Touristing in Cape Town, South Africa

One month in Cape Town, South Africa sounds like a long time, but I feel like we only scratched the surface in this vibrant city! We arrived at the beginning of February without our luggage. This was not surprising because when we showed up at the airport in Calgary 28 hours earlier, the first leg of our journey was canceled due to snowstorms in Vancouver. As a result, we scrambled to change our flights and connections. We actually ended up with a better schedule, arriving 1 hour earlier in Cape Town than our original itinerary. Arriving in a new country after dark is always an interesting experience, especially when the South Africans sitting across the isle from us on the flight had been horrified to hear that we were traveling on our own. Despite our assurance that we were going to be staying with some locals (not actually the case) the woman warned us about the dangers of Cape Town enough for us to start wondering if we had made a mistake about this trip. Most of the information we had found seemed to contradict this woman's concern and stated that although Cape Town has a violent reputation, it is easy to stay safe and out of trouble.

Once we learned we would be leaving the airport without our luggage (or any of our climbing gear that we had checked), we took an uber to the Air B&B we had rented for the month. I had printed out instructions on how to get into the building but we didn't have any way of contacting the owners if we couldn't get in. Our plan was to pick up a SIM card the next day so we were relying on WiFi and everything looked pretty closed. The uber driver dropped us off on a deserted street outside a condo complex encircled by a spiky metal fence and drove away. It was well lit but unnerving nonetheless. When we couldn't get through the security gate we started to panic, but after 4 attempts the caretaker finally answered the buzzer and let us in. What a relief. 

The bachelor pad - our home for a month

Cape Town Hikes

Cape Town South Africa is probably one of the most beautiful cities in world thanks to its stunning ocean, beaches and mountains. Kyle and I had the opportunity to explore the area close to town by ticking off some of the top hiking trails, most of which were different ways up the predominant feature in the city, Table Mountain. I have included a small write up and photos for each of the hikes that we did:

1. Kasteelsport (Table Mountain)

2. Skeleton Gorge (Table Mountain)

3. India Venesters (Table Mountain)

4. Lions Head (Signal Hill)

5. Disa Hike (Hout Bay)

The view of Cape Town from the top of Table Mountain (near the cable car station)

Trophy Hut New Years

The hut (Phil Tomlinson photo)

This New Years, we joined Phil, Christine, Kyle D, Sean, Joel, David and Tyler in Well's Gray Park for a week at the Trophy Hut where we were treated to endless epic terrain, fresh pow, gourmet meals and ceaseless rounds of Hero Realms between sauna sessions. Lets just say, it was a very successful trip despite some initial logistic and weather issues.

Hut info click here: Trophy Hut

Roger's Pass Double Weekend Pow Fest

Sometimes you need to book an ACC hut a year in advance, and other times you luck out and are able to snag a weekend at the last moment after 90 cm of snow. We were recently fortunate enough to spend two weekends at the AO Wheeler Hut in Rogers Pass in the middle of a storm cycle. 

Emily and Trevor had organized a trip to the Wheeler Hut in Rogers Pass in mid-December with some of the usual suspects. Kyle and I rolled into the pass around 9 pm but made quick work of the 2km ski into the hut. We were greeted by our friends and said brief hellos before they went off to bed in anticipation of a big pow day to come. Phil and Paul were also staying at the hut with a big group for the annual "Rogers Pass for People Scared of Rogers Pass Trip," so between our two groups we knew quite a few people in the fully booked hut.

Packing in a snowstorm, getting ready to head into Wheeler Hut

The Ghost - Orient Point and Valley of the Birds

The driving access to the North Ghost opened this weekend. To celebrate, we set up camp at the bottom of the Big Hill and spent two days ice climbing. Kyle and I met Connor early Saturday morning to make our way into the Ghost with the trailer. We had to chain up for a few icy hills on the TransAlta road but made it in without any issue. We dropped the trailer then drove to Orient Point where we were able to get Kyle's truck all the way to the top of the road. The drive was an experience on its own. That was the steepest road I have every been on as a passenger! Kyle made it seem easy but it was exciting.

Orient Point ice (L to R: The Joker, Hooker, Candle in the Wind, Candlestick Maker)

Jumbo Pass Nov 17-19

Early season touring can be hit or miss. This year we nailed it up at Jumbo Pass. 

We left Calgary just after 5 am to meet Emily and Trevor at the Petrocan. From there we drove west to Invermere, stopping at Kicking Horse Coffee for some caffeine on the way through. Then it was up the road to Panorama and beyond. 

Emily catches some zzz's on the drive out to Jumbo

Puzzle Peak - Remembrance Day Ski Tour

Snow came early to the Rockies this year and it seemed like everyone was out enjoying the novelty of October turns while I was stuck in Red Deer. Patience paid off however. A quick trip to the Icefields Parkway on Remembrance Day for some powder on Puzzle Peak was the perfect way to start the season! I left after work Sunday night and drove out to Mosquito Creek Hostel which we basically had to ourselves. I met Kyle who had been skiing dirt on South Hector that day. According to reports from friends, Puzzle Peak was in much snowier condition so we made that our objective for Monday.

Emerging from the trees for our first view of Puzzle Peak