Mt. Robson, as it looked the day after our hike up the Berg Lake Trail.

We finally did our hike to Mount Robson on the Berg Lake trail. Not the full hike this time, but we did just over a third of it as a day hike.

For many years my wife and I have had a goal of doing a multi-day trip on the trail but have never done it. We have talked about it, accumulated almost all the gear we needed but just haven’t made the time to do it.

While we didn’t complete it as we’d hoped, we’re not discouraged. At the last minute we decided we weren’t fully prepared for the trip, but that’s all right. A few more gear additions are necessary and definitely more conditioning.

Map of the Berg Lake trail hike.

In the end we decided on a day hike as far as we could reasonably go and then hike back. From the trailhead we hiked almost to the nine kilometer mark on the Berg Lake trail and then returned.

The usual day hike on this trail is up to Kinney Lake approximately 4.5 km down the trail. We arrived at Mt. Robson a little late the previous day, so we decided to make it a full day the next day.

Perhaps we should have gone that day, or the day we left. Instead, we went the day after we arrived and the morning started out with rain and we debated whether or not to go. We lacked proper rain gear and it would make for a miserable trip without it.

The weather broke after lunch and we hit the trail at noon figuring we could hike to Whitehorn and back. Whitehorn is 11 km down the Berg Lake Trail. We couldn’t see the top of Mt. Robson, which was a disappointment, but we figured we’d do it anyway.

Conditioning

We travelled light with only daypacks, so we made pretty good time up the trail. Admittedly, we are not in the best shape, so we were wondering if we’d even be able to make it. Evidently we aren’t in such bad shape after all. We seemed to go at a pretty good pace the whole day and conditioning wasn’t the issue we thought it would be.

Our plan is to do a lot more hiking in future and increase the amount of weight we’re carrying so when we do the multi-day trip, we will focus on enjoying the sights and not on recovering from the hike.

Kinney Lake

The grade to Kinney Lake is fairly consistent. There are a couple sections where you rise fairly quickly, but overall it’s an easy hike. It’s only 4.5 km one way and they say you can do the return trip in 2.5 hours.

Kinney Lake on the Berg Lake Trail in Mt. Robson Provincial Park.

We reached the bridge over the Robson River at the end of Kinney Lake fairly quickly. It’s worth continuing on a little around the edge of Kinney Lake. You get incredible views of the valley, and when we were there, the lake was calm and offered spectacular reflections of the surrounding mountains.

Luckily the clouds had also begun to clear, making our decision to do the hike worthwhile. We didn’t stop for long though. We admired the views, took some photos and moved on.

Coming off the end of Kinney Lake, you climb a series of switchbacks to a higher trail in the forest. It’s a fairly easy trail once you do the climb and the trail runs through the rainforest.

Further on we descended to the lake again and back onto a floodplain. It’s obvious this is an interesting place in the spring and one can see plenty of evidence as to why. There are no obvious signs of soil among the trees but a lot of rock and gravel washed down from the mountain.

From here the walk was quite easy up to the Kinney Lake campground and shelter. We ate lunch and rested for about a half-hour, enjoying the views of the surrounding mountains.

Deceiving elevation

If only the trail were this easy. We didn't expect it to be, but it doesn't at all reflect reality!

Our plan had been to push on to the 11 km point at the Whitehorn camp. The maps at the visitor centre are quite deceiving, especially in terms of elevation gain. Even if we’d had a proper map it still wouldn’t have shown us what to expect.

Up to this point the hike really had been quite easy and hadn’t pushed us too hard.

Whitehorn

Great views of the north end of Kinney Lake on the way to Whitehorn camp.

You can actually mountain bike up to the 7 km point when you have to park them and go on foot. It’s also at this point you can take the trail along the mountain, or go out onto the rocky alluvial plain. We had noticed a couple groups of hikers taking this route, but we weren’t sure of it and decided to take the regular trail.

Next time, with full packs, we will give the plain a try. The trail after the mountain bike lockup climbs quickly and in no time it seems as if you’re about 100 metres above the plain.

This gives you an idea of how steep the trail is between Kinney Camp and Whitehorn. Only a couple switchbacks here.

I really enjoyed this part of the trail. To me, it’s the quintessential hike, with the trail meandering through the trees and huge, frost-shattered boulders and the side of the trail dropping off to the valley floor below.

The elevation changes on this trail were constant. We had to climb and descend quite regularly and I think this is the part of the trail that tired us out more than any other, though we didn’t realize it at the time.

It is very much worth taking this section of trail, if only for the impressive views of Kinney Lake, the alluvial plain and the surrounding mountains. There are many points where you can take photos of the valley but also of the mountain towering beside you.

