And so it continues....

Wow... four years and no blog!

The last four years have been extremely busy with my job as the Director of Recreation.  It was a great opportunity and a great way to be a positive contributor to my community.  During that time my back was a serious issue and it limited me from being able to walk more than 100 m without excruciating pain.  The good news is that a quick surgery solved the problem and I was finally able to get back to my love of the mountains two summers ago.  Tracey and I spent a lot of our time backpacking, hiking biking, and boating (with our 17 ft crestliner).  We took up fishing in these past four years and are pretty decent anglers as a result.  Food security continued to be a passion of ours and it progressed into the sport of hunting in pursuit of clean and healthy meat.  Last summer brought me back to Jasper where I finally climbed Mt Edit Cavell... no one can ever understand how emotional and fulfilling this trip was for me.  As well, we tackled Proposal Peak (successful) and reached 100 m from the summit of Diadem Peak... that would have assured us Wooley as well, but conditions made it impossible.  Either way, it was nice to get back into alpine climbing and more importantly to ascend to over 11,000 ft.  I needed to do this to prove that there was nothing physically limiting me in anyway.  We have also traveled a fair bit these past years: Several trips to Mexico, Dominican Republic, Honduran Bay Islands, Netherlands, and Northern BC to name a few.

 My employment is now ending with the District of Lillooet, what an experience it was!  I learned so much in so little time and can see myself continuing in Local Government of BC.  I made a positive impact in this community and learned just as much about myself as I did about the world of Local Government... how much you might ask?... I'm pretty much an expert on the subject of "Wayne Robinson"!  

The reason for resurecting this blog is our impending departure on our next great adventure:  Central America.  Most of my posts on this blog will be through Instagram... but if time allows I may post every so often to keep everyone current with some corresponding text.  Hey, pictures may be worth 1000 words, put on a blog I can type 1001!

Secret Lake

I am deliberately not telling anyone the name of this lake.  All I can say is that it is in the Shulaps and was a fantastic getaway for Tracey and myself.  We took the day, Saturday, to drive some rough logging roads to get to the trail head which took us more or less to the lake.  Although it should have only taken us 45 min to reach it, we missed an important junction as we were a lot quicker than we expected (this has been my first real hike since surgery).  We ended up over shooting the lake by 2.5 km (as the crow flies) and 200 m in elevation.  I didn't like missing the lake (I am still a guide after all), but the opportunity allowed us to explore the Shulaps a little more and wet our appetite for future exploration.

 Shulaps in all their autumn glory!

 Tracey and Pela.. the lake was right behind her!

 Me disappointed that we missed the lake... but Pinto and Pela were still happy.

 Us and us with fish!

 Rainbow Trout cleaned and in the wash basin... ready for caning.

When we got back to the lake it was pretty windy, so we spent the fist hour being blown around on the lake while Pinto and Pela enjoyed the ride.  When the wind would calm - FISH ON!  The trout were beautiful, inside and out.  Nice pink flesh (a little like sockeye) and beautiful coloured skin.  We kept 6 between the two of us and hiked them back to the Jeep.  We got home just after dark and I caned the trout the next morning.

Back in the Saddle!

 Tracey at Cowboy Camp

 Riding Cy with Joe the pack horse through Little Paradise

 Tracey with Relay mountain behind

 Tracey and Homer

 Lizard mountain from Manson pass

 Leading the pack horse along the steep sides of Tyax Creek

Tracey and Homer at Lower Relay Creek camp

I was offered the opportunity to cook for another Spruce Lake Wilderness Adventures trip.  Being my first trip into the mountains since surgery I was pretty eager to do it.  Tracey joined me on this trip which was her first trip into the South Chilcotins.  We travelled through some of my favourite areas: Cowboy Camp (upper Relay creek), Brear Paw Cabin (upper Tyax Creek via Little Paradise and Manson Pass), Spruce Lake Camp (via Tyax Creek) and back to Lower Relay Camp (via Spruce and Tyax Creeks).  Four days of horseback riding fixed my sciatica very well.  As a result, I am able to walk with little to no pain now!  I will continue my Physio for another 5 sessions and will keep on my core strengthening program to ensure it does not return.

August 2011 Update

 Sunset over the Fraser Valley

 Fountain Ridge

 It's been a cool summer but the scenery never fails to impress us!

Pinto and Pela on the deck.

