Golden, BC: Mountain biking destination!

I've spent the past two days mountain biking in Golden, British Columbia.

I'd heard about the mountain bike trails here in Golden from a guy who was fishing on "my" pond while I was kamping in the Kootenays. He noticed that I had a "cross-country" mountain bike, and suggested I give the Moonraker system of trails a try. (Brief aside: I think it's funny how my bike, a Santa Cruz Blur LT2, is immediately identified as an XC bike out here. In my "home" trails in New Jersey/New York, it's often mistaken for a downhill bike. Just goes to show what the standard is west of the Rockies.) So after leaving Canmore - not a bad place for XC riding itself - I wandered over to Golden with the explicit intention of riding Moonraker. I eventually got to those trails, but in a bit of a roundabout way.

My first ride in Golden turned out to be a full day of downhilling at the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. I hadn't actually intended to ride there - I was actually there to see if I could ride the gondola up to take sunset pictures from the mountain top. Well, one thing led to another, and I found myself encased in a full-face helmet, dressed in body armor, waiting in the chairlift line with another guy and our guide/instructor. Oh yeah, the instructor: never having done any lift-accessed riding before, I thought it prudent to have someone along who knew what he was doing, so I tagged along with this guy from Calgary who had signed up for a full day of guided riding at the Resort. Tom, our guide, quickly assessed our skill level, and after our first run on intermediate trails, it was nothing but black diamond runs for the rest of the day. Oh yeah, did I mention I'd never done downhill before? Turns out that a decade of regular riding in locations like Ottawa, New Jersey, and New York, combined with a couple of years of racing early in my career counts for something! I learned a lot in those hours and before too long I was flowing (as opposed to bouncing pinball-like!) down the trails. Alas, something I ate at lunch didn't agree with me, and towards the end of the day my stomach was churning, my concentration was shot, and despite the experience of several clean runs, on my last trip down the mountain I ended up falling more than I had in the past two years of riding. All the padding I was wearing certainly did its job! All I ended up with was a bruised knee.

Day two started with a bonus - an unanticipated shuttle up Mount 7. This guy in the hostel had nothing to do until his afternoon rafting trip, so he offered to drive me to the top of the mountain that had formerly hosted the Psychosis downhill race, also a launch point for para- and hangliders. I put my newly earned downhill skills to good use and railled all the intermediate runs to the bottom of the mountain. Note that I stayed off the black diamond runs this time: as mentioned above, unlike what some East Coast riders may think, my own personal bike is *not* a downhill bike! The bottom half of the mountain was especially fun and flowy, culminating in a sweet half-pipe. And that was just the start of the day...

I *finally* made it to the Moonraker trails - my reason for being in Golden at all - in the afternoon. Long story short: WOW! All kinds of flowy, fun, singletrack goodness threading through pine forest. The CBT Mainline trail, which actually connects the trail system to the town of Golden, is especially not to be missed.

There may be another Golden mountain biking day in my future...

Update Sept 6, 2011:
I did manage to do another day of mountain biking in Golden. I'd headed up the CBT Mainline trail for another XC ride in the Moonraker trails, but at the top of CBT I decided to turn around since my knee had started giving me problems from all the crashing I'd done on my first downhill experience. On my way back to the Dreamcatcher, I rode by this cute downhiller girl I'd spoken to a few times on the trails; she was loading a bunch of bikes into her pickup truck. "Wanna go for a ride?" she asked. "Sure!" I replied. (Really, what else could I say?)  She and her friends took me to a little-used downhill trail that only locals go to. Let's just say that while I'm a pretty good descender for an East Coast XC rider, I got nothin' on real honest-to-goodness Rocky Mountain downhillers.

The aftermath

Will and Kate had tea at Skoki Lodge...

Skoki Lodge. A very lovely lodge that we neither stayed nor ate at.

