Category: Winter
The long way around: Spearhead Traverse
The Spearhead Traverse is a challenging ski mountaineering route that takes you from Blackcomb to Whistler, the long way around. It is a 35km traverse with approximately 1700m elevation gain. It connects 11 glaciers and 17 peaks. You see a lot of stories of people doing the Spearhead in one day. Those people are outstanding…
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Exploring the Young Peak Ski Traverse: A Complete Guide
The Young Peak Ski Traverse in Rogers Pass is a classic 20km route with 1700m elevation gain.
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VIDEO: Winter Camping and Skiing at Elfin Lakes
In March, we tackled a snowy weekend camping trip to Elfin Lakes, focusing on backcountry skiing training for the upcoming Spearhead Traverse. We learned valuable lessons about winter camping.
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VIDEO: Parking lot camping and backcountry skiing at Mt Cain
We made a special trip to the North Island to visit Mt Cain during Backcountry Fest! We camped in the parking lot in the bed of our truck with our dog Jasper. We enjoyed dinner at the lodge and, of course, skied a lot in bounds and out of bounds. The snow was heavy and…
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VIDEO: What happens when you sleep in your truck bed at -15C
We’re camping every month this year! You may remember that we tried this in 2023, but then I got very sick the weekend after and stayed sick for almost two years. (This illness was unrelated to camping.) This year, we camped the last weekend of January. A cold snap was coming through and it was…
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Ten Winter Car Camping Tips
How to have fun winter camping when it’s (seriously) freezing.
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Skiing Mt. Allan Brooks in Strathcona Park
We headed out for a ski tour to Mt. Brooks in in early January. Erica and I went with our friends Colin and Natasha. Brooks and Elma are very popular places for ski touring. I did Elma on snowshoes a few years back. Brooks has better terrain for turns and is more popular with skiers.…
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Skiing Mt Cokely on Vancouver Island
We checked out the skiing near Mt. Cokely next to Arrowsmith.
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Is it safe to ski tour this weekend?
I want to tell you a somewhat embarrassing story, back when I did not know much about winter. It was about five years ago in the fall. The leaves on the trees hadn’t even changed yet. My friend had invited me on a backpacking trip in Strathcona Park. A few days before we were supposed…
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Getting started backcountry skiing on Vancouver Island
As a climber, I always felt so sad when winter rolled around. I thought I was stuck inside until the snow melted. Then it turns out I was wrong. Learning to ski was the answer. And not just any kind of skiing. Backcountry skiing. Where you take your skis for a walk up the mountain…
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VIDEO: A tour of Hišimy̓awiƛ
Here is a video tour that I made of Hišimy̓awiƛ, an Alpine Club of Canada hut on 5040 on Vancouver Island. The video covers burning questions such as: What the sleeping area look like If you can charge your phone (spoiler alert: yes) What dishes and cooking equipment is available in the kitchen How do…
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Hiking to Mt. Assiniboine in October and having it all to ourselves
The fall is the perfect time to head to the Rockies for experienced backpackers.
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