So if you decide to take the trip, ignore the visitor centre maps in assessing the trail. They just don’t give you an idea what you’ll face. If you’re fully loaded with a pack, it’ll be a bit tougher on this section, but worth it.

The trail dropped back down into the valley and we had three bridges to cross. It was nice to hike across the relatively flat plain, and we thought we could see roughly where we needed to go from the valley floor. Didn’t look like such a bad hike.

Turning around

Nearly made it to our half-way point on our hike.

After chatting with a backpacker and having him take our photo, we continued on up the trail. This final section up to Whitehorn was going to be a fairly steep one and we were close to the nine kilometer marker. We climbed up a few switchbacks but were starting to feel a little tired and we reassessed our situation.

We consulted with the packer we’d met and he said we still had a couple kilometers to go to Whitehorn. We decided to turn back, because we were at our half-way point if we stopped there. We didn’t want to push it and get so tired that we would have a tough time making it back.

I did not want to fall off this bridge just to see how cold the water was. I can imagine!

We had headlamps, clothing and food, but that wasn’t the issue. With the ups and downs, drop-offs, mud and rock on the trail, we didn’t want to get so tired that we have an accident on the way back. So, with no regrets we decided to turn around. Besides, had we made it to our destination, we would not have had much time to spend in the area, which would have been a real shame. There will be a next time!

So we’d nearly made nine kilometers, which we figured was pretty good for our first major hike. It was going to be 18 kilometres by the end of the day, and with the other walking probably 20!

Once we got back on the plain we considered following it instead of the more challenging hike back to Kinney Lake. I think we were wise in not choosing a new, unfamiliar route that didn’t seem particularly well marked. I’m sure it changes slightly every season with the massive amounts of runoff the valley likely sees.

The climb started again, and we could tell we were definitely getting tired. Where we were beginning to notice it most was on the descents, especially in the knees for me and a bit in the hips. Those hiking poles would have come in handy!

We were going at a pretty good pace though, and made it back to Kinney Camp quickly. We rested there for a half-hour, letting our socks and shoes dry out, enjoying the sun. A squirrel entertained us and the other hikers in the Kinney Camp shelter while we relaxed.

Back around Kinney Lake

Looking towards our goal. Wouldn't quite make it this trip. Next time!

Continuing on to the south end of Kinney Lake, the forest was much darker than before as the sun hid behind the clouds moving in. The sun was only slightly higher than the huge, surrounding peaks as it was anyway.

At the bridge across the Robson River we relaxed again for about 10 minutes before continuing on. Compared to the rest of the trail we had seen, the remaining trail was not as interesting so we expected to make fairly good time.

Feeling the strain in our legs, we still made pretty good time, but mother nature decided to remind us why we needed to have good raingear. It poured from about the 3.5 km mark until we had about 1 km left on the trail, at which point it just drizzled for a while. The clouds broke and we managed to get a few more good photos of Mt. Robson.

Interesting things to see almost everywhere on the Berg Lake Trail. Not sure what the name of this tower is.

Fortunately we had our camping gear waiting in the car, so we had a thawing mixture of pulled pork and rice waiting to be heated up on our stove. We relaxed in the shelter at the end of the trail and had supper. I am also glad we had two bottles of Alexander Keiths waiting for us in that cooler!

While we didn’t do the full backpacking trip we wanted to do, we were very happy to do the trip we had. I think we had proved to ourselves we still were in good enough shape to do it and developed the confidence in ourselves

The weather was actually pretty good for most of the day.

and our gear to know that when we put it all together (and we will soon) that we’ll make the full trip to the end of the Berg Lake trail and know we’ll make it back.

The round trip took us 6 hours and 50 minutes, with 1 hour and 10 minutes stopped at Kinney Camp. I was busy taking photos along the way, so we actually made it up and down the trail at a rate of more than three kilometers per hour. We hadn’t expected that, so we were impressed.

This “test trip” also gave us a bit of an idea on how we’ll plan our trip when we do go the full way. We will be fully loaded on that trip, but we’re not going to travel as much each day, so at least we’ll have much more time to relax, look around and I will be taking even more photos.

Mt. Robson has always been one of my favourite places, and I’m glad we were finally able to experience it in a much different way. Can’t wait until the next trip!

I would be interested to hear about your experience on this and other hikes, as well as thoughts on hiking gear and backpacking in general.

Postscript:

Saw this van when we started out our hike earlier in the day. Not sure what is with the banana under the windshield wiper though.

We were in bed early after that very long hike, but were up pretty early. Wouldn’t you know it? Mt. Robson had barely a cloud on it. Typical. Perhaps we should have waited until the day we left. Oh well. Hope the weather is as good next time!

