Eeee-GAD!!!

Oh dear. It finally happened. I kind of had the 'same day twice'... D'OH!! The whole premise behind the name of my blog is that, while I will definitely try pretty much anything once, I prefer NOT to repeat myself when it comes to hiking and travelling, etc. This world has so many trails to explore and destinations to visit, and I seriously enjoy the adventure of new scenery and locations. I love not knowing what it will look like when I arrive!! I mean, of course there are the standard places that I venture to, time after time after time (honestly, who doesn't like Skaha or Red Rocks or even Arizona??)... but mostly I make an effort to plan my hikes and holidays to places I've never been.

Until today. I'm in Canmore and I slept late (felt soooo good!!), and between that and the bear closures around the area and the poopy weather forecast, I chose to stick close to home. About five years ago, Todd and I climbed the standard route up the north face of Ha Ling Peak, and we walked off via a trail down the backside. All I remember about it is that the views from the top were quite nice... so even though I already have a rock from the peak, I decided to check it out a second time.

 

 

I'm really glad I did! Although I couldn't have picked a busier day... Saturday! But that's okay - the people traffic was entertaining. It took me 90 minutes to get to the summit, and along the way I passed an 8-year-old girl who proudly announced she would be turning 9 tomorrow and had just climbed her first mountain. I also met and chatted with a retired fellow from China who was quite concerned that I was hiking by myself. He is here exploring the Rockies for an unspecified amount of time and was super keen to do more scrambling. We discussed nearby options and I left him with my GemTrek map of Canmore - I thought he was going to hug me, he was so grateful!

Then I toured over to Miner's Peak, which was way less crowded but equally as scenic. I met a local gentleman who was scoping out some ski lines below Lawrence Grassi Peak, and then I sat and ate my lunch in the glorious sunshine.

 

I was back at the car in just over three hours, and for the record, the last time I was at Ha Ling I don't think we descended on the well-worn switchbacking trail that I hiked on today. Seems to me we took the 'climbers trail' (which beelines straight for the road!) So... a different trail, and a variation at the top that included another peak... Perhaps I didn't have the same day twice after all!!?

Cheers!


Ha Ling Peak / Miner's Peak
Time (car-to-car): 3-1/4 hrs
Distance: ~6km
Elevation Gain: ~800m

Back in Alberta

Well the whirlwind tour has come to an end... Booooo!!!! We left Hood River Tuesday morning, since the wind forecast was non-existent, and we drove to Cranbrook where we had an awesome visit with Renee and Sheldon DeCosse (http://www.decossecustoms.com/). They have a gorgeous piece of land overlooking the town of Cranbrook, and they also have the coolest little hobby farm!

 

Wednesday we continued on to Old Man Dam near Pincher Creek, and Todd and Chris kitesurfed the afternoon away at Windy Point.

Sheldon joined us on Thursday, and the 'Wolfpack of Three' (road trip joke!!) pumped up pretty much every kite they brought and had a great time at a different launch site on the north side of the reservoir.

 

Late last night we rolled into Canmore and this morning Todd and Chris headed back to Red Deer - they both have to work! Ick. Oh well. Better them than me!! Heh heh. I'm going to hang around in the mountains for the weekend and hopefully get out for a day or two more of hiking, if Mother Nature cooperates. We had fabulous weather the entire road trip and it's quite disappointing to have to come back to our crappy climate. But that's Alberta for you - I really shouldn't be surprised!!

Cheers!

Fun around Hood River

Wow, what a great time we've been having here in Oregon! Todd and Chris have been kitesurfing in awesome conditions at the sandbar since we arrived, so on Sunday, we drove out to Rufus to check out a different launch site. Talk about gnarly!! Todd rode completely lit up on his 9m for an hour and a half or so, and then we came back to the sandbar and Chris ripped it up in much friendlier conditions for a couple of hours while Todd and I chilled on the beach.

 

Today, the guys humored me and came hiking - the skies were clear and blue and there wasn't an ounce of wind, which made for a fantastic trip up the Cooper Spur on Mount Hood.

After checking the forecast, it has been decided that we are heading back north tomorrow, in hopes of catching some wind at Old Man Dam. I can hardly wait! I've never been there but I've heard it is beautiful! And perhaps we can even meet up with our good friends the DeCosses? Fun fun fun!!

Cheers!
 
 
Cooper Spur - Mt. Hood
Time (car to car): 3-3/4 hrs
Distance: 9km
Elevation Gain: 950m

Day Four...

Another great day in Hood River! Todd and Chris got the best of the wind, early yesterday... and there were hardly any other peeps out on the water, either!

This morning, we're having brekkie at the Hood River Hotel, and then we'll be heading down to the sandbar for what looks to possibly be the last epic day. So maybe tomorrow, the boys will have to take a rest day and we can find a place to go hiking or something?

No matter what we get to do, it is gorgeous here and we are having a fabulous time! Yaaaayyy for road trips!!! Yeah!

Cheers!

Hangin' in the Hood!

Wednesday night after Todd and Chris finished their dayshift in Red Deer, they drove out to Canmore and picked me up, and we headed off to Hood River, Oregon.

We arrived at about 8am Thursday morning, somewhat tired, but we had breakfast, set up camp, and the two diehards (that would be Todd and Chris!) spent the afternoon kiting at the Sand Bar. The winds were epic and had we not all been sleep-deprived, I'm sure they would have ridden for much more than three hours!

Yesterday (Friday) was just as windy, so the boys rode for several hours again in 9 metre conditions. Chris even experienced his first barge!! And I stealthed around where some young punks were hucking tricks and snapped a few photos of the action.

The weather is a bit different this morning, but as long as there is even a breath of wind, Todd and Chris will be in their glory. So I guess I better finish my post and my chai tea latte and get these guys to the sand bar!!

Cheers!