40 Hikes Danielle Baker 40 Hikes Danielle Baker

Prairie View Trail to Jewell Pass

Hike 5 | Expectations can be both motivating and devastating. No matter how much we try not to anticipate something, try not to get too excited, or try not to think about what the future holds, we can still find ourselves completely disappointed when our Tinder date spends the night talking about his mom – or in this case when wildfires threaten to cancel your hike.

Hike #5 | 756m Elevation Gain | 13.8km Hiked

Expectations can be both motivating and devastating. No matter how much we try not to anticipate something, try not to get too excited, or try not to think about what the future holds, we can still find ourselves completely disappointed when our Tinder date spends the night talking about his mom – or in this case when wildfires threaten to cancel your hike.

Back in May, my friend Corrina got in touch about doing a hike in the Banff National Park in August. She lives in Hawaii and wanted to visit the Canadian Rockies. She invited her friend Laura from Washington and organized permits for us to spend three days hiking the Skoki Loop.

To be honest, because we made the plan so far ahead of time, I didn’t put a lot of thought into it initially. But when I set my 40 hikes goal last month, I began to excitedly anticipate what would be the first multi-day hike to check off my list. Then, just a week out from the trip, Laura messaged with concerns about the wildfire smoke in the area and made the first suggestion that we might not be able to complete the hike. My heart sunk. Without really realizing it, I had pinned a lot of expectations on this trip. As I looked at my pile of supplies that I had been organizing on our living room floor, my disappointment over our uncertain plans grew.  

I texted with friends in Canmore to get a sense of the visibility and air quality, but nothing was concrete. And so, when I finally set off on my eleven-hour drive east, I still didn’t know what our plan would be. I was in a bit of a funk about it, feeling like the long drive and all the preparation was pointless if we weren’t going to be achieving the goal we had set. I was tense as I drove through increasingly smoke-filled post-apocalyptic towns. At noon as I passed through Salmon Arm, the sun barely made it seem like twilight and the air stung my eyes. As I rolled into the Rockies hours later, the mountains themselves were nowhere to be seen and it was surprisingly eerie to have no landmarks to navigate by.

When I arrived at the campground to meet the girls, they had already been in the area for a few days and were experiencing some challenges with the smoke. We knew there was rain in the forecast that would help, but it sounded like it would arrive a day later than we needed it to start the hike. We ran through dozens of other options but came to no conclusion. We all just wanted to wake up in the morning to clear skies and start the hike we had been planning for the last three months. We decided to put off making the call on what to do until the latest possible moment and set our alarms for 6am the next morning.

I woke up in the back of my truck and peered out the window. I couldn’t see the mountains. Corrina texted me from the tent she was sharing with Laura and we decided that we would go to one of our Plan B’s. Instead of hiking the whole Skoki Loop, we would spend another night camping in the Bow Valley and do a local hike to see how we felt in the smoke. Hopefully it would rain overnight, and we would do an out and back to Baker Lake which would have been our second night on the loop.

We were all disappointed and a little unsure what to do with ourselves. It took a long time for us to get moving that morning and even longer to decide on a hike to do. Finally, using the All Trails App – it’s basically Tinder for hiking as it finds trails that are close to you and gives you enough details to decide if you want to check them out in person – we found the Prairie View Trail to Jewell Pass in the Bow Valley Provincial Park. It is a 13.8km loop with 756m of elevation. At this point, we had pretty low expectations for our day. We had already made the difficult decision to give up on our big plans, the smoke was still obscuring the grand views the Rockies are famous for, and all we knew for sure was that this hike wasn’t going to be as good as what we originally had planned for the day.  

The trail started off with a long stretch of double track under some powerlines and along Barrier Lake. After that it turned right and started to thread through the forest along a dry river bed before beginning a steady climb. After a couple hours of hiking – and only a few minutes after we had a discussion about Type 2 fun – we abruptly came to the edge of a cliff. The view over the turquoise lake and deep green tree tops was stunning. We could see all the way back to where we had parked the car which gave us an incredible appreciation for how far our legs had taken us both in distance and in elevation. The shear rock face that we stood on top of had an impressively jagged ridgeline set against the hazy mountains that were starting to show in the distance. When we climbed to the precipice we met a Scottish couple and the man – who had a long red beard – said in a thick accent “I feel like a young Gandalf up here!”

