It's been a while since I posted to the blog as I was busy enjoying our great summer. The weather in BC was fantastic and allowed me to spend lots of time playing in our beautiful outdoors from surfing in Tofino to running in the backcountry near Whistler.
One of the best ways to commit to an exercise program is to set goals that will stretch you while exciting you at the same time. I wanted to get back into some serious trail running so at the beginning of the summer I set a goal to complete 3-4 "adventure" runs, which to me, are any trail runs that take you onto some rugged, gnarly trails for at least 4 hours.
I'm happy to report that I achieved that goal. I revisited a couple of old favourite runs, the Lions and Crown Mountain plus I completed a run I've always wanted to do, Black Tusk in Garibaldi Provincial Park.
The Lions Run
The Lions are the two peaks you see in the distance as you're crossing the Lions Gate Bridge from downtown Vancouver to the North Shore. There are a number of different options if you want to reach the Lions but I choose the most scenic route, the Howe Sound Crest Trail from Cypress Bowl to the West Lion (on the left). I choose to do this on the August Long weekend Monday as the weather was absolutely perfect with gorgeous blue skies. After a fun weekend of barbeques and socializing with friends, I thoroughly enjoyed having 6.5 hours to myself on the trails.
Crown Mtn. AscentSometimes I like heading out for solo jaunts but often I like having good friends share in the outdoor adventure. So for the other two runs, my buddy Glenn Pace (yep, the same guy who ran the Easter Seals 24 hour relay - SOLO) joined me.
Having a support system including friends or workout partners is another key element in achieving your fitness goals. It helps to have someone else to share both the fun and the struggle as you work towards your goal.
(Photo: Nice shot of Crown Mtn. on the left with the Camel on the right.)
Crown Mtn. run is the tallest peak on Vancouver's North Shore; if you're looking toward Grouse Mtn. from downtown, Crown is slightly to the left and behind Grouse.
It was a hot forecast for the day we chose to do our run so we decided to get an early start and hit the Grouse Grind trail a little after 7 a.m. We had quite a trek ahead of us with a lot of climbing so our pace was fairly conservative and we emerged at the Chalet in about 48 minutes.
By then it was already hot with no clouds in the sky so we knew it was going to be a scorcher. We made our way past the tourist area and scampered up the Dam Mountain route towards Crown Pass. The shade of the forest was very welcome as the sun climbed higher in the sky.
(Photo: Glenn using the ropes on the descent to Crown Pass.)
This run has a lot of elevation change as you drop down into the pass and then have to make the final ascent to Crown. This is also the section of the trail where you're most exposed to the sun; even though it was still early I was beginning to sweat buckets and began to worry if I had enough fluid in my camelback.
We had a blast scrambling up the rugged final climb towards the peak and the view was worth it. We took a few minutes to rest and savour the sight but didn't rest too long as we wanted to be back into the shade when the sun reached its peak. The temperature would climb to 30 degrees that day!
(Left photo: Coming up from the pass. Not too much running on this part of the trail!)
(Right photo: Crown Mtn. looming over us.)
On the return trip to Grouse, I ran out of water just as we were making our way up the pass towards Grouse and Glenn was close to being done his camelback as well. We decided to skirt around Dam Mtn. as there was less climbing so it would be faster. I didn't want to be out here too long without any hydration; there aren't any good streams in this area so I would be empty until we got back to the Chalet.
Glenn eventually ran out of water as well but it only took us another 45 minutes before we were back at the Grouse Chalet where we scarfed down some food and cold drinks. In the end, the run took us about 4.5 hours.
One of the best things I love about Vancouver is that you can get to some rugged wilderness for a few hours and still be home by noon. In fact, that afternoon I ended up on the beach at Spanish Banks looking towards the North Shore and the peak we were sitting on just a few hours earlier. Amazing!
The Black Tusk RunFor my final adventure run this summer, in September Glenn joined me again as we tackled Black Tusk in Garibaldi Provincial Park near Whistler. Once again the weather cooperated as we had blue skies and warm temperatures.
Black Tusk is the jagged spire to your left a short distance before Function Junction as you're driving on Hwy. 99 towards Whistler .
I've done a number of runs in Garibaldi Park over the years and have always ran past the Tusk so its been a goal of mine for a while and I was finally going to do it. I was PUMPED!
The run to Black Tusk starts at the Garibaldi Lake trail head parking lot and is a steep climb for the first 6 km or so. Once you hit the meadows the incline lessens but basically you're climbing the entire way to the Tusk, a distance of about 13 km. We hiked/ran the ascent and though it was sunny with no clouds the elevation kept the temperature down so we were never too hot.
(Photo: The winding trail through alpine meadows.)
After the winding trail through the meadows the tough climbing really began as we hit the scree. We had gained quite a bit of elevation and were both feeling the effects of less oxygen in the air while continuing to push the pace.
(Left Photo: Out of the meadows and getting close.)
(Right Photo: The final ascent along the scree slope.)
We reached the bottom of a section called the Chimney which you have to climb to reach the peak. This area can often bottleneck as there is only enough room for one person to go at a time. When we arrived there was a large party descending and four people ahead of us waiting to go climb up.
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Left Photo: Looking up the "Chimney", the final climb to the true peak.)
(
Right Photo: Looking back down the scree slope; you have to really focus on your footing running downhill here!)
The problem with waiting here is falling rocks. The Tusk is volcanic rock which is very brittle and breaks off relatively easily. Climbers above us occasionally loosened a rock or two and they fell around us as we waited. We tried to find the safest area to wait but both of us were feeling more uneasy with each baby-head sized rock that fell. We waited for about 20 minutes but it looked like we'd have to wait at least 30 minutes more before we could make our ascent.
I'll admit I have a healthy fear of heights and climbing the Chimney did make me a little anxious. But I was a lot more anxious just sitting around as these lethal projectiles fell; after another close call with a falling rock we decided to head back and do the final climb another day when it wasn't so busy.
(
Left photo: From the base of Black Tusk looking east towards Garibaldi Lake.)
(
Right photo: Looking north towards Panorama Ridge and glaciers.)
Though we didn't get to the true peak, the views from our vantage point were still breathtaking. I've always found this park to be serene and magical; the scenery gorgeous. If you've never been to Garibaldi Park, make it one of the places to see before you kick the bucket.
Running back down the scree slope was a lot more fun than coming up. Though the footing was tricky it was a blast if you relaxed into it and did a bit of rock-surfing. This run follows the same trail in and out but it's all downhill on the way back.
It took us only half as long to return to the parking lot as it did to climb up. My quads were pretty beat up after all that downhill, especially the final 6 km but the trip was definitely worth the price.
My feet loved the soak in the frigid waters of Rubble Creek before we got back into the car for the drive home. The run had taken us about 6.5 hours and it lived up to my expectations. A stop at the Howe Sound Brew Pub for some food and a cold beer made for the perfect ending to another perfect day in beautiful BC!
How have you done with your fitness goals over the last 3 months? If you haven't hit them or worse yet, haven't even set any goals, maybe its time you did.
C.
www.ultrafitness.net
Rachel keeps her young son entertained in the middle of the workout. Incredible!
Cord fighting through the 100 pushups.
Yep, that's me grunting my way through the final 25 chinups.