You can see all of our Mt. Robson Berg Lake Trail trip photos on Flickr.

My uncle Jerry in his younger days. One comment I remember someone made was along the lines that while he didn't have the grades his brothers had, he had better parties.

In my life I’ve found that I need to be reminded of some things occasionally. I had a few of those reminders recently.

I took a trip with my brother and my mom down to Spokane, Washington for a memorial service for my uncle. I hadn’t seen my uncle in a long time, nor had I talked to him. You know how you just get busy in life and kind of forget about simple things like this.

I am glad I made the trip down to see relatives, some of whom I have no memory at all, but they remember me when I was waist high. I don’t remember Spokane at all. I think it’d probably almost been 30 years since I’d last been there.

It was nice to be able to travel with my mom and brother and talk with them for an extended period of time that I really don’t get to do very often anymore. We travelled from Edmonton through the Crowsnest Pass to Cranbrook and down through Sandpoint, Idaho. We then travelled from Sandpoint, through Coeur d’Alene and on to Spokane.

I hadn’t realized it was such a short trip that could easily be made from my home in one slightly long day. I had no memory of any part of Idaho, but I was really amazed by it. It is rugged, beautiful country, and the people there are great.

Surprises

One of the many photos I took of the memorial park where my uncle is at.

I recently visited Lacombe, Alberta for another memorial service. I was reminded of its downtown in each US community we passed through. Turn of the 20^th century brick buildings are in abundance, and it tends to give those communities a warmer, friendly feel.

Spokane especially had a plentiful supply of these historic brick buildings. I wish builders would put that amount of work into buildings today. It’s rare to see a building these days you could describe as ornate.

While Spokane did have these buildings, and many 30s and 40s era houses, I was quite shocked to see the decay there. I saw many houses that were boarded up with overgrown yards or generally not maintained.

I was puzzled by it because I’m not used to seeing that. There is a bit of that in some areas of Edmonton, but nothing compared to what I saw in Spokane.

I’m at a loss to explain it. I know the economy is tough in the U.S. right now, but this level of decay spans many, many years. I don’t know much about the economy of Spokane, but I suspect that it’s probably been tough for a while.

I didn’t see much of that in Idaho though, as we seemed to have travelled through a fairly prosperous resort and agricultural area. My mom had wanted to stop in Post Falls, Idaho because she remembered a large area of outlet stores.

An example of one of the buildings in Spokane. It's not all run-down, and I'd like to visit the rest of this beautiful old city.

On our way back home we stopped in Post Falls to stay at a hotel before shopping there the next morning. It’s a good thing we talked to the hotel clerks and drove through that shopping area. There were perhaps ten small shops open in the large strip malls that paralleled the road. It was shocking to see that amount of commercial real estate sitting empty.

I did love Idaho though. The area around Sandpoint is beautiful. I love the quaint town and if you’re into the outdoors, Sandpoint offers a lot from fishing to skiing. If I were to live anywhere in the U.S., I could see it being here.

Reminders

The Panida Theatre in Sandpoint, Idaho. It's a U.S. National Historic Monument.

I was reminded that I have a big family, which I am not able to see very often, but I should make time to see. Not having kept in touch with so many of them makes me sad. Life has a way of filling your time with a lot of activities far less important than keeping in touch with your family and friends.

I am lucky to have so many family and friends that care for me, and I care for them, no matter what happens. In the end, family and friends are what matter most.

My hope is that I’ll be able to spend much more time in the future visiting family and friends and not just keeping up with what they’re doing on Facebook.

On Christmas Day we heard about the crotch bomber. Apparently the US was fully aware of him, but still allowed him to fly. Now there are questions about whether this was a “false flag” event, which the US is known for, to keep the terrorist fear ball rolling. (I guess Yemen has lots of oil and will be invaded soon.)

Don’t believe the US government lies to start wars or keep them going? (Not like they’re the only government that does either.)

• first Gulf War – manufactured story by Hill & Knowlton PR – Iraqi soldiers pulling Kuwaiti babies out of incubators
• second Gulf War – no evidence of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction – the Bush Whitehouse was keen to eliminate Saddam Hussein, so it falsified “evidence” of WMDs
• Vietnam War – pretext for the Vietnam War – Gulf of Tonkin incident never happened.

Admit it America: the terrorists have won. They’ve succeeded in terrorizing your entire country to the point that you’ve begun dismantling the principles, laws and institutions that differentiate you from the nations and groups those actual and alleged terrorists come from.

Now there just needs to be a hint of terrorism, a vague mention or some unverified tape from a terrorist country and more legislation is trotted out to “protect” us. Who’s protecting us from our governments now?