It was hard to believe our luck when our day had begun with such disappointment, but there we were in a breath-taking place that we had never stood before – and possibly never will again – feeling like our own versions of young Gandalf in the breeze and appreciating how much better life is when you let go of your expectations. It was hard to look at the 360-degree view without realizing that if all had gone to plan, we never would have set foot here.

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Multi-Day Hike Packing List

Below is a look at what I've packed for a multi-day hike of the Skoki Loop. This is by no means a minimalist hiking list. I've carefully balanced comfort and weight while planning out what I would take. 

A few months ago, my friend Corrina from Hawaii got in touch about doing a hike in Banff National Park. She has organized the whole trip and tomorrow I'm driving ten hours to meet her and another friend, Laura, in Canmore. The next day we will start our three-day/two-night hike of the Skoki Loop; a 37.7km hike with 1,796m elevation gain. 

Here is a look at what I've packed. This is by no means a minimalist hiking list. I've carefully balanced comfort and weight while planning out what I would take. 

Packing List

  1. Sleeping Bag

    • This year I treated myself to the Patagonia -1C bag. It packs up smaller and lighter than my Big Agnes winter bag and is warmer than my 15-year-old 7C synthetic bag. I've used it a few times already this season and really love it!

  2. Sleeping Pad and repair kit

    • I bought the Therm-a-rest NeoAir Trekker after borrowing Stu’s for the West Coast Trail last year and also seeing friends use theirs. I've had bad luck in the past with leaks in pads but (knock on wood) this one seems to be a great balance between weight and durability.

  3. Packable Pillow

  4. Sil Tarp

  5. Tent with cord and stakes (not pictured)

    • earlier this year, Stu and I started camping with just a tarp (just like my grandma used to). We loved the simplicity of it, however with some of the trips we are doing this year we were worried about bugs keeping us up at night, so we got the MSR Thru Hiker Mesh House. It weighs next to nothing and is easily erected under your tarp using your hiking poles.

  6. Tent Footprint

  7. Trekking Poles

  8. Rain Jacket

  9. Packable Puffy Jacket

    • Just like my toque, I take a Patagonia Nano puffy jacket with me everywhere I go, even on day hikes. It almost always comes in handy on hikes with a lot of elevation gain.

  10. Rain Pants

    • For this hike, I am taking a pair of water-resistant hiking pants made by Patagonia. They stand up well for moderately wet hikes and are somewhat insulating, making them a great second layer over long underwear for around camp on a chilly evening.

  11. Wool Baselayer/Long Underwear Bottoms

  12. Wool Shirt

  13. Shorts (Light Quick Dry)

  14. Pants (Light Quick Dry)

  15. T-Shirt (Quick Dry/Synthetic)

  16. Tank Top (Quick Dry/Synthetic)

  17. Light Long Sleeve Shirt (Synthetic)

  18. Bathing Suit

  19. 2 x Sport Bra

  20. Sunhat

    • I tend to be more sensitive to heat stroke than sunstroke and therefore don’t usually wear a hat when hiking. That said, I’ve recently discovered the Sombrio Digger hat which has a light mesh fabric that doesn’t hold in heat like a ball camp and has a wide brim for extra protection – and for when you want to enter into full tourist mode. It’s also super packable and doesn’t take up much space.

  21. Toque

    • I take my thin wool icebreaker toque with me almost everywhere I go in both the winter and summer. It packs up small and is super handy for cold alpine nights.

  22. Poop Trowel

  23. Bear Spray

  24. Hiking Boots

  25. 3 x Wool Socks

  26. Packable Towel

  27. 3L Bladder (not pictured) and an insulated water bottle

    • I bring both. The bladder keeps me drinking water all day without stopping and also allows me to fill up enough while we hike for cooking at camp later. The bottle is great for adding hydration tablets (you don’t want them in your bladder as they make it slimy and gross and you can’t get the flavor out), it is also great for scooping water out of streams to fill your bladder. I bring an insulated one for making tea around camp and sometimes taking it with me on cold start mornings.

  28. Notebook and Pen

  29. Book

  30. Flip flops

    • for around camp

  31. Pot

  32. Toilet Paper

  33. Solar Panel (for charging phone)

  34. Phone with extra battery, waterproof case, and solar charging panel (includes map, trip description, and GPS)

  35. Stove

  36. Matches

  37. Multi-Tool

  38. Utensils

  39. SteriPen

    • I’ve just purchased this for water treatment. My cousin had one on our West Coast Trail trip and we loved how fast and easy it was to use.