...But we didn't! At $5 per person for tea (albeit unlimited amounts, but how much tea can one drink anyways?), it seemed a bit steep (pun intended - sorry!). Rice Krispy squares at $5 also was a bit much, so at the end of the day all we sampled at the Skoki Lodge was the atmosphere and filtered water. Ok, I'll fess up: a very nice lady - one of the legitimate lodge guests - donated her share of the squares to our cause so we didn't walk away entirely empty-handed.

A very notable pair of signatures

"Beauty Creek" is Aptly Named

The old Banff-Jasper highway

The walk wasn't so promising to begin with; maybe the flat, straight crumbling remnant pavement of the old Banff-Jasper Parkway route deters would-be sightseers form continuing further. Or maybe it's because there's only a little tiny symbol of a hiker at the trailhead that indicates that there's anything interesting beyond. Either way, people on this trail were few and far between, which I see as a good thing. Once you're on the trail proper, you're off the old asphalt and it becomes a bit more rugged, more rooty, more interesting - but is still very easy as far as walks in the Rockies go. Regardless of the inauspicious start, taking the next few steps along this trail was very worthwhile. In seemingly no time at all, the first falls appeared.

First set of waterfalls at Beauty Creek

Then the next, and the next, and the next - all in quick succession. Apparently there's five in all, but I didn't count. Stopping at each set to take pictures, usually from multiple angles, time just flew by, and despite the short length of my walk (1.6 km distance, 200m in altitude gained), two hours had gone by. I actually could have gone further but I hadn't prepared to do so and my stomach was reminding me that it was dinner time.

A waterfall at Beauty Creek

Hard-core hikers will be less than impressed with this walk. "Where is the elevation? Where are the epic views?" they will ask. But that's ok. As Kathy and Craig Copeland hinted at in their wonderful book, Don't Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies, this is a walk for the small wonders: "And hikers, after being overawed by grand mountains, are charmed by the human-scale beauty of this intimate chasm." And wonders there are indeed. I found this walk every bit as scenic as - and with the solitude, far more enchanting than - the crowded, sanitized, Disney-fied Johnston Canyon walk. At Beauty Creek, you can get right down to the water, scramble across rock slabs, and even perch precariously above cascades.

Beauty Creek waterfall from above

One thing that I don't understand is how kayakers could possibly manage this creek! According to the second edition of the Canadian Rockies Backroads Mapbook, Beauty Creek is one of the paddling opportunities in the Rockies:

Beauty Creek exists for one reason: to show off, preferably in front of a camera. If you are looking for an exhilarating ride down a wild white river, there are other places wilder and whiter. If you are looking for a great picture of you dropping off a 12 metrre high waterfall... well, here's your chance.

That I would like to see!

A Beauty Creek waterfall

Definitely a worthwhile stop, and even a potential for repeated visits to witness the changing light and seasons. But only if you appreciate waterfalls...

Overnight Backpack on Mill Brook Ridge, Catskills

Misty Alder Lake

Note: This hike was actually done in August 2010 but for some reason I didn't hit "Publish Post" on this entry.

I went on an impromptu overnight backpacking trip in the Catskills. My intention was to hike from Alder Lake, along the Mill Brook Ridge to the Balsam Lake Mountain trailhead, and continue along the Neversink-Hardenburgh Trail to spend the night at a campsite just past Vly Pond. Essentially, completing the Mill Brook Ridge and part of the Fall Brook sections of the Finger Lakes Trail. You know the saying, "No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy"? Well, none of my plans survive contact with... well... me.

Spent Friday night at a campsite at Alder Lake. Experimented a bit with taking nighttime shots with my new camera, and then just lay down on a picnic table to catch the tail end of the Perseid meteor shower.

Saturday dawned bright and clear, and after a quick breakfast I hit the trail. Given my previous Catskills hiking experience, I made sure that I was carrying enough water to last me the two days. My backpack (Gregory Z55) wasn't really designed to take this kind of weight and the way it was distributed (5L in bladders in the pouch inside the pack, another 2L in bottles in the exterior pouch) so it wasn't long before it - and my shoulders - started complaining. Off to a great start...

