North Shore Peak-Bagging Part One: Brunswick Mountain

One of my goals for this summer is to climb as many of the Vancouver North Shore moutains as possible. Dave and I set our sights high when we chose Mount Brunswich for the first of our climbs. It's the highest of the North Shore peaks at 1785 meters. I checked with an old VOC friend for some data on the climb and he urged that we use ice axes and crampons in our ascent for safety's sake. I got Dave kitted out with axe, crampons and helmet at Mountain Equipment Co-op (my new employers - more to come on this) and we were set. I was eager to try out the axe and crampons I got from my Brother last Christmas.

On Sunday the 22nd of this month, Dave called me in the morning and picked me up shortly thereafter. We spent a few minutes picking up food for the climb before we headed to the small hamlet of Lion's Bay on the Sea-to-Sky Highway. Here we parked at the trailhead (we were the only car there), and began our climb up the switchbacks to our designated turn-off. It was completely fogged in and the mist blew through the trees and across our path as we continued. After about half an hour (just enough time to work up a bit of a sweat), we turned left at the fork. And headed down an old logging road towards Mount Brunswick. Unfortunately Dave's point-and-shoot was out of batteries and I had forgot my camera.

We shortly came to Magnesia Creek with a beautiful waterfall and I kicked myself for not bringing the camera. We forded the Creek and began a very long and very steep climb up deteriorating loggging road switchbacks. We reached the snowpack just below 1000 meters in elevation and struggled up to where the road ended and the Brunswick trail began at 1050 meters.

We imediately lost the trail (as we were following footprints) and began to bushwack a path straight up through the trees and steeply sloping snowpack. Very quickly we realised that we could go no further without our crampons and ice axes. We took a few minutes to put them on and then our progress picked up great speed. We fought through the trees and picked our way up the snowy slopes with relative ease but it was slow-going and very physically demanding. Some of the slopes were exposed and open amongst the trees, the steepness, Dave and I guessed, to be about 60 degrees in places. We climbed and had a great time until we looked at our watches and realized we'd never make the summit in time.

We finished our climb at about 1400 meters vertical on the western ridge of the mountain just a couple hundred meters from the rocky headwall to the summit. We'd climbed just about 1200 meters vertical over about 8 1/2 kilometers. It had been a steep and long climb and we decided to come down.

We did have some spectacular views however. The fogged cleared at times and we had commanding views of Howe Sound to our right and a very snowy and corniced Mount Harvey to our left. Once again I kicked myself for not bringing my camera. Just a few moments to slow down and breathe in the freedom of the hills.

On our descent I slipped from my grip with the crampons and went careening down steep snow slopes (often towards a terrified Dave who would have to dive out of the way). Usually the trees stopped me (a little painful). These bumslides continued as we made our way down and rejoined the long lost trail.

We were exhausted by the time we got to the logging switchbacks and it took us another 3 1/2 hours just to descend back to the car. The sun was out however and we had some beautiful views that remind me of why I live in this city and province.

Well, we failed to summit our first peak, but no matter we've resolved to come back in the summer months and do it sans snow and ice. It was a great time though and learning the tricks of axe and crampons was hard work but great fun.

Until later...

A Nairobi Story...Long overdue...

*** Sorry for the long delay, mainly been searching for the right words to cover my experience in that city - it is in a word 'ambivalence', but I have no doubt that I will return to Kenya and it capitol for future climbing and trekking trips ***

Addis Ababa, from where I'd come to visit Nairobi has very Marxian streets and avenues. Huge, 16 lane streets leading to enormous traffic circles and grandstand squares built to hold thousands. The remnants of the communist Derg regime abound. There is no central downtown in Addis, just a network of major streets and squares. There are high-rises and low-rises but they pop up all along the relatively one-storey cityscape.

I arrived in Nairobi with fear in my eyes. Everything I'd read basically told me that no matter what I did, I was going to get mugged, day or night. I just wanted to get to my hotel and wait for the GAP people to pick me up to trek Mount Kenya.

As we drove I was impressed by the outskirts of Nairobi, large warehouses, and stores. When we finally got to the city core, Nairobi has one, it was a bunch of high-rises and business men and women walking on the streets. It looked recent, modern, and well-kept. I got to the hotel, and was surprised to find the GAP hadn't booked a room for me [I'm still in a battle with GAP]. But nonetheless it was pleasant.

The next day I found out from a man who'd been helping me earlier at the hotel. He was dressed in a a suit and his name was Jacob. I made the major error of assuming he worked for my hotel. He was indispensible for me, he took me on a long tour by foot of Nairobi, which I came to see was a vibrant, modern city in the swing of and economic boom. It's a bit more tropical than Addis, with verdant greeen parks just off downtown. I saw the Kenyan Parliament with Jacob and he answered all my questions about how bad the crime used to be. Apparently, the Kenyan government had launched a major crackdown on crime and police corruption and things are much better he explained.

After I'd found out that the tour people from GAP had ditched me, I resolved to spend the next 6 days in London with Pat. Jacob was great, he got me to Brtitish Airways, he helped me change the last of my Ethiopian Birr into schillings, and he got me a ride to the airport. Okay I was gullible, he was a little too perfect. He'd been explaining to me all along that there was a 70 000 schilling (100 $ Can) "departure tax" at the airport. And to put it bluntly, I trusted this man, he had acquired my 'confidence'. You can see where this story is going.

When I got to the airport, Jacob took my passport and the money to "pay off the guards so they wouldn't bother me". Through the grace of God I got my passport back and even tipped him for all his help. He told me to wait at the aiport cafe for the guard and that was the last I saw of Jacob. Once I got inside and realized I'd been taken I had to give the guy a lot of credit, he'd been so professional, well dressed, so kind and decent - just the sort of passive aggressive authority figure I would trust. Yeah I got taken, and it pissed me off, so when I say Nairobi is relatively crime free - I was being conned as I was coming to that conclusion. Oh the Irony...