5040

Our original plan was to climb up Triple Peak. With an extremely wet forecast ahead, we decided scrambling wasn’t the safest plan. So we switched gears to a hike on Triple’s neighbor: 5040.

The peak gets its name from its summit height: 5040 feet (or 1536m).

I took this photo of 5040 while standing at the lake on Triple Peak last year.

My friend Dave and I drove up to the base of the hike Friday night.

We arrived around 10pm. I tried to sleep in my tent on the side of the logging road. Not the most scenic camping spot, but at least I had coffee in the morning.

Everyone else drove in from Nanaimo the next morning.

And we were off on our hike!

The rain was relentless from the beginning, slowly turning to a mix of rain and snow.

Taking my hands out of my gloves long enough to take a photo was a bit of an adventure itself, but worth it.

It took us about an hour to get to Cobalt Lake.

It looked like a beautiful spot, but there was no lingering to enjoy the views with the rain and wind.

As soon as we started up from the lake, the snow began to stick.

My excitement level was very high.

SNOW!

The last bit was a bit brutal, as the wind whipped frozen rain into our faces.

Summit!!

We almost ran down without singing the registry, but one of our brave companions pulled it out. He wrote “Snow / Rain” and left room for us all to sign.

Pretty sure the ink was frozen in the pen, but we tried.

And down we all went again.

I probably spent 10 hours of driving for 4 hours of hiking, which is quite ridiculous. But the snow made it totally worth it.

Another great Alpine Club trip!

Pro tip: Remember to always bring the 10 essentials on every hike, but it is especially important in remote places like this in colder temperatures.