It's been a pretty busy period throughout this month. I've started working at the Lillooet Wellness Centre as the Office Assistant. This has been a great job for me to make my way back into the work force. As well, this is a very positive atmosphere to work in, with a emphasis on well-being. I get great discounts on massage and acupuncture appointments! I have begun to visit a physio-therapist to help rectify my sciatica issue that has only deteriorated over the last several weeks. Walking has been difficult for me so I have been cycling instead - 5 km a day on flat ground with the dogs, plus plenty of core strengthening exercises and stretching.

I have continued canning and drying apricots. All in all I have dried 40 lbs of apricots and canned pickled cucumbers, dill carrots and dill green beans.

Tracey at the back of the garden near an Apricot Tree

Green Beans from the garden.

My 4'x8' apricot drying rack: as they dried I pitted more and placed them on the rack.

I now have Saskatoon Berry wine in the primary fermentor which will be racked into a carboy shortly.  I will post photos in the near future.
The garden has been a little disappointing this year. Most of my Black Krim Tomatoes have succumbed to blossom end rot. I don't get it - I've given them lots of calcium and kept the garden well watered. Perhaps the plants are too close together. I will not give up on this variety and will try something different next year.  Some of my tomatoes do not resemble Black Krims, and the plants are a much lighter shade of green.  These are also the plants that are most prone to the blossom end rot... perhaps a different variety has made it into my seed packet.  I should contact Saltspring Island Seed Co. to see if they know anything about this.

Salmon are definitely running well this year.  I have been out everyday so far this season.  Here's a picture of two Sockeye I caught on the first day of the season.  I hope to catch 20 Sockeye this year.  Pinks are running this year as well.  I have no number I hope to catch, but I am sure there will be plenty (they are expecting 30 million in the Fraser River this year!).  I plan to LOX smoke some of the Pinks and can them.  A local Stat'limc fellow told me that Pinks are best canned for eating.  He recommended 1/2 tsp of vinegar and a tsp of sea salt in each jar... I will try this.  I will probably can most of the Sockeye as well as we found this to be the most convenient way to store and use them.  Tracey and I installed a wash basin sink in our downstairs mud room.  This compliments the toilet that has been recently installed.  Last week we bought some lumber and built a shelving unit and counter top.  This will serve as an area for me to clean my fish, canning, and making wine/beer.  Photos to follow once everything is painted

Lipsmackin' Backpackin' : Lightweight Trail-tested Recipes for Backcountry Trips by Christine Conners

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


Poor



I have to give this book one star for one reason alone. There is a whole page dedicated to the Sunrise Bagel, as follows:

One bagel cut in half

Add butter

Wrap for the trail.



REALLY?!? That's the recipe? A waste of paper and very dissapointing. However, the vegetarian version is much better.



View all my reviews

Apricots

This week is Apricot week.  Trees are just now beginning to ripen which is a week or two late for Lillooet.  Yesterday I began drying apricots on a 4'x8' frame I built.  Today was apricot jam day (I may make more tomorrow as there is a huge abundance of fruit this year on neighbors' trees).  I thought I'd share this recipe with you... worked out pretty good and yields 16 x 250ml jars (8 x 500ml jars: just in-case your math skills are poor).  You may cut this recipe in half, but I like to make large batches when fruit is available... and it's not available for long!  Between to quickness of the apricot season and marauding black bears, you need to get on this sort of thing as quick as possible.

6 lbs Tree Ripened Apricots

13 cup Sugar

1 cup Lemon Juice

4 Tbsp Grated Ginger

2 doz. Lavender Flower Heads (bundled in cheese cloth)

Pit and quarter the apricots - place in a heavy pot (large).  Add Lemon juice, sugar and ginger.  Place on medium low heat and stir regularly to ensure the sugar does not burn.  Just before boiling (when foam starts to form) add the lavender flower bundle.  When a boil is reached, reduce heat to simmer.  I usually simmer for 5 min. - others like to do the "jell test" on a cold plate (I can't be bothered but then again some of my jams don't set all that well).  While still hot, ladle jam into hot sterilized jars.  Process in a water bath for 10 min.  Should keep for at least a year.

I hope you enjoy this recipe... another one of my pass times while in recovery mode.  This recipe is the first I've made using my outdoor propane burner (turkey deep-fryer... I'll probably never use it for that though).  It worked pretty slick... a lot faster than the stove top burner and kept the house cooler.  A bit of a pain running around between the stove top (where the jam was made) and the front yard where I was processing.  I'm sure I'll figure out something more convenient as time goes by.

What to do when recovering from open-heart surgery.

