FINALLY! We arrived at the summit of Mt. Work for our 20th hike of 2010! This hike has been on our radar for awhile; we have been too chicken. We confessed this to our friend Andrea, telling her the reason have never hiked Mt Work may be that we are too scared. She playfully replied that she HAD hiked Mt Work and she was too scared to go as well.
Our friend Fred, Andrea's husband who passed away in January, always told us that Mt.Work was the hike to experience on this part of the island. We'd like to plan a Phred Memorial Hike in July and chose this hike so that we can be more informed for decision making. So if you missed this outing we will be hiking Mt Work again on July 18th.
At the trail head we were met by runners coming back down the trail at 58 minutes round trip. As they turned to head back up again, we were steeled by their resolve. How hard could it be if these people were running the trail twice?
The summit of 450 m is the highest elevation around and within the first 20 minutes I regretted not stretching out my lower legs.
Mt Work has only one trail to the summit which continues on to a parking lot on Munn Road. Because of this the park has a slightly crowded feel, passing a few fellow hikers both going up and coming down. So it was a mild surprise that we had the summit to ourselves while we relaxed, refreshed and prepared for the descent. At a leisurely pace we were an hour and twenty on the 2.5km summit trail. It took us about forty minutes to walk down. Next time we plan to hike the length adding the additional 4km round trip to the Munn Road parking lot.
 |
| We are just getting started and the morning light was beautiful. |
 |
| A weathered arbutus at the top. |
 |
| This curious little alpine flower has a mysterious red dot on the bottom petal. Anyone familiar with it? |
 |
| Hannah capturing the image of the flowers on a rock wall. |
 |
| Jenny, Hannah and Marlen taking a breather just shy of the top. |
 |
| Mowgli the hiking wonder dog has missed only one hike so far. |
 |
| You have to be a pretty good juggler to practice on a mountaintop... |
 |
| because who is going to chase them downhill if you miss one? |
 |
| Mowgli, Hannah and Jenny |
 |
| kinship |
 |
| Relaxing at the top... |
 |
| The little dip to the right shows Brentwood Bay in the distance. |
All of the literature surrounding Mt Work advises that one should take precautions when attempting to hike this park. Those who hike it often would laugh and reply that it is no big deal. It is no big deal. A three hour round trip and no need for special equipment. That is if you stay on the trail and no one gets lost or hurt. Mt Work is a
monadnock, the tough rock formed out and left behind a glacial passing. Parts of the trail resembled canyon walls and we wound around rock and a once found a cleft in the rock itself. Off trail it is easy to get turned around and this terrain can be dangerous in the dark. Give yourself plenty of time. Not because it will be all that keeps you safe. But because once you make it to the top you deserve to relax and take in the fresh air and the vista. Take a look to the east and see the chain of islands across the Strait. At this elevation it becomes more obvious that this is part of a peninsula surrounded by the Strait of Georgia down to Finlayson Arm to the west.
What will I do next time? I will pack extra socks because while it felt wonderful to be barefoot at the top, putting sweaty socks back on almost ruined it. I would also pack binoculars. There is alot to see at the summit.
Next week: Bear Hill; the rugged back trail off Brookleigh Rd.
No comments:
Post a Comment