Ashika Morasiewicz
Outdoor Adventurer from the North Shore, BC
June 11, 2016 Ryan and I planned for either a long day trip or a short hike, weather pending, somewhere along the Downton Creek road. With forecasts showing either rain or snow in most areas, we decided conditions on our drive up would determine what we would hike: Viola Lake. Viola Lake is a gem of a lake reached by crossing an old cutblock, subalpine forest, and alpine meadows. It offers views of glaciers and steep slopes of surrounding peaks. Stats Distance: 6.8km (round trip) Cumulative elevation gain:…
Last September, when I signed up to hike Mt. Kilimanjaro, I made a point of focusing on the little things through my training. Every walk, run, hike, heavy leg day, protein shake, carb load, blood sugar check, blood sugar correction, and so on was a calculated step towards the trip; even if I didn’t see it at the time. We’re almost 3 days away from leaving and I’m finally starting to feel ready. I spent a little while reflecting tonight on all of my hikes over the last…
The idea was to get into high altitude for Kilimanjaro training and Ryan’s been wanting to take me here for a little while. Aside from a trip or two in the Shulaps, I haven’t spent much time in areas quite like this – lack of vegetation, exposed rock, beautiful ridge walks, and the backcountry in general. Knowing this is one of Ryan’s favourite areas, I expected a lot in terms of terrain and views and I was surprised to see he somewhat understated the area. The views were absolutely…