First, I have to say that my recovery progress is exceeding even my most optimistic expectations.  I must be within the top 95% of patients - to be 9 weeks into the recovery process and feeling like nothing ever happened!  You may wonder what it is that I have been able to do these last three weeks of my recovery.  The answer is surprisingly - quite a lot!

Picking Fruit.
This has been a good way to pass my time.  Picking fruit gets me out on walks.  It also gives me the opportunity to carry a little weight around and stretch my arms while picking fruit overhead.  So far I have been picking cherries, saskatoon berries, strawberries and the odd raspberry.  Apricots will be ripe this coming week, and like cherries and saskatoons there is a bumper crop on the neighbors' trees.

Preserving.
So far I have canned fruit and preserves, including: Cherry Strawberry Jam, Strawberry Rhubarb Jam, Cherry Lime Jam and plain old pitted cherries in a light syrup.  I have vacuum packed 5 lbs of cherries and 17.5lbs of saskatoons for the freezer.

Wine Making.
Currently there is 23 L of Strawberry/Cherry Wine brewing in the secondary fermentation stage.  Once I rack this batch into a second carboy (in five weeks) I will start on my Saskatoon Berry Wine (from the 17.5 lbs of fruit I picked- now in the freezer).

Gardening.
The garden is definitely behind this year.  It was planted the week after I got out of the hospital which in the case of the leafy greens and beets was a month behind schedule.  Not a big deal since everyone's garden in Lillooet is behind.  This has been a wet and cool summer (nearly 15'C below normal) and usually I would have picked the first ripe tomato by now.  Still we have been able to enjoy plenty of Arugula, Mixed Lettuce, Basil, Swiss Chard, fingerling Beets and one cucumber.  Radishes were a complete bust this year, riddled with maggots due to the late planting.

Besides all of this domestic work, I have been out hiking a bit and helped Tracey build an 7'x8' platform outside the shed (I held boards while she cut).  We were to go camping last weekend but the weather wasn't so nice.  I took my first bike ride today!  This weekend is the Lillooet Apricot Festival, and I will help Tracey build a pergola over the hot tub.  Possibly, we will get out on the canoe this week, and maybe... just maybe get out for a longer hike into the Alpine on the long weekend - maybe in Jasper?

Open Heart Surgery

My mountain travel days are on hold as I am recovering from open heart surgery.  It has been known for many years that I would need to have my Aortic valve repaired at some point in my life but up until this year, I have had no symptoms so no need for intervention (or so I thought).  As a matter of fact, I never really realized that I was having any symptoms until I met with my Cardiologist on April 29, 2011.  He observed that the gradient of pressure behind my valve was a whopping 88 mm/hg which is considered extremely serious.  He asked if I had been having any symptoms e.g. shortness of breath, chest pains, dread... you know, heart attack symptoms and at first I said 'no'.  But then I started thinking....  Over the last six months I had noticed that I was slowing down a lot.  Not only that, my level of energy and ambition was really low.  I thought I was getting older or maybe in worse shape than I thought I was (despite working out five days a week, skiing nearly nearly every week, and carrying a huge amount of large rocks to build a retaining wall daily through out February and March).  I thought the discomfort in my chest was pulled muscles and I also had an explanation for every other symptom. 

What really got me thinking was a ski trip at the end of March to attempt to climb Mount Columbia (on the Columbia Icefields).  This was a four day trip with a couple of friends who I have known since living Jasper.  At 7 am we started up the Saskatchewan Glacier, due to poor weather, carrying our packs and slogging around on skis.  I was having a very hard time once we started gaining elevation.  I was having a hard time keeping up, my chest was heaving I was so short of breath.  I remember a constant tightness across my chest, discomfort in my arms, and a feeling of absolute dread that I'll never forget.  All I wanted to do was cry, cry and turn around and go home.  I thought that I was out classed by my younger travel companions, but deep down inside I wondered if something else was really wrong.  By 3:30 pm I was screwed, luckily for me bad weather blew in and we had near zero visibility.  We were just at the ramp on the glacier where we would ascend onto the icefield.  It was decided that we would dig in and set up a camp.  I was so wasted, I hardly dig, or even eat any of the snack I had.  My friends dug snow while I sat there in complete turmoil.
That evening while I cooked dinner (which they insisted on so that my pack would be lighter) we discussed what I was feeling.  I said that something was not right, but it was agreed that I was probably a little out of shape as they had skied more than me that winter (three of the four worked ski patrol) and that I was getting old (two of them were in their early 20's - I am only 35!).  I remember waking up the next day and not wanting to continue, I felt like a complete shit who was ruining the trip for everyone else.  While we were debating what the weather was going to do (and cooking breakfast) another winter storm blew in... over night and that day we received somewhere between 50 and 100 cm of snow... we weren't moving.  The storm persisted so we built a snow cave, I started feeling better (thought maybe it was dehydration!).  The weather kept us pinned there until we had a window on day three and we thought it best to leave then rather than risk being stuck there and why spend another night in the cold just to go home the next day.  The ski out was fun because it was mostly downhill.  Near the end of the ski was an uphill section; again, I had a hard time, chest tightness, shortness of breath, but I just passed it off as all the other reasons.  As a result, the next day when I drove back to Lillooet, I had my tail between my legs and felt pretty shameful about my performance... I thought I had better start working out harder... the problem was I couldn't.