“Terrorism” aftermath: more travel restrictions

I’ve always liked Rick Steves and his Europe Through the Back Door series of books and TV shows, so I was curious to know what his reaction to the latest “terror in the skies” might be.

I am not sure what his reaction will be to full body scans and no carry-on bags (carry on bags will now be checked luggage), but his reaction to the fear of flying was predictable. Rick is a huge advocate of travelling light and carry-on bags, so it should be interesting to know what his thoughts are going to be on no carry-on bag rules. I can predict what he’ll say.

So now your laptops, cameras and other valuables will be at the mercy of the airport baggage handlers. They’ll either be damaged or stolen because of this idiotic American panic. Valuables routinely go missing this way. I know people who’ve had this happen.

Travellers will increasingly be subjected to dangerous, invasive and civil rights violating full body x-ray scans. They claim it’s low dose, but it serves no purpose and full-body x-rays are dangerous. I had to laugh at one comment on a CBC story on this topic that the next attack will be an “anus bomber.”

Does it really make sense to be giving grandmothers full body x-rays? Six year old boys? Fourteen year old girls? We’ve reached a new height of paranoia and stupidity and it’s up to us to stop it.

How far are we going to let our governments go in violating our democratic and civil rights in allegedly protecting us?

“Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”

Benjamin Franklin
Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759

Those days when I poke my head out to look around I see what’s really happening. I had one of those days recently. The past weeks I’ve been nose to the grindstone on work, family life and various crises that pass my way.

That day I realized I’m turning 40 this year. I really don’t have much to complain about: nice house, nice family, great work, lots of food in the cupboard. Good god! I’m turning 40!?

I’m not about to run out and buy a sports car and have a mid-life crisis, though that sounds like a heck of a lot of fun. Not sure my wife would like me filling the passenger seat with the fling of the week either, though that sounds like fun and a bit dangerous too.

What I realized is that there are some things that I’ve let slide that are important to me. Travel is one of them. When it comes to North America, I’m reasonably well-travelled, but I have never been off the continent. I dream about it. I talk about it. But, I haven’t done anything about it.

Travelling to Belgium

For me, travel has another side to it. It’s one that a few people close to me know about, but I don’t talk about a lot. The first place I will travel to this year will be to Belgium. My plan is to visit family there.

So what? Well, both of my parents are from there. The interesting part is my biological father is still there. I have no idea whether he’s alive or dead at this point as I’ve never met or communicated with him. From information I’ve received, I also have two half-sisters there.

As much as travelling to Belgium is for pleasure, it is to take care of a longstanding need of mine and that is to meet the rest of my family.

It bothers me at times that nobody has contacted me. I sent a letter once nearly six years ago, but received no response. I place no blame. I’ve waited nearly 40 years after all.

Unfortunately I’ve let life get in the way of something that is important for me to do. I don’t know whether it’s been intentional or subconscious, but now I have to do something about it. I am nervous about it. Nobody wants to be rejected, but I also don’t want to go to my grave without my family there knowing about me and without me having at least made some attempt at contacting them. If I could form some sort of relationship, that would be great, but I’m not expecting it.

So I have to begin the research again and try to make some contacts prior to going. I’m not sure when it will be, but I’m hoping for late spring/early summer.

It’s not going to be cheap either, I’m sure. I am planning on going through all of my belongings and selling off what I don’t need so I can finance this trip. Seems like a good way to accomplish a life goal and clean out the closets as well.

Mannekin Pis

There is a story behind the picture, so you don’t think the sculpture celebrates the fact that Belgians feel free to relieve themselves wherever they see fit.

The famous Belgian statue has a few different stories attached to it, but the one I heard is that a small boy went missing in Belgium (not sure for how long) and when he was found, he was naked and taking a pee.

Wikipedia has a few variations on the Mannekin Pis story and they’re all interesting.

Comments:

1. Adam Snider Says: January 6th, 2009 at 12:29 pm

Belgium should be fun. Sara and I would both like to go someday—her for the history (the medieval stuff in Bruges, in particular), and I for the beer. Be sure to take lots of pictures and blog about the best parts of the trip.

As for meeting and visiting family, I hope that all goes well. It sounds like the type of situation that could really go either way, so I hope it goes well.

2. Alain Saffel Says: January 8th, 2009 at 1:37 pm

Belgium is a great country. Loads of interesting stuff to do that I haven’t done yet! :) I’ll definitely be blogging it and taking photos. I might just get stalled taking photos and blogging! :)

I agree with you about the beer. I will be sure to sample a few. ;) On the family side, we’ll see what happens. That page is unwritten.