Capturing the Art of Nature
Mount Seymour
I've hiked a number of the lower hikes on the mountain so it was about time I tried for the actual peak.
Category
Serendipitous Discoveries
2009
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I enjoy the variety of hikes one can take from the parking lot on Mount Seymour. They offer some lovely settings from small lakes to grand vistas of greater Vancouver. To date they have all been quite easy hikes with limited elevation gain. Last year I didn't feel ready to do the main peak hike but this year I ran out of excuses. So I selected Mount Seymour for the second in my summer series of 5 peaks of 2009. We left the house early so that we could get a fair distance into the hike before the heat of the day became too hot.
On arrival at the parking lot we found the gate across the road blocking access to the top lot so we had to park in the over-flow area. The one advantage of that was that this area had no parking meter to siphon off a few dollars but it did delay our start. Once rested from the drive, we quickly got geared up for the hike and made our way up the last of the road to the main lot and then on to the trail. The initial section of the hike can be done by either following a small hiking trail or by walking up the ski slopes to the upper lift. The ski runs are open and boring so we chose the smaller hiking trail. Though perhaps a bit longer, it did offer more interesting sights.
As we made our way past the numerous small ponds that litter the upper regions of the mountain, we were swarmed by lots of flies. They can be very annoying not only because they bite but they mess up my photos with ugly fuzzy splotches in places on the image. Waiting until the view is clear can take much patience - a quality I tend to be lacking while shooting. As we continued our way up the slope, it wasn't long before we were at the cross roads where the upper lift starts. We made our way past a small pond, Sugar Bowl Pond, and continued up a steep section to Brockton Point.
At this first peak we took a bit longer rest and I was able to gather a few panoramic views of the valley. The flat smooth rocky ridge was dotted with several small puddles that were helping to add to the number of flies tormenting us. We continued on the trail talking with several groups sharing the trail with us. There was one large group of hikers who were heading to Elsay Lake for the night. A number of them took some extra time to hike up to second peak for the view before continuing on to the lake.
As we were on Mount Seymour where the main wide area repeater is for the region I decided to not bother setting up my cross-band repeater. Though there was now a rise between me and the repeater we were able to maintain good reception throughout the hike. I guess being only a couple of kilometers distance makes up for some terrain issues.
As we approached the ridge just north of second peak we encountered our first section still covered in snow. It was melting and very soggy but its coolness was a nice respite in the mounting heat of the day. Though we were chatting with people along the trail it wasn't until we reached this ridge near the second peak that the number of people on the trail became apparent. There were quite a few people out here hiking though most stopped at the second peak not bothering with the final distance to the true summit of Mount Seymour. Of course I wasn't satisfied to stop here, I had to make it to the summit. So we continued along the trail descending a section before heading up to the next ridge on the way to the summit. By this point I was getting quite tied and sore but we were getting very close to the end and so I kept pushing on. At one point the trail was a bit hard to find but we kept going in the general direction and soon found clear markers again. We finally arrived at the final climb and soon made it to the top where we flaked out for a desperately needed extended rest!
After a good drink and tasty lunch I got started on some photo taking. The air was hazy so I didn't get the quality of shots I had hoped for but I guess the valley is almost always hazed over these days. So it probably doesn't matter when you go as you still won't be able to see clearly. There were a number of small groups on the peak with us - the trail is definitely a popular one due to its proximity to Vancouver and relative ease.
Once rested we started down, just below the peak Ethan came across a friend of his from his high-school days who was up there looking for a geo-cache. It was a very small cache well hidden in the rocks and he was having a challenge locating it. We quickly made our way back to the second peak and the ridge with the snow. A number of people decided to use the short section of snow for a sit down slide to help speed them on their return. They were surprised to discover just how soaked their backside got over the short distance!
The return always goes much faster and easier but on this trip my back was acting up more than expected which slowed me down on the way back. It can be very annoying at times. After a number of short breaks we finally reached the upper parking lot which was now open and full of cars! I guess we were just too early when we arrived. So we still had a bit more hiking along the pavement to reach the second lot. It sure was nice finally reaching the car and being able to sit down for a longer period.
The hike was not difficult and definitely offered many lovely views and scenic sights along the way. I recommend it. This hike completed the second of five for the summer and was a great choice, hopefully the remaining three will go as well.