Saint Marks Peak: The Summer Version
Saint Marks Peak was our last hike before we started the skiing season and oddly enough it was also our first summer hiking trip for the season. My (half) sister Alyssa was visiting from NY and she said that she would be interested in doing some hiking. Since both Gili and I remembered this hike to be not so strenuous and shorter than going to Mount Seymour, but longer than Dog Mountain, we thought it was a good option.
We picked up Asaf from his new apartment in the West End and headed to the Cypress Bowl Ski Area on the North Shore. Just as we left the car we saw a rather large dog in the meadows. But it wasn’t a dog, it was a bear, in fact the first one Alyssa had ever seen in nature, so she was quite excited. Great day to forget the bear spray at home though… Since I haven’t carried a backpack for a long time due to my shoulder injury I thought it would be a good idea to try it out. But the bag was heavier than I expected and when we reached the Bowen Lookout I gave it up. We had a snack break at the lookout and enjoyed the longan and grapes that Asaf brought.
After that the trail went into the forest and became a bit steeper. It was quite difficult for Alyssa, who is not used to hiking, and our progress was slow. Eventually we made it to the summit and had a long lunch break with Challa (made by me) and guacamole (made by Gili). We enjoyed the excellent views of the turquoise looking water and tried to name the many islands around us, the main ones being: Bowen, Gambier and Anvil Islands.
Asaf, Gili and I also climbed a bit more and got great views of the Lions. The way down was also slow and I stuck around at the rear with Alyssa most of the time while Gili and Asaf had to stop a lot and for that reason were bugged by the bugs. When we got back to the car the water in the bottle that we left there was as warm as tea, it was a hot day. We arrived a bit later than we expected but we still managed to escape the downtown and Kits areas before the fireworks madness.
