It's a Road Trip: feeling squeamish at Squamish

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Geo: 50.1152, -122.946

This day took precision timing and attention to detail and planning. But nothing is too much trouble for our Happy Whistler guide.

Mindy and Ian have to hike up to the Day Care Centre to pick up the car that Emily has lent us for the day. Very generous and very much appreciated.

They were then on their way to an 8.30 pickup for a free offer for staff to try out a new adventure offered by the Advemture Group (TAG).

Mindy and Ian loved it. Racing around the mountain driving the RZR (pronounced "Razors"😉. Off road and on the side of the mountain they took turns as driver and passenger hooning through the forest trails for 90 minutes! They were windswept and dirty when we met them in the car park 4 ready to head south to Squamish.

Glad Ian didn't use his off road driving tricks on Highway 99. He handled the mountain roads with ease on our 45 minute drive south. And as always, the countryside is so picturesque ... steep slopes, endless shades of green and snow covered peaks.

Our mission was to visit the newly opened Sea to Sky Gondola just south of Squamish. It was new for Mindy and Ian as well.

A smooth gondola ride took us from the Basecamp at 115 feet above sea level straight up the side of the mountain on a 12 minute ride to the Summit Plaza some 2 900 feet above sea level. On the glide up and down the 6 300 foot length of the Gondola we were treated to spectacular views over Squamish, the inlet, the logging operations ...all the while hugging the side of the sheer cliffs.

Have to confess that I got motion sickness on the ride up! It wasn't a windy day and the ride was really smooth. It was such a quick climb and a high climb that my ears popped! I was seedy at the top after my backwards ride up! Made sure I was facing the way we were heading on the ride back down!

At the Summit Plaza the views from the deck were breathtaking - we had a few great photo shoots here.

The deck connected to the Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge. Phenomenal. Had to duck under a lady crossing the bridge who couldn't let go of the side rails. Impressed that Ian crossed the bridge three times - he is mastering that fear of heights!

Description from the website: The Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge is approximately 100 metres long and has a backdrop that falls away thousands of metres below, giving you a greater feeling of exposure and height over land. The Sky Pilot Suspension Bridge offers amazing 360 degree views of the area, both up to the high alpine of the mountains above and down to the fjord below.

We took to the trails and enjoyed an easy walk on The Spirit Trail and then the Panorama Trail to The Chief Viewing Platform. The trails were well marked and featured regular interpretive signage on the flora, fauna and culture of the region.

Description from the website: The Chief Overlook Viewing Platform
This dramatic viewing platform which cantilevers over hundreds of metres of sheer drop, is a heart-stopping opportunity to see the landscape surrounding Howe Sound. This viewing platform is a thrill for many and offers views far different from the Summit Lodge viewing deck or the Spirit Trail Viewing Deck. Facing further North, you are able to look up the Squamish Valley, get clear views of Mt. Atwell, watch climbers on the backside of the Chief from above, and watch the windsurfers and kiteboarders at “The Spit” (a famous windsurfing spot where the Squamish River meets the Pacific Ocean).

Back down to the valley in the Gondola. And yes, equally breathtaking on the way back.

We were on a tight deadline because we needed to get to Walmart to buy our CAMPING GEAR for the weekend. Yep, we are going to camp out and brave the cold AND the bears. It was a trolley race around the store and we think we have the basics covered although I have to say we are very, very basic in our supplies. Lucky Sheweena is in my luggage. She will make a comeback!

Mindy and Ian are master shoppers. Prices are so much lower here than in Whistler so their trolley was loaded to overflowing! Their shopping included a tent and a soccer ball along with twenty rolls of toilet paper, twelve rolls of paper towels and $2 cans of soup plus practical food for camping. They were positively flushed with excitement at their bargains! Mac and I basically had two bags of peanut M & Ms - a true reflection on our knowledge of camping essentials.

We left right on time so that we could easily have Emily's car back before time so that she could make her appointment. Or so we thought. Twenty kilometres north of Squamish we ran into a traffic holdup. All cars were completely stopped in both directions. Mac set out on an exploration to find out what was going on and .89 kilometres along the highway discovered the reason for the delay. A motor cyclist had come off his bike on the Orange Bridge. The emergency helicopter was called in to evacuate the rider and both lanes we impacted. We were stationary for 45 minutes and then the traffic stared flowing.

We made it to the Day Care centre just a few minutes late. Emily was off! We loaded our loot into a taxi and headed home.

A flurry of activity as the camping stash had begun to take shape. Not sure my enthusiasm has peaked yet - Mindy has just revealed we have to trek with our gear three kilometres into the camping ground (it's probably uphill on a scree slope but that hasn't been revealed yet), that we only have three pillows to take (someone has to miss out), there are no chairs AND you can't light fires. It sort of sounds like the only GOOD news would be if we saw a bear! Oh, and to top it off - it is first in best dressed - there are only ten camping spots and you can't prebook!

Think we need to go shopping tomorrow!

Temperature: 23
Pedometer: 7293 plus Mac reconnaissance 2 x .89 (thanks Endomodo)
Bear Sightings = 0
Total Bear Sightings = 2

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