2001 - AGM, Devon Island, Battery Mountain, Ken's Vertical Cross Canada Ride

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Keith Rajala nearing high point at Diamond Head

The Red Lobster Annual General Meeting - February 16, 17, 18
Location of the AGM

Randy Wheating, Keith Akenhead, Chris Cooper, and I (Keith Rajala) finally were able to head off into the wilds of Manning Park for our annual "general meeting". 

Very comfy

Scottish nectar and tasty goodies in our packs, we headed up Mad Dog Creek and made camp in the alpine huddled in a thicket of trees just beyond the end of the road that still afforded a nice view to the south. The meter of snow wasn't that much for the time of year, but it was quite powdery amongst the trees. 

Keith Akenhead with Mt. Hozameen in the distance.

Standing around the purring stoves as our skiis were sillouetted against the setting sun, we discussed life and laughed, reminding me of how fortunate we were to be there again. It's the friendship and good times that we make for ourselves that is so valuable. Why have we been able to stay together for so long and still be able to have a good laugh together? Is it the past risks we have shared on either end of a climbing rope? Is it the number of tent bound nights we have spent in remote locations? Or is it something else? I tend to think it has little to do with the activities, but more with the way we treat one another. It's good to have good friends.
All drink!
A number of friends were missing from our meeting. They were missed.

Devon Island, 'A Walk on the Wild Side '' by Chris Cooper
Location of Devon Island

Frozen Icebergs

Well here we are doing up another write up.

An epic journey of discovery, Devon Island, 'A Walk on the Wild Side '' Land of the Ice Bear '

Expedition Members John Dunn, Chris Cooper, Sandy Briggs. May 11th to June 15th 2001

Chris Cooper at Diamond Head

Any chance for anyone to see Canada's Eastern High Arctic the one place that really stands out is Devon Island, why.....

The very best place for Polar Bear viewing in Canada is Devon Island, at times we experienced very close encounters. An absolute highlight anywhere on the planet.

John, Sandy and I set off on a 32 day sledding trip off the top of the Devon Island icecap down the East and South coast, a magical, lonely place of exterme remoteness but again, I feel very much at home here, my collegues John and Sandy are truly two of the finest Canadian Arctic explorers/adventurers one can ever think of being with, they bring so much to the table.

Wind power

Although this could be a very lengthy story, I will just highlight some of the experiences from my journal including some photographs, Devon Island has a tremendous history, the West side of Devon Island is very dry and has the appearance of a lunar landscape, ( NASA ) has a program there which ties in with Mars exploration.

Devon is the largest uninhabited Island in the world, has a shape like a legless Donkey, the Eastern side is very heavily glaciated beautiful glaciers cascading themselves into the sea in the summer time, Devon is located at 75' Latitude, has a width of 400 kilometers and takes up 3 degrees of latitiude.In the early days it was recognised as a whaling area, many stories of extreme hardships for the young seaman, with much loss of life due to scurvy.
Ships stuck in the ice for as much as two years.

Beautiful forms

Highlights from our experience from Chris’s journal

A 260 Kilometer sledhauling journey with 60 kilometers of side trips with many climbs over icecaps.
Fantastic Polar Bear viewing, 24 bears in total.
Superb Landscapes and Landforms
Endless Icecaps, like giant rolling carpets, Arctic Islands everywhere as far as the eye can see.
Muskoxen, Fox, Arctic Hare,Lemmings, Belugas,Walrus, Seals, Eiders, Longtails,Hawks, Falcons, Snowgeese and Gulls of many species.
Physically, extremely demanding but worth every footstep.
Climbing unnamed, unclimbed peaks, massive glaciers, some 20kilometers wide
Exhillarating, Challenging,Big Storms, Wild Blizzards, Frighting encounters with Polar Bears
Following in the footsteps of Polar Bears on the edge of the Icefoot, being watched by them as we pass.

In Closing, hard to really describe the uniqueness, the planning in just a few words, all in all, a super adventure with super adventurers John Dunn and Sandy Briggs, an honor / priviledge to travel with them.

