- Joined
- Nov 27, 2004
- Messages
- 3,124
Hi All,
I have just returned from a few days in / on Blue Mountain, Ontario, during which I spent as much time as possible snowshoeing. Sitting here in downtown Toronto, which has no snow cover whatsoever, it is hard to believe that this morning, just two hours north of here, I was up to my waist in powder.
On Monday, I stuck mostly to established trails, which allowed Ruby, my hiking companion, to tag along. She would have followed me through the deep powder cross-country stuff too, but the area is partially wetland, and I worry about her falling through the snow cover. Yesterday and this morning, I was out blazing new trails through the woods. The property is owned by my parents, who recently moved there, and have not had the opportunity to explore the wetland portion of their land yet. Each of my trips was a few hours in length, and, since I was in a new area and navigating by compass, I brought along my full winter PSK, along with some surveyors tape to mark a trail, and my Delta 5, which saw constant use clearing small branches from my path.
The Collingwood / Blue Mountain area got walloped by a massive snow storm a few weeks back, with over 12 of wet packing snow falling over a day or so. There has been regular snowfall since then, including a mix of packing snow and powder. This has resulted in a massive accumulation of heavy snow on the trees, which has in turn resulted in levels of bending and breaking that I have never seen before. Its eerie - in some sections, all of the younger trees are bent over in arches.
Anyway, the trips were a blast. I got turned around a few times, fell in a few large holes (rather, fell through the snow and into the pockets created by fallen trees, which I didnt realize I was walking on top of), went through the snow into the marsh once or twice, and frequently brushed against trees, causing mountains of snow to fall on my head. All the elements of a perfect winter outing.
I had PSK gear to overnight it, if I had needed to - but the sheer number of downed trees gave me pause. In some spots, eligible shelter areas were crushed by recently -fallen trees. If it had been necessary to make camp, I think I would have spent the time to drag some cut branches into a clearing to make a shelter, rather than cozying up next to a tree - more work, but less chance of having a branch squash you at night.
But enough typing. On to the pics!
First, a gear shot. I was using my GV Mountain Trail snowshoes, which are great. They have two sets of very aggressive grips / spikes on the bottom, which provide excellent traction for climbing over trees. You can also (kind of) see my Survival Systems sheath (for my Delta 5) strapped to my leg.
And here's Ruby blazing a trail:
A few shots of the forest, which included dense evergreen areas, relatively open deciduous spots, and mixed marsh areas which are usually covered in reeds and bushes (now completely buried):
One of many archways:
This reminds me of a Dr. Seuss story:
And the obligatory knife pic! My Delta 5, which saw loads of use chopping and cutting small branches to clear a path. In hindsight, a machete would have been helpful, but the Delta 5 did an admirable job.
Thanks for looking,
All the best,
- Mike
I have just returned from a few days in / on Blue Mountain, Ontario, during which I spent as much time as possible snowshoeing. Sitting here in downtown Toronto, which has no snow cover whatsoever, it is hard to believe that this morning, just two hours north of here, I was up to my waist in powder.
On Monday, I stuck mostly to established trails, which allowed Ruby, my hiking companion, to tag along. She would have followed me through the deep powder cross-country stuff too, but the area is partially wetland, and I worry about her falling through the snow cover. Yesterday and this morning, I was out blazing new trails through the woods. The property is owned by my parents, who recently moved there, and have not had the opportunity to explore the wetland portion of their land yet. Each of my trips was a few hours in length, and, since I was in a new area and navigating by compass, I brought along my full winter PSK, along with some surveyors tape to mark a trail, and my Delta 5, which saw constant use clearing small branches from my path.
The Collingwood / Blue Mountain area got walloped by a massive snow storm a few weeks back, with over 12 of wet packing snow falling over a day or so. There has been regular snowfall since then, including a mix of packing snow and powder. This has resulted in a massive accumulation of heavy snow on the trees, which has in turn resulted in levels of bending and breaking that I have never seen before. Its eerie - in some sections, all of the younger trees are bent over in arches.
Anyway, the trips were a blast. I got turned around a few times, fell in a few large holes (rather, fell through the snow and into the pockets created by fallen trees, which I didnt realize I was walking on top of), went through the snow into the marsh once or twice, and frequently brushed against trees, causing mountains of snow to fall on my head. All the elements of a perfect winter outing.
I had PSK gear to overnight it, if I had needed to - but the sheer number of downed trees gave me pause. In some spots, eligible shelter areas were crushed by recently -fallen trees. If it had been necessary to make camp, I think I would have spent the time to drag some cut branches into a clearing to make a shelter, rather than cozying up next to a tree - more work, but less chance of having a branch squash you at night.
But enough typing. On to the pics!
First, a gear shot. I was using my GV Mountain Trail snowshoes, which are great. They have two sets of very aggressive grips / spikes on the bottom, which provide excellent traction for climbing over trees. You can also (kind of) see my Survival Systems sheath (for my Delta 5) strapped to my leg.
And here's Ruby blazing a trail:
A few shots of the forest, which included dense evergreen areas, relatively open deciduous spots, and mixed marsh areas which are usually covered in reeds and bushes (now completely buried):
One of many archways:
This reminds me of a Dr. Seuss story:
And the obligatory knife pic! My Delta 5, which saw loads of use chopping and cutting small branches to clear a path. In hindsight, a machete would have been helpful, but the Delta 5 did an admirable job.
Thanks for looking,
All the best,
- Mike