  40. Headlamp with Extra Batteries (not pictured)

  41. Extra Cell Phone Battery

  42. Battery Operated Air Mattress Pump

    • The electric pump is a splurge, but it’s small and light, and after a long day hiking, having it blow up my air mattress while I make dinner is almost as good as someone handing me a margarita!

  43. Sunglasses

Not Pictured

  • Backpack

    • my hiking pack is the Arc’tyrex Altra 62 and is weatherproof, otherwise, I would bring a pack cover as well.

  • 3 x Underwear

  • Gaiters

  • Camera and batteries

  • Flask of Whiskey

  • Fuel for Stove

  • Garbage Bags

    • I use X-Large Ziploc bags to avoid any leakage or odor in my bag

  • Waterproof Stuff Sack with Rope and Carabiner

    • for hanging food

  • Watch

  • Cash

    • if you time it right, you can stop by Skoki Lodge for High Tea on this hike.

  • Sun Block

  • Lip Balm

  • Insect Repellant

  • Soap

    • I bring Bronner's soap because it is biodegradable and also works on dishes and hair. I bring the unscented one as I assume bears love the smell of lavender and peppermint as much as I do.

  • Toothbrush with Travel Size Toothpaste

  • Hand sanitizer

  • Deodorant (Travel Size)

  • Ear Plugs

  • Dental Floss

  • First Aid Kit (more on that below)

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Emergency Gear

Disclaimer about my First Aid/Emergency kit - it is a collection of things I've bought, found, and been given over the years. Do some research if you are planning on building your own, there is a lot of good information out there! But always be prepared. 

  • Antibacterial Wipes

  • Non-stick Gauze

  • Sunscreen

  • Advil

  • Emergency Blanket

  • Tick Removing Tweezers

  • Strike Pad and Waterproof Matches

  • Whistle

  • Fabric Medical Tape

  • Mirror

  • Bug Sting Relief

  • Duct Tape

  • Fishing Hook and Line

  • Safety Pin

  • Triangular Bandage (not pictured)

Food

This will be my first multi-day hike since I started eating on the SIBO diet. I've prepared breakfasts and dinners (Pad Thai recipe here) in Ziploc freezer bags so that I can simply add boiling water to them. I've also prepared 'just add water' versions of my smoothies that I make at home and will be eating a garlic-free salami with homemade almond flour crackers for lunch. Additionally, I've packed fruit leathers, individual packs of almond butter, and homemade coconut cream fudge! The great thing about hiking is indulging in all those healthy fats!

Breakfast Recipe:

  • 2 tbsp + 2 tsp Red Lentil Flakes

  • 2 tbsp + 2 tsp Quinoa Flakes

  • 1 tbsp Almond Butter Powder

  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

  • 1 tbsp Coconut Milk Powder

  • 1/8 tsp Truvia (sweetener)

  • a handful of Freeze-dried Blueberries

  • a handful of Slivered Almonds

Put everything except the slivered almonds into a medium Ziploc freezer bag. Fill with 1/2 cup to 2/3 cup boiling water. Add almonds. Enjoy. 

Calories: 225 | Protein: 15g | Fat 3.5g

Camping Smoothie Recipe:

  • 1 scoop Chocolate Vega Protein and Greens

  • 1 tsp Chocolate Powder

  • 1 tbsp Almond Butter Powder

  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

  • 1 tbsp Coconut Milk Powder

  • 1/8 tsp Truvia (sweetener)

  • 1/8 tsp Holy Basil Powder

  • a handful of Slivered Almonds

When I'm camping I take lunchbox-sized almond milk tetra packs and a blender bottle to make these, but for backpacking, I just add water to the powder and use a spoon to mix it up. 

Calories: 266 | Protein: 25.5g | Fat 4.7g

A few years ago, when I was feeling at my worst, I committed to doing a multi-day hike on the Sunshine Coast Trail with a friend. I was out-of-shape due to simply being too exhausted to do anything active and the night before the trip I picked up my backpack for the first time and burst into tears. It was so heavy. I couldn't imagine hiking with it. I did and I finished the trip. But throwing my bag on tonight felt so great! It can be easy to forget that I am making gains in health and fitness - and this week it was especially hard to remember that, but when I threw my pack on with ease, it put the biggest smile on my face! 

