Goldilocks Hike - Island Lake Fernie

12.3 km

835 m elevation

3.5 hrs

On a trip down to Fernie this summer, Kyle and I tagged along with the Milinos to hike at Island Lake.

Hiking up Spineback to the start of the Goldilocks Loop

 The Goldilocks trail is a new route that has been developed high in the Lizard Range above Fernie. To access the loop, you park at Island Lake Lodge and follow signs for Spineback Ridge Trail. The well maintained trail starts by meandering past the lake and across streams before starting to climb steeply up the ridge. After 3.5 km, we had climbed 600 m above the lake and lodge. We watched pikas scurrying around in the scree and spotted birds soaring overhead as we hiked.

18 Mile Island Canoe Trip - French River Ontario

18 Mile Island Round Trip

72 km

33 hrs

Paddling through the fog

The alarm goes off at 5am. It is still dark out so we use headlamps to finish packing and load up the canoe from the dock. As we cast off, the water is perfectly calm and a mist is descending. It is a good thing we know the river well on this stretch between Horseshoe Bay (home to our family cottage) and Lost Child Bend because you can't see a thing. The dense fog gives us vertigo as we paddle across the main channel of the French River, losing sight of the south bank. We hear the campers before we see them and the sight of our canoe emerging from the fog causes them all to come down to the rocks to shout hello. Then we pass them and it is quiet again.

Alpine Riding in Revelstoke - Frisby Ridge and Ultimate Frisby

 Frisby Ridge

24km (out and back)

800m climb/descent

Ultimate Frisby

600m descent

For the third and final day of our epic alpine weekend in Revelstoke, we decided on the ultra-classic Frisby Ridge. On prior trips to Revelstoke, the trail had been under a voluntary closure due to trail maintenance issues, so Kyle and I had never rode it. We were both eager to see what all they hype was about! Sunday night was spent around the campfire, watching dry lightning over the surrounding mountains and experiencing some of the most amazing stargazing of my life. With such a dark night only a few weeks before the height of the Perseid meteor shower, we were overwhelmed with the number of stars. It was difficult to pick out the usual constellations due to the sheer number and brightness of normally unseen stars! The northern lights made an appearance too. It was a magical night.

Sunset chainsaw

Alpine Riding in Revelstoke - Mt. Cartier Heli Drop

Heli-Drop Mt. Cartier (Arrow Heli) - $200

Vertical Descent ~ 2100 m

Distance 17 km

If you are looking for an epic day out around Revelstoke, a heli-drop on Mt. Cartier ticks all the boxes. I mean seriously, helicopters make everything better. Combine a heli-drop with amazing alpine views, mountain summits, steep switchbacks and fast technical forest riding and you can't go wrong.

We rolled into Arrow Helicopters around 10am on Sunday morning of the long weekend. With nothing pre-booked, we were worried we might not get a chance to catch a ride to the top of Mt. Cartier but the only people in sight were a few pilots tinkering with the choppers. Waivers were signed and cash exchanged ($200 all in covers taxes and a trail maintenance fee - cash is preferred) and after a quick safety briefing we were loading the machine. 

Getting ready for our taxi

Alpine Riding in Revelstoke - 5620 Trail

Gondola up 1170m

Climb 500m/7km

Descent 1700m/15km

5620 is a new flow trail that starts just below the top of the Stoke Chair on Revelstoke Mountain Resort. It just opened a week ago (July 26th) so we got lucky to be some of the first people to ride the trail over August Long Weekend! Revelstoke doesn't have a bike park, but with the new lift-access trail, I think we will be seeing something in the near future. If you happen to be out in Revelstoke anytime soon, hit this trail before it gets too shralped!

We bought our day pass ($35) that allowed us to ride the gondola all day and walked straight on the lift (this ain't Whistler folks!). But, from the top of the gondola you don't get to drop in right away. It's a 7km, 500m climb up the Stoke Trail to the start of the trail. The trail is well built and not technical, but it is a bit relentless. The climb took us about 1.5 hrs with lots of breaks to enjoy the views.

Loading the gondola for a 1170m bump