We were slightly worried about coming to Canada just before spring had well and truly set in, and after yesterday’s abortive trip to Whistler mountain and the advice given to us by the local tourist office, it almost looked like we would to have to write off our hiking plans in Whistler. However, it turned out that not all hiking paths were completely impassable due to two metre snow drifts, and ultimately managed to fill the day with some exciting (and exhausting) walking.

Determined to get some hiking distance under our belt, we adopted a healthy dose of denial for the conditions reported on Garibaldi Park’s website and spent yesterday on a path up to Cheakamus Lake. Being quite a long walk but with (apparently) very little incline, it should’ve proven light work compared to our efforts on the Juan de Fuca Trail a few days ago.

Unfortunately, we misinterpreted the directions and found ourselves walking nearly 7km up a relatively steep and dusty road to the trailhead, diverting briefly to view the Cheakamus River over Maclauren’s Crossing before arriving at the park’s car park. Already pretty tired, we paused for lunch at a conveniently positioned picnic table, watching the river plunge through the valley below before setting off again.

Things started to get interesting once we started up the lake trail; entering the forest, we encountered a park warden attending the rest stops and campsites along the way. Affable and conversational, he told us that BC had just experienced one of it longest winters on record and this was still clearly evident, with snow still lining the woodland floor creating an eerily silent but whimsical atmosphere. It was quite deep in places and although I managed to sink through to my knees a couple of times, it was never deep enough to be untraversable, and we made it to Cheekamus Lake in pretty good time.

Being downhill all the way our return journey took far less time, but by the time we had made it to the bottom we had walked nearly 22km and my legs were starting to feel it. Making it back to the car, I felt fitter but exhausted, but was glad to have made the effort.