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Al Habrich's Trail: A Cautionary Tale About Hiking with PMS

Hike 4 | I have always hesitated to mention PMS in any of my writing because it’s a bit of a polarizing topic. Some doctors don’t believe in it. Men don’t get it. Some women have it, some claim they don’t have it, and well, there isn’t another category there. I land in the category of women who get it – and get it in an exceptionally bad way.

Hike #4 | 340m Elevation Gain | 7km Hiked

I have always hesitated to mention PMS in any of my writing because it’s a bit of a polarizing topic. Some doctors don’t believe in it. Men don’t get it. Some women have it, some claim they don’t have it, and well, there isn’t another category there. I land in the category of women who get it – and get it in an exceptionally bad way.

You know that list of symptoms that you might get from PMS? I have them all – and then some. I get everything from weight gain to nightmares, depression to joint pain, and exhaustion to digestive issues. Overnight I will gain five pounds, lose all interest in my regular activities, and spiral into a deep depression. No matter how healthy I feel physically and mentally the rest of the time, this will cut me off at the knees. It feels a lot like a tiny alien has taken control of my body; a tiny drunk asshole alien.

The experience varies from month to month, but I usually spend roughly a week struggling to survive as opposed to truly living. And that’s complete balls – or is it a lack of them? Either way, this was the reality that I woke up to last Tuesday morning and that was how I was feeling when we started to hike the very exposed, Al Habrich’s Trail at noon. I wish I was about to tell you a victory story, but really, it’s more of a cautionary tale about hiking with hormones.

Al Habrich’s trail starts at the top of the Sea to Sky Gondola and climbs steadily up through short wooded areas and longer rock slabs to offer a number of gorgeous vistas and different perspectives of Howe Sound and downtown Squamish. At the highest viewpoint, you are treated to a 270-degree view that looks back down toward the Summit Lodge where the hike begins.

BLISTERS

As Stu likes to say, "Moleskin is the biggest scam perpetrated on the outdoor community." Instead, his magical combination of non-stick gauze cut to size with white medical tape to secure it has saved me time and time again. If you are prone to blisters like I am, I highly recommend you keep some of this stuff in your first aid kit! 

We, unfortunately, were forced to start our hike at the hottest time of the day during a heat wave. It was so hot that when our gondola up temporarily halted and turned quickly into a sweltering sauna, I was genuinely concerned for the two elderly couples in it with us. Within minutes they were planning a mutiny and discussing how to pry open the doors. Luckily, we started moving again before things got too desperate. Just a few steps onto the trail and it felt like a neighborhood bully was holding his giant magnifying over our little ant bodies. The trail was dusty and loose, I was sweaty and sticky. And I was having a hard time battling through my existing exhaustion just to get one foot in front of the other. I complained frequently but refused to turn around. As I’m sure you can imagine, this was a great experience for Stu.

We stopped often to drink water in the slightly less hot shade of the single skinny trees we could find on the rock slabs and tried to make light of the situation. No matter how deep I am in the self pitty pool (and that thing is as bottomless as a happy hour pitcher of margaritas), I can still laugh at myself. It's not fun having your personality, your happiness, and your health all tugged out from under you - especially when you have worked hard for them. But I also have immense compassion for Stu who still finds just the right time to poke fun at me and remind me that the sky isn't actually falling.   

The fog of my bad mood hadn’t lifted at all and although I tried to will myself into a better headspace, the reality was that I needed to concentrate simply on moving forward. Eventually, my stubbornness paid off and, even through blisters from my packed out old hiking boots, we got to the top of this not-actually-that-challenging-not-actually-that-long-felt-like-death hike. While looking out from the rock bluff we were standing on I realized that I was looking down on The Chief and therefore this was the highest vantage point that I’d seen Squamish from. It briefly occurred to me that there was a message here in that idea of changing perspectives but then my hormones were like ‘screw that hippy shit.’ Instead, I used the little energy I had left to make the trek back down. The heat had completely zapped us by the time we crossed back onto the gravel road would take us to the gondola and we dragged our melted selves into the lodge for overpriced cold drinks like common tourists.

