2007 - Macfarlane, Webb - Macdonald, Robbie Reid, Scotland & Ireland

My Flickr site for more pictures - 

Mt. Macfarlane - Chilliwack River Valley
Location of Mt. Macfarlane

The Fraser Valley

Early in June Alan Lizee made a solo trip up Mt. Macfarlane. After reaching Pierce Lake, he made his way up the forest and snow slopes to upper Pierce Lake and then on to the top.
He left home at 04:00 and was on the summit by 10:00! We all need to remember that Alan's times are going to be faster than most others ;-)

Crossover Peak with Slesse on photo right.

Mt. Webb - Mt. Macdonald Col 

Location of Mt. Webb

Alan on the summit of Mt. Webb with Rexford and Slesse behind him. 

Alan checked out the trail up to Radium Lake and Mt. Webb as he wanted to take some members of the Maple Ridge Outdoor Club up there. For other pictures of this area, go the Lobster page for 1991.

Mt. Webb in the background.

Robie Reid Attempt

Location of Mt. Robie Reid

Alan Lizee and Chris Cooper made an attempt on Robie Reid this summer.

Robie Reid as seen from the Golden Ears. Note the small bumps on right hand ridge
that can be clearly seen in the photo below.

"First on-trail sight of Robie after a very grueling grind - camp not that far away now."

"Homeward bound silhouetted by our nemesis snow patch."

"Attempt behind us - enjoying hanging-out here above the black flies
before heading back to camp and home.

Lobsters in Scotland and Ireland - "Bookends"

 

- Going to Glasgow slideshow

- Edinburgh slideshow

- Stirling slideshow

- St. Andrews slideshow

- Grampians slideshow

- Speyside slideshow

- Inverness and Nairn slideshow

- Northern Mainland Scotland slideshow

- The Isle of Skye slideshow

- Glencoe, Oban, Easdale slideshow

- Arrochar, Luis, Stranraer, and on to Belfast slideshow

- Newcastle & Knowth Ireland slideshow

- Dublin slideshow

- Killarny and Ring of Kerry slideshow

- Killarney to Westport slideshow

- Westport to Letterkenny slideshow

- Giant's Causeway, Belfast slideshow

Looking west towards Inverness from Nairn

Now what should a guy do when he retires? Going to Scotland and Ireland with good friends seemed like a great idea. We had planned the trip before my decision to pack it in, but what the heck, it seemed like a way to celebrate life.Yes, there will be some kind of movie made up of still images and video that Ken and I took, but that will be a project for the fall. For now, a few pictures and short reflections on our trip.

The Isle of Skye has many delights.

Where's Easdale? You ought to really check it out when in Scotland.

Ken and Anna Willis, along with Lynn and I rented a car in Glasgow and put on 3500 kilometers before we dropped it off in Belfast. Lots of single track and narrow two lane roads visiting places discovered by our tour guides in the back seat. With Ken's navigation, I was able to make our way to the various sites without too many heart pounding situations.

Was it the cider?

West Coast of Ireland - Achill Island from the summit of Minaun

The Giant's Causeway just north of Bushmill's

Gay Pride Parade in Belfast

On our first day in Glasgow we witnessed an Orange Parade. It was unlike any other parade I had ever witnessed. The almost violent beating of the drums, and the obviously liquor induced "frenzy" among the many young marchers was almost frightening. This parade didn't seem to have much about tolerance. The fervor with which long past events are held on to is boggling to me. This was the first bookend. 

"The Orange Institution, more commonly known as the Orange Order, is a Protestant fraternal organisation based predominantly in Northern Ireland and Scotland with lodges throughout the Commonwealth and the United States. It was founded in Loughgall, County Armagh, Ireland in 1795; its name is a tribute to Dutch-born Protestant king of England, William III, of the House of Orange-Nassau. William had defeated the Catholic army of James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.
The highlights of the Orange year are the parades leading up to the celebrations on the Twelfth of July. The Twelfth however remains a deeply divisive issue, not least because of allegations of triumphalism and anti-Catholicism against the Orange Order in the conduct of its Walks and criticism of its alleged behaviour towards Roman Catholics." - the wikipedia

The second book end - On our last day of our trip, we discovered another parade. It was the Gay Pride Parade. It was noisy as well, but excepting for a small handful of protestors was one that was met with a lot of tolerance. The four of us had just taken a guided taxi tour of western Belfast - Shankill Road, Falls Road, petrol bomb scars, the Bobby Sands mural, and visited the Sinn Fein book store. It seemed to me that if Belfast could put on a peaceful and accepted Gay Pride Parade, perhaps there is reason to believe that we can all learn to be tolerant after all.
Between these two bookends our trip was compressed. It was a great trip filled with a wealth of experiences that will be fully digested over the coming months and years. Thanks to Ken, Anna, and Lynn for another wonderfully enriching experience.

Now should I have a Guinness or a wee dram?