2009 - UBC viewpoint, The Last AGM?, Diamond Head, Rockies Photo Shoot

My Flickr site for more pictures - 

The UBC Research Forest
Location of UBC's Malcolm Knapp Research Forest

The view of the Fraser Valley

The picnic table up at the viewpoint in the UBC Research Forest is a wonderful thing. Here Chris Cooper and Alan Lizee and I enjoy getting above the fog that blanketed the Fraser Valley for part of January. Snow has covered Maple Ridge for over six weeks. It started on about December 18 and decided to stay!

The Last AGM?
Location of the AGM 

Pipes I bought on my first visit to Istanbul.

The Red Lobsters have been having some kind of winter "Annual General Meeting" for more years than most of us can remember but it seems we are getting older.We are no longer single young men stretching our bodies and nerves on rock, snow, or ice. We are married with families and the commitments that come with them. We have also simply gotten older. Our bodies have an increasing number of complaints and it takes more effort to head out to the hills. 

Keith Akenhead's secret recipe?

Keith Akenhead

Besides the long time regulars, the "AGM" and the Red Lobster Club has had enough cache in the past to get a few new friends out for a "One Time AGM", braving the cold winter elements for the sake of being able to say, "I lived through a Red Lobster AGM and am now considered a Red Lobster!" We have seen these "One Time AGM" people for weeks afterwards walking a little taller and their shoulders a little farther back. The sense of pride in their physical and psychological achievement was obvious.

Bob Cuthbert

For the 2009 version of the "AGM" we were able to get a few of the old guard out to enjoy a night in the hills of Manning Park but the numbers were, alas, low. In spite of the low quantity of Lobsters, those of us present tried to live up to the spirit of the AGMs of yore. One Lobster, who shall remain nameless, got into the spirit with very much gusto and showed he thoroughly enjoyed the proceedings by developing a new dialect of English. An audio recording of some of his contributions to this new lexicon is available to Lobsters (in good standing) upon request.

Ken Williams

The morning following the AGM festivities we packed up and just as we were going to ski down, we saw Lobster Ken Willis coming towards us on his new snow shoes. I decided to stay another night and help him drink his wine and enjoy the Christmas lights he brought up with him. We went to bed early and slept a good sleep.

Ken Willis

Was that the last AGM?  If the aging Lobsters want another one, perhaps they will find a way to make it happen again.

Manning Park

Diamond Head

Location of Round Mountain, on the route into Diamond Head

Chris Cooper

It wasn't until March 3 that we made it to Diamond Head. Last year we had been there quite a few times by this time of year. The weather was great and Chris and I had brought our heavy digital slrs with us. For this shot above, I had shot a lot of frames in burst mode. Other pictures from this day are in my flickr account.

Rockies Photo Shoot

Bob Needham, Keith Rajala, Chris Cooper
The Mount Engadine Lodge

Back in 2005, Bob Needham, Chris Cooper, and I made a spring trip to the Rockies where we did a bit of skiing, hiking, and a fair amount of photography. This spring we decided to do something similar. 
Bob had recently retired and treated himself to a Nikon D700, Chris bought a D90 days before the trip, and I had my D80. After spending a night with Bob and his family in Kamloops off we went to the Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge in Camore. The first full day we did a hike up Sulpher Mountain. Well, not exactly. Bob had had recent knee surgery and only went part way, feeling good that his knee was as good as it was. I got half way after having to take frequent rests and decided to turn around due to my slow pace. Those evening treats had caught up to me. 
The second day we drove to Lake Louise and skied to the far end. We watched a number of ice climbers and talked to tourists from Germany and Holland. We skied back through a snow storm and then the sky cleared. We gave our SD cards a good workout! 
On the morning of the third day, we had our usual breakfast at the Rocky Mountain Bagel Company, but met with Val Verral, wife of Dan Verral, who along with Chris Espinel run the Talus Mountain Lodge. She suggested we do a drive along Spray Lake and have tea at the Mount Engadine Lodge. That turned out to be a great suggestion. As we drove along the Smith Dorrien Spray Trail, we noticed that below us and next to the lake were some people setting up some dog sleds. We decided to investigate. It turned out to be one of the dog sled companies in Canmore working with British army personel teaching them how to work with the dogs. It was a most enjoyable hour.
We drove on and soon arrived at the Mount Engadine Lodge. We were made to feel very welcome and soon availed ourselves of the delicious soup of the day and numerous cups of coffee. We spent some time walking about, and taking photos. Outside on the patio, we set up my flash on a tripod and took numerous pictures with Shark mountain as a backdrop. (see picture above) After talking to the owners and soaking up the ambiance for over and hour, I would love to go back and stay there.
On our last night Chris had arranged to meet with some people who had done the 2008 David Thompson Brigade canoe trip. They wanted to learn more about large canoes and what Chris had done on the B.C. coast and about his recent canoe trip along the south coast of England. They generously invited us for dinner and we had a very good time.
We drove home via Radium as the highway was blocked by a fatal accident between Field and Golden. We dropped off Bob in Kamloops, and except for the hill down from the Coquihalla summit being a skating rink in the dark, it was a long, but fairly easy drive home.
A great trip with good friends. Exercise, new experiences and people, lots of photography talk, and being in the Rockies. Who could ask for more in a "Rockies Photo Shoot". :-)

More pictures from the trip can be found in my flickr account.

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) 

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

My Flickr site for more pictures - 

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!