I have given up a quarter of my life to these hormone fluctuations for almost three decades. And even though I came home that afternoon and cried from sheer exhaustion in front of our fan and even though I was miserable for most of our hike, I didn’t simply pull the sheets over my head that morning and will the day away. Instead, I made a memory. It’s a memory of a shitty, dirty, struggle hike – but there’s something in there that feels a little like a win. It feels a little like I gave the hormones that were wearing me like a skin suit the middle finger. And it also feels like maybe next month around this time I might be doing solo hikes. . .

CHOCOLATE CHUNK BANANA BREAD

  • 4 bananas 2 1/2 cups mashed

  • 4 eggs

  • 1/2 cup almond butter

  • 4 tablespoons coconut oil melted (it's been so hot that my coconut oil is already melted)

  • 1/2 cup almond flour

  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • pinch of sea salt

  • 6 oz. dark chocolate chopped (I used unsweetened)

Grease one 9x5 loaf pan (or 8"x8" square pan, which is what I used) and preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a large bowl or mixer, combine the mashed bananas, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla extract and nut butter until fully combined.

Add the coconut flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt to the wet ingredients and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chunks.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes if using a square pan, and 50-60 if using a loaf pan. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean, and when you press down lightly on the loaf, it should spring back, not stay indented. If a toothpick comes out clean but the loaf isn't springing back, keep it in the oven until it does to ensure it's baked through.

Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for about 1/2 hour. Flip out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.

I found this recipe here and only made a couple small changes. Not only is it packed with healthy fats and natural sugars that made it a great snack on the hike, but the chocolate in it helped satisfy my cravings. I love banana bread and was so happy to find a sugar-free and sweetener-free recipe. 

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The Three Sisters with the Whole Family

Hike 3 | We set out from Nitinat on Saturday for a day hike; thirteen of my cousins and aunties and three dogs in all. My family has been hiking on the West Coast for the last five generations and even though it was previously out of necessity, I can’t help but think that it’s in our blood to explore.

The only photo I took with my camera before the battery died and I realized I'd left my second one behind. Thanks to my mom for offering up her iphone for the hike photos below!

115m Elevation Gain | 4.5km Hiked

Nitinat Lake has been a special place for my family for generations. As a baby, my grandpa would visit here on canoe trips with his parents and as my cousins and I often spent our summers here with our Grandma Logan. There is a special anticipation that grows from the moment you hit the gravel road until you turn into the shady, winding drive, and get the first cool breath of fresh air off the lake. It feels like we are returning not just to a place that we love, but also to all the memories that we’ve shared here over the years.

Mom, Ruby, and I at on the beach this weekend. Below are various images of me playing on the beach with my family as a child.

The lake sits just beyond a thin barrier of trees, just past the ancient cabin with moss growing on the roof, and beyond a beach that is constantly changing with each winter flood. The wind comes up at 11:30 am each morning like clockwork and we’ve all adopted Grandma’s tradition of having our morning coffee and tea while the lake is still as calm as glass.

The glassy surface of the lake in the early morning (below left also) and after 11:30 am (below right).

Just two of our 6th generation west-coasters enjoying Nitinat.

We set out from Nitinat on Saturday for a day hike; thirteen of my cousins and aunties and three dogs in all. My family has been hiking on the West Coast for the last five generations and even though it was previously out of necessity, I can’t help but think that it’s in our blood to explore. My great-great grandparents and great-grandparents traveled by foot along the coast frequently to maintain telegraph and trap lines before they were charged with building the Lifesaving Trail (now known as the West Coast Trail). In more recent generations my Grandma Logan hiked the West Coast Trail with the majority of her children and grandchildren – and even, sometimes, alone.

My mom, aunties, and grandma hiking the West Coast Trail at various times over the years.

From Grandma Logan, we learned about following water downhill if we were lost – “it will get you to the ocean and you’ll know where to go from there,” she would tell my cousins. She proved to us that a tarp or a sheet of plastic was all you needed for shelter as she would hike off in her gumboots with her (now) vintage external frame pack. My cousin Andrea recalled sleeping in a cave with Grandma during one particularly stormy trip, while my Aunty Sherry told a story about the having to scramble up a cliff when the tide came in on them. My mom told a story about hiking with Grandma during which she hollered back to the younger girls, “oh you can make it girls, we are going to have a happy hour when we get there!” And they did.

For our hike this weekend, we headed off to see the Three Sisters, a group of giant trees, in Carmanah Valley. This area, known for its incredible old growth forest and the size of some its feature trees, draws in visitors from all over the world. But I vividly recall hiking it with an unimpressed Grandma Logan as a kid – she would look up at the dizzyingly tall trees, shrug, and say, ‘I’ve seen bigger.’