Chris at Diamond Head - Photo by K. Rajala

"A Walk on the Wild Side ‘  Land of the Ice Bear"  Chris G. Cooper
Report prepared December 15th 2006
‘Nothing Venture Nothing Win’   Sir Edmund Hillary



Diamond Head - Garibaldi Park
Location of Round Man. (Paul Ridge) at Diamond Head

Approaching high point on Paul Ridge

How many times have we gone to Diamond Head? Does it matter?


Battery Mountain - Golden Ears Park
Location of Alouette Man. (Battery Mtn.)

Keith and Sue Akenhead with Blanchard Peak and Edge Peak in the background.
One of the Golden Ears is poking through in the gap.

Keith Rajala with Judge Howay and Robie Reid in the distance.

Ken Willis's Bike Tour from Inuvik to Maple Ridge - Over 3900 kilometers!
Location of Inuvik

Ken in the local paper.

Ever lean against you bike on a brow of a hill for a rest and food break and realize a bear is sniffing your rear pannier? That's just one of the things our fellow Lobster had to deal with on his epic bike ride.
Ken flew first to Whitehorse, and then on to Inuvik with his trusty bike, and then pointed bike, body, and accompanying bug shirt south. Twenty-three days later, he arrived home. His longest day was over 300 km! He averaged about 170 km per day!

Lobster and Junior Lobster Explore the Arctic

Keith and Mathew Akenhead

They flew to Tuktoyaktuk, sampled the Inuit culture, then took a "bus" from Inuvik to Dawson City where their bikes were stored. They then cycled to Skagway so they could hike the Chilkoot Trail. After catching the Whitepass train back to Skagway, they took a ferry back to Bellingham, after which, they cycled back to Maple Ridge! Here is an account of the trip by Keith Akenhead.

This summer, Keith and Matt A. blazed new Lobster trails to the Arctic Ocean, the Yukon, Alaska and the Pacific Ocean for the glory of Lobsterhood. Originally to be a trio with Ken Willis, Keith and Matt knew they were no match for the pace of the famous 'Brown Hornet" and his cyclone pace of cycling. They bit off a smaler bit of northern adventure to chew on; Using the wife's shopping air miles (something good about shopping, guys) they winged to Inuvik, then to Tuktoyuktuk to explore the Arctic Ocean. Unfortunately they arrived during an International Mosquito convention. Fortunately they found lots of Beluga whales and learned it's not too bad to reside up there--they need 5 teachers; any takers? Next was on to Dawson City, touring the Dempster Highway(760 kms.) Ken W. was later to zip down in five days. This is a place to visit in Sept. fellas, for the colors.
The Klonkilke Highway was the scene of their "excellent adventure"--900 kms of smooth riding, albiet some rain, bugs, some downpours, no wildlife (it was waiting for Ken Willis) but scenic vistas you can only dream about.
Not to be outdone, the boys rode 22 kms downhill into Skagway, Alaska, breaking the highway speed limit of 40 miles per hour in a cloud of fog and mist. Luckily, American cops had other people to catch-no ticket. From Skagway, our heroes hiked the 55 km Chilkoot Trail into B.C.'s sunshine, retracing the 1898 Stampeder's steps into the goldfields. No gold was found this year, but the hike was not as rugged as Park Rangers will tell you. To finish, the boys took the Alaska State Ferry Cruise home via Bellingham for a non-princely fee. A bonus of Humpback whales, Killer whales and eagles galore was to be seen. Keith A. recommends this type of travelling as a way to drop weight, (he lost 12 lbs.) thereby to enjoy more beer and cigars over the winter. Matt A. is ready for any tough wilderness challenge now: "This was great Dad, let's do something really hard next year!" Cheers-Keith A.


A Lobster Ride in the Southern Rockies

Chuck McCafferty, Dale MacQuarrie, and Jon Wheatley do the ride that Chuck and Ken did last year, but in the reverse direction. I hope they write up their trip as well!