opening of the cycle touring season for us. This year I was off my bike for eight weeks due to my injury. This is a long time not being able to ride, taking into account that cycling is one of my favourite activities. We were considering options of where to go, and I wanted something that is mostly paved and not too strenuous. Seeing that our Trader Joe’s supplies were running low, it seemed appropriate to go the the US and to stock up on the way back, and the Sun Juan Islands met all the criteria we were looking for. We really thought…
Brew Hut: Sunny Weekend at Brew
For many VOCers the Brew Hut is associated with snow storms, whiteouts, 17 hour journeys to find the hut, high winds and low visibility. This was my fourth trip to Brew Hut and in the previous times at least one, if not all, of the above was correct. But for last weekend the forecast showed only sun and blue skies and high temperatures for the season. So we thought we’d try our luck and for once we’d go to Brew when we can also see the views and enjoy the sunshine. It was my first big trip in the outdoors since I got injured in February. After several conversations with…
- Backcountry Skiing, British Columbia (and nearby), Hurley & Lillooet Valley, Sea to Sky, Trip Reports, Varsity Outdoor Club (VOC)
Pemberton Icecap Traverse: From Superstition to Irony
This trip was seemingly ruled by superstition. It started with Ben’s curse. Ben had been trying to reach the Harrison Hut for many years. Invariably, he failed, often due to natural disasters. Of note were the landslide that closed the Sea to Sky Highway for almost a week in July 2008, and the massive lahar off Mt. Meager in August 2010, perhaps the largest recorded slide in Canadian History. Aside from that, there were apparently some other attempts foiled by bad weather. I had been warned by others, before this trip, that if we tried to approach the Harrison Hut with Ben, all hell would break loose. And it did!…