The total hike was about 5 kilometers return and mostly flat other than the 20-minute hike uphill at the end. Boardwalks have been built for much of the trail, however, some have been twisted and smashed by falling trees. And while most of the trail is easy hiking, it can lull you into complacency and trip you up in the few sections where you need to pay attention to what your feet are doing. The trail winds along the Carmanah Creek which provided ample opportunity to stop for snacks and to let the dogs swim and the kids play. While we sat on the river bank, a few of my aunties and cousins asked me if this hike would count as one of my 40, to which I answered, “of course!” My goal of completing 40 hikes by next November (2019) isn’t simply about racking up elevation or setting a record for distance, it’s about much more than that. It's about reclaiming parts of myself that I've lost through illness over the last few years. 

An obligatory 'up canopy' shot. (Below) The three Logan Sisters at the Three Sisters.

Being sick means being tired. Being tired means avoiding social situations. In the last few years, I’ve found the business of making small talk, raising my voice over music to be heard and even just staying up past 10 pm to be exhausting. There are days that the idea of meeting new people, which used to thrill me, is excruciating. And sometimes just finding the energy to leave the house so that I can spend more energy – not an easily renewable resource – is too much. So, it may seem strange that spending time camping and living communally with my huge family is something that I look forward to. While it may look like a never-ending wave of chaos filled with kids, dogs, and unending conversations to an outsider, to me it feels like pulling one of grandma’s threadbare blankets up to my chin while she tucks me in. While my family volleys a multitude of conversations like the professional talkers that they are I can participate or choose to just observe. I can rest while the noise around me escalates and erupts in laughter over and over. When I am exhausted and feeling my worst, this is the gift that my family gives me. I can belong without effort. Being able to laugh along with them without having to set up the joke or remember the punchline is a beautiful thing. I have been fortunate to find many friends in my life with whom I have this level of ease, but my family are the O.G.s who made me realize that this kind of relationship existed.

It was an exhausting day for some of us - luckily this little guy got a lift up the hill at the end.

When we reached the Three Sisters, my cousin Nick looked up at them and said “oh, I thought they were going to be cedar trees. I don’t really like spruce trees.” And I know that Grandma Logan was smiling down on us at that moment, not only because she is the reason that Nick knows when to be impressed by a tree, but also because she would have been thrilled that we were all there together. And so was I. 

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I Survived Wedgemount Lake

Hike 1 | Monday wasn’t an auspicious day or an anniversary of any kind – it was just the day I decided that I would complete 40 hikes over the next 16 months. For the last nearly five years I have struggled with my health. I have dealt with depression, exhaustion, and digestive issues that have left me feeling powerless over my body. As a result, I decided to make a goal that allowed me to have some control over my physical wellbeing (and as a by-product, my mental wellbeing also).

Hike #1 | 1200m Elevation Gain | 12+km Hiked

Monday wasn’t an auspicious day or an anniversary of any kind – it was just the day I decided that I would complete 40 hikes over the next 16 months. For the last nearly five years I have struggled with my health; experiencing depression, exhaustion, and digestive issues that left me feeling powerless over my body. I have been poked and prodded and have given so much blood that I was starting to know the clinicians by name. Temporary diagnoses have ranged from Chronic Fatigue to PTSD (with many in between), but the biggest problem always remained; without a definitive cause there's no cure. I have tried medications; anti-depressants designed to give me more energy, monthly shots that cost as much as my rent, and so many supplements that I probably could have paid off my student loan. I have seen doctors, specialists, psychiatrists, psychologists, naturopaths, massage therapists, Chinese Medicine Doctors, and more. And while they are all incredible people who do incredible things – I still don’t have much in the way of answers. As a result, I decided to make a goal that allowed me to have some control over my physical wellbeing (and as a by-product, my mental wellbeing also).

40Hikes-02662.jpg

The hike to Wedgemount Lake - arbitrarily chosen as my first of forty - is unrelentingly steep as you reach nearly 1200 meters in elevation over only 6 kilometers. Stu came off of a night shift and we immediately packed up and set out. I truly admire that he can work for 36 hours and still be motivated to get outside – as well as calmly deal with black flies while bandaging my blisters. Hiking straight up in the trees, it was hard to feel like we were making progress, but when we caught views of stunningly tall waterfalls or walked out of the forest into massive talus fields it was easy to feel the success of our (slow) efforts. The trail did flatten out for a small section – and if it wasn’t for Stu moving me along (both on the up and the down), I might still be pacing back and forth there now.

