:: Elk Mountain ::
:: Chilliwack :: 4 Hours :: 7k :: Elevation Gain 800m ::
May 23, 2015
Elk mountain! This trip was anticipated for a while as we
had a few weeks after Lindeman where we were unable to get together to hike. We
kept an eye on the weather reports and continued to get dismayed the closer we
got to the date of our hike. At one point the forecast called for a downpour
but luckily it seemed to lighten up the day prior. We were worried about the
weather putting a damper on the hike as the view from the top is supposed to be
amazing.
I had brought my dog’s back pack (yes a dog backpack) and
put the dogs gear inside and we put in on Oli, one of the border collies to
help slow him down a bit. The dogs had a blast the whole way up, running from
the front of our group, leading the way, to the back to check on everyone
before doing it all again countless times.
As we began our
journey back down, we found that the super steep trails we had laboured up,
looking a bit scary when it came to descending them. We did an awkward downhill
crab walk that Nicole affectionately called ‘the bum slide” as we tried not to
slide off the mountain. The rest of the way was alright, we just had to keep
eyes to the ground to make sure we weren’t going to bail.
As surefooted as I like to think I am, I did slip on a
wet root and fell hard. My embarrassment saw to it that I was on my feet in
fractions of a second with an adrenaline fueled “TA DA!” and flourish. No harm
done. While we made our way back down the dogs seemed to have not let up for a
second. They ran their faces off (backpack and all!) back and forth as they
helped herd us down the mountain. They even had a game of chase around us. If
only we had the energy those dogs did!
May 23, 2015
Elk mountain! This trip was anticipated for a while as we
had a few weeks after Lindeman where we were unable to get together to hike. We
kept an eye on the weather reports and continued to get dismayed the closer we
got to the date of our hike. At one point the forecast called for a downpour
but luckily it seemed to lighten up the day prior. We were worried about the
weather putting a damper on the hike as the view from the top is supposed to be
amazing.
This time we had a group of four plus three pups. We set
out early in the morning to beat the foot traffic that is common for the popular
trail. As we drove up the winding road that lead up the mountain we found
ourselves ascending into a very thick fog. We crossed our fingers that the sun
would burn it off by the time we reached the peak. The fog did make for a
really cool atmosphere for the first part of our hike. It was really eerie and
the sun that hid behind the mist lit it up in strange ways but it was really
quite neat.
I had brought my dog’s back pack (yes a dog backpack) and
put the dogs gear inside and we put in on Oli, one of the border collies to
help slow him down a bit. The dogs had a blast the whole way up, running from
the front of our group, leading the way, to the back to check on everyone
before doing it all again countless times.
This trail rose up over twice the elevation gain as our
previous trip and each time we felt like we crested a massive climb, another
one was waiting for us just after it leveled off. Cue some interesting profanity
filled exasperated comments from our group but it was good fun regardless. I
probably over packed my bag. Being a girlscout back in the day I seem to only
remember the “Be Prepared!” motto and not the actual methods of packing light.
Along the way we got to see crazy huge trees, stunning
wildflowers that I’ve never seen before and the blooms of wild strawberries. It
was really all quite beautiful especially one of the hills we passed that was
littered with tons of wild flowers.
It seemed to take forever to reach the first peak. At one
point the trail narrowed and we had to climb up on all fours to compensate for
the slippery shale like stones that covered the path. But we did it! We reached
the first peak, the one where we were supposed to see the view of a lifetime! A
breathtaking view of all of Chilliwack valley, Vedder River and beyond. So
excited to take in the experience, he hauled ass to the point and were ready to feast our eyes on the bounty of our
efforts.
Wait. This was it? Seeing nothing but cloud was a bit
disappointing after hiking for hours, not to mention oddly disorienting. We sat
down to take off our bags (let us not speak of the sweat revealed) and ate our
lunch while squinting at the endless white that was our view. We resolved to do
the hike again on a nicer day so we can bear witness to the amazing view we
were promised. Refueled, we chose to hike another half an hour up to the second
peak in hopes that we might see something a little more interesting. Alas, more fog and low cloud. I did spot a
neat bug.
It’s cool, right? Yes? Ok!
As we began our
journey back down, we found that the super steep trails we had laboured up,
looking a bit scary when it came to descending them. We did an awkward downhill
crab walk that Nicole affectionately called ‘the bum slide” as we tried not to
slide off the mountain. The rest of the way was alright, we just had to keep
eyes to the ground to make sure we weren’t going to bail. 
As surefooted as I like to think I am, I did slip on a
wet root and fell hard. My embarrassment saw to it that I was on my feet in
fractions of a second with an adrenaline fueled “TA DA!” and flourish. No harm
done. While we made our way back down the dogs seemed to have not let up for a
second. They ran their faces off (backpack and all!) back and forth as they
helped herd us down the mountain. They even had a game of chase around us. If
only we had the energy those dogs did!
We made it back to the car and found the trail head
packed to the brim with all the hiker’s vehicles we passed on our way down.
Sitting down was glorious and the ride back home was mostly silent, all of us
exhausted. But we will be back, Elk mountain! And we are going to see that
viewpoint in all its glory sometime soon!
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