2006 - AGM, Sun Peaks, Mountain Biking in the Rockies, Mt. McQuire

My Flickr site for more pictures - 
Location of the AGM 
The Annual General Meeting - February 10-12 -

Keith Akenhead and Bob Cuthbert

Never before has trail breaking been so challenging. I started out dragging a sled thinking that would make things easy, only to find out that the thick fresh snow made us dig a deep trench breaking trail, so the sled simply tilted onto its side and soon flipped over. I never have liked dragging a bulldozer!
We ended up having to dump our packs, break trail for a ways, then come back for our packs and essentially break trail again with the increased weight on our backs. It was horribly slow.
Finally Keith Akenhead, Bob Cuthbert, and myself made camp only about a third as far as we hoped to get that day. The weather stayed just below freezing for the next two nights, making staying dry a challenge.

Chuck and Ken

Ken Willis and Chuck McCafferty came up the second day and we had our usual fun "annual general meeting" in the big tent. 

Spring Break - Sun Peaks
Alan Lizee and I drove up to Sun Peaks and stayed in his sister and brother in law's condo at Sun Peaks. The first day we cross country skied and the second day we down hilled. I was please that with shaped skies I could down hill quite well after not having done it for so long, but boy did I get tired quickly!

Alan Lizee

Canmore Mountain Biking - July 2006

Lynn and I drove up to Canmore with our bikes and stayed in the Bow Valley Motel again and we did some biking up at the nordic center on the Banff Trail and on the Canalside to Quarry Lake trails. It was unfortunate that they had done a lot of work on the nordic trails making some of them a mud pit, but we had a great time anyway. Oh yes, the restaurants in Canmore are great and the liquor store has a great selection of wines and scotch! :-)

Lynn just above Canmore

Jasper Mountain Biking - July 2006

After three nights in Canmore, Lynn and I drove up to Jasper and stayed in a small cabin at the "Pine Bungalows". Starting out at Old Fort Point, we did the Valley of the Five Lakes trail . It is an intermediate trail with many great fun sections, but it also has steep sections that turned it into a "bike and hike". It was well worth doing, and quite long. We came out on theIceFields Parkway and rode the ten kilometers back to Jasper on the smooth pavement. :-)

Lynn on the Valley of the Five Lakes Trail.

The view from our cabin out over the Athabasca River and on to Mt. Edith Cavell made for an idyllic scene. If we have anything to do with it, the Pine Bungalows will see us again.

Lynn ponders Edith Cavell.

Mt. McQuire - July 2006
Alan Lizee and I tried to hike up Mt. McQuire but because I only drove up a couple of kilometers on the Borden Creek road, we had a long hike up the road before we even got to the trail. There was a ditch across the road which I was uncomfortable with, and we parked the car and walked. It was too bad as it was a great day and it would have been nice to get to the top.
The picture below is of the American and Canadian border peaks on the right, and the Pleiades on the left.

The Pleiades and the border peaks looking up Slesse Creek.

2004 - The AGM, Spring Skiing in Canmore, Canoeing Coast, "Highway to the Sun" Bike

January - The Red Lobster Annual General Meeting - Manning Park
Location of the AGM 
My Flickr site for more pictures - 

Chuck, Randy, Merc (below), Keith

We journey to our usual haunts in Manning Park for our annual general meeting and introduce Merc to the peculiarities of Lobsterdom.

Unfortunately, Bob Cuthbert couldn't make it, likewise Ken Willis. We drank toasts in their honour, and were silly in our typical way. Some of the stories we told were even true!

Spring Break 2004 - Banff and Lake Louise

Location of the ACC hostel outside of Canmore

 - Part 1 of our trip

- Part 2 of our trip

Alan, Keith, Chris

I had two weeks off for spring break so Alan Lizee, Chris Cooper, and I headed off for the ACC hut in Canmore. We hoped we would be able to do some spring skiing.

It was indeed spring. The first day saw us standing in the rain at the top of Vermillion Pass, and then standing in the rain at the start of the trail into Skoki. We later hiked up the trail to Lake Agnes to stand briefly in a blizzard.
The second day we skied part way into Skoki. It was a beautiful spring day, and the temperature was cold enough for good snow beyond the down hill area.
The last day we hiked up the trail to the top of Sulphur Mountain in Banff, where the picture to the left was taken.
I used Final Cut Exress II for the first time to create the video of the trip. I was pleased with the result. :-)

Chris Canoes the B.C. Coast
Location of Prince RupertStarting from Prince Rupert, Chris Cooper took a group of people on a canoeing adventure up the B.C. Coast. Here are a few pictures from the trip.

A very stable craft.

He had a 42 foot canoe made for this trip. He also has a 37 foot Montreal canoe which I had travelled in when I did a trip with him on Chilco Lake in 2002.

Working together

The kayaks were used as outriggers during long crossings of inlets during rough seas, and as small vessels for photography and the like. Note the two masts. 

The Musical Bumps - Whistler Mountain
Location of Singing Pass

Ken with Mt. Overlord in the distance.

Ken and I took the lift up Whistler and hiked along the musical bumps to Singing Pass and then down the trail back to our car one day. I had been experiencing knee pain while going downhill and boy did I suffer during the last couple of hours of this hike! Ken was planning a trip to Mt. Edziza and this hike confirmed that I should not go until I got my knee situation dealt with. I subsequently got a good knee brace that makes a big difference.

A Red Lobster Bike Tour.- Fernie - Pincher Creek - Waterton - St. Mary - Highway to the Sun/Logan Pass - West Glacier - Eureka - Fernie 

Part 1 of Ken's slide show of the bike ride.

Part 2 of Ken's slide show of the bike ride

Our route

Ken Willis, Chuck McCafferty, Dale MacQuarrie, John Wheatley, Dave Dixon, and myself (Keith Rajala) did a memorable six day bike tour in July covering about 560 kilometers.

Chuck - day one

Dale and Chuck had started from Balfour pulling trailers (and chuck dragging a brake pad) and the rest of us met them at Fernie. After Dale and Chuck dumped a lot of "excess" gear, we were off the next day on another Red Lobster adventure. I don't know how many other people have a group of friends they can do these kinds of things with and have a good time even in somewhat stressful circumstances, but I feel lucky that I have a group of friends like this.

There is another version of this picture, but we all have to retire first!

We left Fernie before it was even really light and had breakfast at the Dairy Queen in Sparwood as it seemed to be the only place open that early in the morning. The climb from there to the Crowsnest pass is not a big deal at all, especially compared to other passes in the Rockies. The picture above is at the summit of the Crowsnest Pass. From there, one hopes for the legendary tailwinds to blow them through the towns of Blairmore and Coleman on the way to Pincher Creek.

One the way to Waterton

We had spent the previous night at Pincher Creek and the lady at a local restaurant even opened up a bit early the next morning so we could get an early start! The cycle from Pincher Creek to Waterton consisted of a lot of rolling hills.

Morning at Waterton

Ken getting ready for the climb.

This was the start of my hardest day on this trip. The hill up to the border was very long and fairly steep. After the border, there were more hills, but some good downhill runs as well. The long downhill run on Chief Mountain International Highway led to highway 89 and finally St. Mary where we had a good meal. After that, it was a fairly short ride to the Rising Sun campground, showers, and another meal.
... there is much more to the trip, but you can watch Ken's video slideshow if you want to see more. (see above) 

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.