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TRAIL MIX

  • gluten-free pretzels

  • almonds

  • pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

  • dried cranberries

  • cacao nibs

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Since we were hiking up on a Monday we passed a lot of weekend traffic that had been camping overnight. Any time we passed someone on the trails before about roughly the ¾ mark they smiled and said hi – and that was all. But as we got closer to the top people were generous in their encouragement, telling us that we were anywhere from 15 – 30 minutes from the lake. One group of guys told Stu that we were only 10 minutes from the top, then looked at my exhausted and dirty face and amended it to “well, depending on how fast you’re moving.”

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Cresting the final section and catching the first glimpse of the almost unnatural blue of the glacier-fed lake took away all the pain in my legs. Attaining that goal at the top is not unlike the flashing light they used on Men in Black – or those wild hormones that make women forget the horror of childbirth. Hiking, like childbirth, is definitely Type 2 fun. It’s not fun while you’re doing it, but you’re (mostly) happy you did it in the end. As soon as we stood out on the exposed rock and looked around at the mountain tops, my memory of the last three-and-a-half hours was gone. I had just finished swearing off the stupid goal of doing 40 hikes in the next 16 months – but there I was, in love with the idea all over again.

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We found a spot to picnic by the lake. In June, I was diagnosed with SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth). The treatment - which has nearly ended all of my digestive issues - includes a very restricted diet. One of the challenges is that much of what I can’t eat – garlic, onions, gluten, sugar, dairy, etc. – are all present in prepackaged freeze-dried backpacking meals. Since I have a few multi-day trips coming up this summer and fall, I’ve started experimenting with making my own meals and we used our day hike as a test for a Pad Thai recipe I've adapted (details below). You can’t test these meal in your own kitchen, because no matter how good they are, they always need to be garnished with a side of exhaustion and mild starvation to really bring out the subtle flavour blends.

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PAD THAI

  • 4 oz Flat Rice Noodles

  • 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil

  • 1/2 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

  • 1/4 Tsp Ginger Powder

  • 2 Tbsp Honey

  • 2 Tbsp Tamari

  • 2 Tbsp Peanut Butter Powder

  • 2 Tbsp Lime Juice

  • 4 oz Dehydrated Tofu

  • 1/2 Cup Shredded Carrots Dehydrated

  • 1 Tbsp Dried Cilantro

  • 1/4 Cup Chopped Roasted Unsalted Peanuts

I adapted this recipe from here. Since we were just doing a day hike I mixed up the sauce before we left and put them in reusable silicone containers that we have for camping condiments. I also found some single-use packets of coconut oil at Trader Joe's and used those for convenience. I dehydrated my own carrots, cilantro, and tofu in my oven (more info here).

We added boiling water directly to the Ziploc freezer bags that had our food in them and let them sit for about five minutes (until the noodles were soft), then drained off any excess water and added the sauce and chopped peanuts. 

The tofu was the only not so great variable of the meal - it came out really chewy. I think adding it directly to the boiling water would have been a better option for rehydrating it. 

After a little time enjoying the ambiance of our lunch spot, we headed out – aware that it was late in the day and we wanted to be back to the truck before dark. As we hiked down the first section I was excited to tell the few people we passed that they were near the top. But when we passed a couple over half way down who had full packs and were intending to camp overnight I only smiled as I quickly realized that there simply was nothing encouraging to say. “The trial is exactly like this for the next two hours,” just doesn’t cut it. They were deep in the Type 2 fun.

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Days later my legs still hurt. They are so stiff and painful that I tend to just speed while driving now because moving my foot to the brake really requires effort – and I have seriously considered purchasing one of those adaptors that elderly people use to make their toilets taller. But after living with a body full of problems that don’t seem to have causes or solutions, this kind of earned pain feels like success (except for when I have to step off a curb). This hike was about remembering that not all pain in my body needs my attention. The rub on my heal that created a blister needed my attention because it was something we could fix. But the ache in my legs on the hike down was just something that I had to get through to complete my goal. So much of hiking and being outdoors is about making peace with being uncomfortable. A lesson that may eliviate some stress in my day-to-day life as well. 

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