This trail doesn't seem to get a lot of use and the ferns and other plants grow quite close to the path, so for much of the time there wasn't enough room to place my hiking poles. I do like this kind of terrain though, and the greenness is very refreshing. With the many streams along the way, it's quickly becoming obvious that I needn't have worried about the water situation. Just as well, since my hydration pack bladder sprang a leak and emptied itself overnight.

Directions to the spring

The two scenic lookouts (at Mill Brook Ridge and at the Balsam Lake Mountain Fire Tower) revealed nice enough views, but nothing really to write home about.

By the time I got to the Balsam Lake Mountain Fire Tower, my chronic plantar fasciitis was acting up in a big way. Rather than continuing on to the Neversink-Hardenburgh Trail, I decided to make camp at the Balsam Lake lean-to, thinking that I was better off knowing I could make my way back, rather than suffering through an extra 10 miles of up- and downhill hiking. Turned out to be the right decision.

Catskill Mists

Conrad Kain Trail impressions

Bugaboo Glacier

I'll preface this post with a caveat: I hesitate to call this a trail review since I didn't really capture any hard data on it (mileage, trail conditions, time to complete, etc.); this post merely reflects my impressions and experience of it.

And here's another caveat: I hadn't actually intended to do this trail. I actually wanted to go up the nearby Cobalt Lake trail, but by the time I got my act together, the day was half done, and I wasn't sure I could safely complete the slightly longer and steeper route to and from Cobalt Lake before nightfall. 

At the trailhead, I was sure to secure my vehicle against the predations of the local porcupine population.

The route to the Conrad Kain hut in British Columbia's Porcupine Provincial Park is quite heavily traveled by mountaineers, rock climbers, and all kinds of adventurous folk who want to test themselves against the Bugaboo Mountain Range. The lower section of the trail is very well groomed, quite mild, and offers no indication of the challenge to come. The lower trail meanders happily along amidst forests and streams and then gradually - so gradually that you barely notice it - goes *up*. Passing a waterfall you suddenly notice that you're breathing a bit harder. Then you leave the trees behind and the altitude you've gained is revealed. Tenacious wildflowers cling to the mountainside rubble. Then come the rock piles and the steepness, each step harder than the last. And next, the cliff where your only security is the narrow path beneath your feet and the chain tethered helpfully to the sheer rock face.

A Treacherous Path

(Note that my impression of this part of the trail is coloured somewhat by a mild case of acrophobia and a two-month layoff from any strenuous physical activity resulting from a strained lower back. Those without the aforementioned conditions who are in reasonably good shape and sure-footed should suffer no ill effects from the trek.)

Western Anemone

Once you're free of the trees and the steep ups you see the glaciers, the view into the distant valley, the streams, and the cascades created by the meltwater from the aforementioned glaciers. And still the trail climbs on...

Glacial Meltwater

Arriving at the Conrad Kain Hut comes with a mild sense of relief, and yet is anti-climactic. You have a view of the Bugaboo Glacier, and the valley below through which the Bugaboo Creek runs, as well as the various peaks of the Bugaboo Range, but somehow I'd expected something more. I can only surmise that the "more" comes from the mountaineering and rock climbing for which this hut is a mere launching point. As attested to by the number of vehicles at the trailhead parking lot, there were indeed many parties staying at the hut or passing by, with the intention of summiting the surrounding peaks or traversing the glaciers or staying at one of the two nearby campsites. Not being one of those intrepid souls myself, and in any case lacking a party to adventure with, I set my boots on the trail back down. For me, this was challenge enough. My right knee doesn't actually work properly anymore due to an injury acquired a couple of years ago playing Ultimate Frisbee, so descending for me is actually as difficult as the trip up. On the way down I was passed by several mountaineers burdened with two or three times the load that I was carrying. No big deal, I wasn't in a hurry anyways.

Conrad Kain Hut

At the end of the day, I'd sum up the hike to the Conrad Kain Hut thus: It's a great workout, and if you've got a hankering to experience mountains and glaciers away from the crowds that plague the nearby National Parks of the Canadian Rockies, this is a worthwhile trip. Otherwise, it's a fantastic launching point (pretty much the only launching point) for expeditions deeper into the Bugaboo Mountains.

