2003 - AGM, Ski in Jasper, Biking with Lynn

The January AGM
Location of the AGM 
My Flickr site for more pictures - 

Dave Dixon

The Red Lobster Annual General Meeting - January 2003 - We induct a new member.Bob Cuthbert, Ken Willis, Chuck McCafferty, Randy Wheating, Ryan Shellborn, Keith Rajala, and the new Lobster, Dave Dixon survived another AGM up on the western flanks of the Three Brothers. When has there been so much laughing, other than the last AGM? Thanks to the people and culture of Scotland, Red Green, and Christmas leftovers, but most of all, good friends. :-) Enjoy the writing of Lobster Chuck...

Bob Cuthbert, Ryan Shellborn, Randy Wheating, Chuck McCafferty, Ken Willis, Dave Dixon

The "con" list. Dave knew a couple of lobsters. He had not climbed anything higher than the ladder with which he cleaned gutters (and that has not yet been verified). He had to walk to get to the tents for the winter camping (a much tougher task, some might suggest). In the final analysis, (and perhaps sadly) the fact that he drank scotch won out. (Those who still question Dale's membership on that qualification will lift an eyebrow here.) 
Conditions, while not ideal, were much better than on many of the trips to the Cambie Creek ski area. The snow allowed for easy ascent to the tent sites. Randy and Ryan had been in for a day or two and we knew as we slogged along that there would be a warm drink and friendly greeting.
As bodies drifted into the rhythm of each skier's comfort level and thoughts turned inward, we spread along the trail in pairs. Chuck and Ken moved slowly ahead as Keith lingered to be sure that Dave's bearpaw snowshoes held up as he dragged the sled containing his home for the night. It can be a very peaceful and introspective time skiing along a wintry trail with the knowledge that friends are not far off. It can be the nicest time of a trip into the mountains in the winter.
At the usual lunch spot we reassembled and munched on sandwiches, trail mix and drinks. As Ken and Chuck had been there for a time before the others arrived, they started off for the final ski up to the tenting spot. They worked up the trail and before long heard the familiar "Koo Loo Ku Ku" a-la Bob and Doug McKenzie as they arrived at camp to a waiting cup of hot coffee. 
Randy, Ryan and Bob (we weren't sure if Bob would be able to attend ... being from the frozen east and all) had set up their tents and had flattened a couple of spots for our two tents as well.

Many rituals filled the AGM

After a while, Dave and Keith arrived. Dave looked somewhat like a deer in the headlights as this was his first winter camping trip. However he had been well outfitted by his friends and was in for an fun-filled evening of wondrous foods, entertaining games like Tequila Pigs, and tall tales. As well, there were bad jokes and readings from Red Green, which, when added to the ubiquitous sips of scotch, had us in stitches for much of the evening. We had long ago realized that the pipe and cigar smoking needed to be in the fresh air outside the tents and so as the night wore on, Lobsters aglow with good times (and did I mention scotch?) quietly slipped off to their tents one by one for a good night's sleep.
It is said that "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts". Each year that truism is validated by the Red Lobster AGM --- a bunch of aging gentlemen out to play in the woods in the winter. It was a beer company that made the phrase "it doesn't get any better than this" famous. They haven't been on a Red Lobster AGM. - Chuck McCafferty


A Spring Break Ski Trip to Jasper
Location of the Bald Hills trail we used.

Good times.

On spring break, Ken Willis, Chris Cooper, and I travelled up to Jasper for a ski. In the previous weeks, it had been very cold. Bob Cuthbert had skied into the Amethyst Lake area a few weeks earlier, and had found it extremely cold. By the time we got to Jasper, it was spring like in the valley bottoms, so we went up to the Bald Hills area just west of Maligne Lake. the picture above are four frames out of the video I made of the trip.

At the Columbia Icefields

With stops at the Willis cabin on Sheridan Lake, and a drive down to the icefields, and a hot tub at the Tonquin Inn, it was a trip worth repeating :-)

Mountain Biking in the Rockies With Lynn
Location of Peter Lougheed Park

Lynn with Upper Kananaskis Lake behind her

After a computer conference in Seattle, Lynn and I packed up the van and headed for the Rockies for some R & R. We headed first to Peter Lougheed Park in Kananaskis Country and spent three days cycling some of the trails there, ending with a loop which included the Terrace Trail. This included a fairly long section of single track and we were rewarded at the end of it by the ice cream store at Kananaskis Village!

We then moved on to Lake Louise where we did the Pipestone trail: a friendly double track through the trees and a fun downhill run back to the highway.

Jasper was our next stop. We did trail number 7: a long loop starting at Old Fort Point and going along the Athabaska River. It then climbs up Maligne Canyon to the restaurant :-) and then goes back on a single track, skirting the southern edge of the golf course and ending back where you started. It was about 25 km in all. Some of it was challenging , but most of it was quite easy and friendly.