Panama (Part 2): Backroads to the Mangoes
We left Ocu after resting there an extra day and befriending a group of seniors that took excellent care of us. We returned to the Pan American highway just 11km from where we had left it a week earlier, completing a loop in the Azuero Peninsula. This time the road had wide shoulders, clear of the common glass shards, not much traffic, and was a joy to ride. We passed through Santiago, the third largest city in Panama and took a quick look at the “parque” – the main plaza. We left the highway once again to cycle towards Sona, pronounced like the word for prostitute in Hebrew, which we…
Panama (Part 1): From the Busy City to the Quiet Countryside
We could finally relax. We were at the gate waiting for our flight and there was nothing else to do. After a week of being on the go all the time it felt nice not to think about the next errand, or packing or making another trip to the storage unit. We were both fast asleep before the plane even took off. The three hour flight to Las Vegas seemed too short. In Las Vegas we were stuck with our two huge bike boxes that we had to keep with us till the next flight. The options were spending about 11 hours in the boring airport, or going out to…
Wreck Beach: A Different Kind of Trip
UBC is the only university I know of that has a nude beach. Imagine yourself, on a mid summer day, clambering down the wooden stairs to Wreck Beach, through pristine forest, coming out to a scene in the spirit of the free love atmosphere of the 60’s. There are volleyball nudes, beer hugging nudes, sunbathing nudes, ice cream selling nudes and even magic mushroom and pot selling nudes. They come in all types. If you return at the end of summer, Wreck Beach transforms completely. A wilder, undeveloped and more pristine beach: the nudists disappear, and the beach is reclaimed by quacking seagulls. On a beautiful sunny fall day, the…
- British Columbia (and nearby), Hiking & Scrambling, Sea to Sky, Trip Reports, Varsity Outdoor Club (VOC)
Hanging Lake Trail: The Gratification of Trail Clearing
British Columbia contains some of the wildest wilderness on Earth, and yet very few trails run through it. For us, outdoor fanatics, there is constant tension between wanting more trails to access the back country contrasted with wanting less trails to keep the wilderness as it is. Those few trails are generally maintained by volunteers, at least the ones outside of parks, and BC Parks suffers from an ongoing lack of funds that hampers their work. Other than lobbying the provincial and federal government for more funding for new trails and the maintenance of the existing ones, what are we to do? Go trail clearing ourselves, of course! Scott Nelson…
Tenquille Lake: Summer Grand Finale
This has been an amazing summer. It started kind of slow with a very wet June, but July and August were pure sun. We’ve been lucky enough that this sunny weather continued on into September. On the first official day of fall, Gili and I headed for a three day trip to Tenquille Lake, as a finale of this wonderful summer. In the next couple of weeks we’ll be visiting our families in Israel, and by the time we’ll be back it’s probably going to be full-on fall. The drive was quite long, past Pemberton and then on to the Birkenhead Lake road. As we were driving the logging road…
Punch Bowl Loop: A Jungle in Manning Park
The plan was to sleep on the summit of Snass Mtn, half way around the Punch Bowl Loop. But things don’t always go according to the plan. Both on trips and in general, in life. We need to adapt our expectations to a constantly changing reality. Otherwise, we are doomed to be unhappy and unsatisfied. At least, that’s what I tell myself. We hiked up the Whatcom Trail through a beautiful forest, covered with bright green moss and stringy Old Man Beard, as thick as a sheep’s coat ready for shearing. Maya wasn’t feeling so well, so we took lots of breaks and a nap or two. Higher on the…
Banff-Assiniboine: A Journey Into the Centre of the Rockies
The Rockies evoke images of sheer black rock faces topped by glaciers, turquoise alpine lakes, high mountain passes, and wildlife encounters. This trip had all of this in abundance, it was a journey into the centre of the Rockies, an exploration of the very heart of the Canadian Crumblies. The crowning jewel was definitely Mount Assiniboine. For days we could see it on the horizon, tantalizingly close. With its sheer rock faces, this pyramid captures one’s gaze and won’t let go. Last year we spent some time exploring Jasper National Park. We still had our National Park Pass, so we decided to return to the Rockies, this time to Banff…
Wind Lake: Ben More and Ben Lui
It was hot and sweaty. Flies kept on circling around my face, buzzing to their heart’s desire. Every now and then they landed on me, and I’d swat at them, killing the slowest ones. We were stuck in a Catch-22. We wanted to stop in one of the rare patches of shade to cool down, but the heat brought flies that would swarm us if we stopped. So we kept going. I was starting to think this trip to Wind Lake would be the definition of hell, but from there and on it only got better, and I mean much better. As we got higher along the the trail, we…
Frosty Mountain: Free Light Show by Mother Nature
We haven’t done trips in Manning Park for maybe four years, and I had set my eyes on Frosty Mountain for a while. I think I especially liked the name, but this weekend it was definitely not frosty there, or anywhere close to it. As usual we packed late on Friday night as we were invited for dinner at friends, went to sleep late and didn’t get an early start on Saturday. The drive was quite long, nearly three hours, and by the time we started hiking it was almost noon. The trail starts at Lightning Lake Day Use area and immediately starts to climb. The first part is in…
Brunswick Mtn: The Giant Next Door
If you are in Vancouver and crave a quick gulp of alpine scenery, the North Shore Mountains can deliver. But you must be ready for some exercise. Brunswick Mountain, at 1788m, is the highest of the giants next door. Most of the 1550m ascent is through the trees, but once you pop out of them, the views are stunning: steep cliffs with the turquoise ocean below, speckled with islands. Even though you are close to the city, Vancouver is out of sight, which gives a distinct feeling of remoteness. I picked up Madeleine and Asaf in the city and we drove to the trail head at Lions Bay, a posh…