Gregory Z55 Backpack Review

This is a review of the 2008 Gregory Z55 backpack.

I've had this backpack for almost two years now, and have had an opportunity to put it through its paces. What follows below is largely a review I posted on the Mountain Equipment Co-Op (MEC) product page, with a couple of updates.

I bought this pack after using its bigger brother, the Baltoro, for a year. I've taken the Z55 on several long day hikes and a couple of overnight backpacking excursions, and it works quite well for these kinds of trips, even though it's a bit of overkill for day trips. The suspension system is well-thought-out and I found that it's very comfortable to carry as long as the bag is not overloaded. I've generally enjoyed Gregory's suspension system on my two large backpacks and found that it works the best for me in terms of fit, comfort, and adjustability of all the designs I've tried from a few manufacturers (Osprey, MEC, Arc'teryx, Black Diamond). Of course, fit is a personal thing, and obviously your mileage may vary.

The belt pockets are very handy, and the plethora of compression straps means that I can stabilize the load when the bag is less than completely full. One thing that could be improved is access to water. If I'm in an area where fresh water is available, I'd prefer to use water bottles to make it easy to refill/purify as I go, rather than using a hydration bladder which requires the removal of the pack contents to refill it. Unfortunately there's no exterior water bottle holder that's accessible when wearing the pack, so I have to remove it to take a drink. Three other things to note: first, the fabric is very thin, so you have to be careful about packing things with hard edges. After just a few excursions, the bag developed holes in a couple of places where hard objects (e.g. plastic trowel) have poked through. I guess this is the price you pay for light weight. Second, the bag is definitely not waterproof, but this isn't an issue for me since I pack all essentials in waterproof stuffsacks. Third, while my back length requires a medium size pack, with a ~30" waist, I'm at the very edge of adjustability for the hip belt - I can't tighten it much further.

Pros: Lightweight, Good Value, excellent suspension system, hip belt pockets

Cons: poor water bottle access, needs to be packed carefully to avoid hard objects against the pack fabric
Overall Rating: 4/5

I'll update this post again with pictures when I have a chance.

Kootenay Kamping

Bugaboo-Septet Rec Site View

British Columbia has all kinds of awesome little camping spots that are usually free or very cheap. I managed to stay at a couple of them in the Kootenays - Botts Lake Recreation Site and Bugaboo-Septet Recreation Site - for a few days. It was quite nice to be able to just chill for a bit next to my own private lake and river in these tranquil spots away from the madness and mayhem of my recent adventure race volunteering experience.

Evening Flowers at Botts Lake

One of the funny things about the region in and around Bugaboo Provincial Park is that the local porcupines have developed a taste for rubber, especially of the automotive variety. You have to be very careful to protect your car from the depredations of these rascally rodents - protection involving chicken wire, lumber, and rocks. As much as a pain as it is to set up the protective barrier, failing to do so (or do so well) can leave you stranded or lead to an accident. The porcupines in this area have been known to chew tires, electrical wires, brake hoses, and - as one Westfalia driver was cursing as I left the Conrad Kain parking lot - fuel lines.

Anti-Porcupine Device

Anti-Porcupine Device in Action

Bulk Porcupine Deterrent

More BC Wandering

Raid the North Extreme is over and done with, having finished a couple of days ago in Trail, BC. I actually completed my volunteer stint a couple of days earlier and didn't stick around to see how it turned out. Hopefully I'll get a chance to post a bit more about the experience in the near future, but to sum it up in a few words: wet, cold, sauna, sleep deprivation, work.

At the start line

Race start

I spent the past couple of nights in an awesome little (free!) campsite by a lake near Radium Hot Springs in BC, and now I'm off to see if I can get into the Bugaboos. Might also do an overnight paddle down the Columbia River if I can find a suitable outfitter. Should have enough to do before I meet my folks at the end of the week in Banff...

View from My Campsite - Botts Lake Reflection