Summer rolled in a bit late this year which maybe kept us from fully getting our hike on earlier on however in the past few weeks the sun has been beaming and temperatures have been up making it ideal to get out and explore.
We have done a few of the hikes in the immediate vicinity of Revelstoke however with a bit of drive and motivation we started getting up earlier and driving up the Rogers Pass to attack the Glacier National Park. It only took one hike to get us hooked on the majestic walks with the amazing views and stunning mountain features. Simply amazing! We have ticked off a number of the hikes up there, started with the Glacier Crest hike, followed by the Hermit Meadows hike and then Abbotts Ridge. All of these were amazing, anywhere from 6-10km long and usually gaining about 1000m vert. They set us up for the biggest hike we have done yet. Last Thursday and Friday we headed for Copperstain Pass.
Amanda and I set off on Thursday morning. We were told not to expect to see too many other hikers simply because it is 13km of forest walking before you pop out into the sub alpine to finally get some views, and really another few kms before you get the similar stunning views you get on many of the other shorter hikes we had done. So typically it wasn't a day hike. We got into it, the forest was incredible although due to the activity of bears, and the river and cabins up that way all sharing the name 'Grizzly' we were somewhat anxious some of the time. We must have been about 10km into it in a dense bit of the forest when we both heard very deep growl, not loud from afar but really quite close and intimate.... Amanda asked if my stomach growled and while I told her no we heard it again. It was really quite terrifying as it seemed to definitely be close by and a 'move on from my territory' kinda growl!! We never saw the animal as it was too dense at that point however we couldn't think of anything else it could have been but a bear! Its fair to say the Bear Spray was at hand from that point onwards!
The rest of the hike was filled with more friendly critters, squirrels and groundhogs, little buggers like that. Just funny curious animals. We got to Copperstain Pass which is where we set up camp. About a 16km hike in, a bit over 1100m vert gained for the day. We took it easy for the avo and bunked down to a cool night at an altitude of 2000m. Even though it is very much summer we woke up to a blue bird morning which was stunning but the tent had frozen over.
At about 630am we were up and hiking to get the blood pumping nd to warm up. We had a short push from the camp to get to the summit of Copperstain Mountain. Maybe about 2km but up to an elevation of just over 2600m. Once out of the alpine meadows of where we camped the big view started to become evident. We had 360 degree mountain peaks around us, not a breath of wind or cloud to be seen. It was 8am when we got up there and it felt amazing. The Bald Mountain Range was the closest to us and just beamed in the early morning sun. It was incredible.
From here we had the hike back down to camp and the walk out which was easier than the hike up but still tough. The coffee and muffin you first get after a mission like this always tastes incredible, and this was no exception.
There are 2 big missions left in our last week here in Revelstoke. On Wednesday we are attempting to summit Mt Begbie, then Saturday is a hike up over Balu Pass (which means bear...), down into Cougar Valley and into the Nakimu Caves and return. Cougar Valley is a restricted area as it is habitat for many Grizzlies. We are fortunate there is a guided trip before we leave which includes 3 hours in the caves, the 3rd biggest cave system in Canada apparently! Pumped for it!!
Till next time, wish us luck!
Pics from top to bottom:
+Lunchtime up the top of the Hermit Meadows
+Getting down with nature up the top of Glacier Ridge
+Up on Abbotts Ridge
+On top of Copperstain Mountain
+The moody twilight skies over the meadows of Copperstain Pass
+Copperstain meadows
+Arriving at the meadows of Copperstain Pass
+The return journey through the forest from Copperstain Pass