I relayed this story to my Cardiologist who said the weather may have saved my life on that trip.  Attempting the 3700m + peak might have lead to a very serious situation in a very remote place or worse my death.  Suddenly, everything started making sense, I was showing symptoms.  I was scheduled for an Angiogram in Vancouver for May 16.  I knew that I would probably have to go for surgery soon afterwards, so it was a race to get some work done.  I finished the rock wall, build a side and back deck, excavated the garden and built raised vegetable beds... probably too much.

May 11, 2011 I couldn't even walk the dogs on a level trail without feeling a tightness in my chest, and that feeling of dread - again.  The feeling continued right through into work, I didn't make it through the day.  At 12 noon I checked myself into the Emergency department.  Within two days (Friday) I was ambulanced to Vancouver General Hospital undergoing an emergemcy angiogram.  Some people wait months for this proceedure, but it seems that I needed surgery very quickly as things were going sour for me at an alarming rate.  Mortality was staring me in the face and if I wasn't at Death's door step, I was certainly on the sidewalk in front of his home.  Surgery to repair my valve was scheduled in two days - Monday, May 16, 2011 - 8 am.

The surgery had some complications.  My aorta was herniated due to the pressure of the blood coming through my stenoic valve, an annherism was forming.  As a result both my valve and my ascending aorta had to be replaced.  My old valve (replaced with a bovine valve) was one of the most heavily calcified valves my surgeon had ever removed (he retires in a year!).  As a result, two days after the surgery, I had complete heart block.  My heart would not beat properly without the aid of a pacemaker.  A pacemaker was implanted (while I was still awake!) on May 23, 2011.  I was released the following Thursday.

It is now nearly six weeks since my sternum was cracked, and I am feeling quite good.  Both my cardiologist and my family physician believe I am healing 'remarkable fast' which is not fast enough for me!  At this time I cannot carry anything over 10 lbs, I have lost much of my muscle and still weight 20 lbs less than what I started with.  I still feel like a shadow of myself, but I feel great improvements every week.  I have been off the nasty oxycodon's for a week now and very glad for it, although I am a grouchy bastard and feel really bad for Tracey who has to endure this.  Strangely though she says I've been a grouchy bastard since the sergury, although due to the medication I remeber little of the first five weeks of recovery and feel she must be making this up.  Tracey has taken very good care of me and I owe her so much once I am recovered.  As for my recovery, I am expected to be 100% withing 3 months of surgery and already iIknow I will be stronger than I've ever been.  Already I am climbing hills with more ease than I have in three years!  Now that I look back on past events, I can see that I have been showing symptoms for probably three years or so.  My first clue to this was the size of my lungs (pre-operation x-ray).  Due to my body over compensating all this time, my lungs would not fit on one x-ray image!  Truely though, I'm just happy to the be able to be healthier than ever, and more importantly, alive.  Life has a new meaning for me now and a different perspective on life, family and friends is just comming to realization.  I love you Tracey, thank you for standing by me through it all. 

Time to Consolidate

It's time to consolidate my blogs.  I've been trying to operate too many blogs and thus I haven't been maintaining any of them.  I'm going to limit myself to 2 blogs:  This one - Wayner's Mountain World, and a personal one for family only.  Quite often my family blogs will be posted on this blog too, but I doubt anyone other than family are interested in the state of my garden or how many times I had to mow the lawn this year... this is a blog on my mountain adventures after all!!
Be sure to check old posts as I will be updating information on past trips and excursions that have not been published so far from the past two years.  I am also changing the format of this blog slightly.  As well as posting information on the life and times (in the mountains) of Tracey and Wayne, I will be posting my guided trips through Canadian Mountain Adventure and Spruce Lake Wilderness Adventures, and tips (from my now defunct blog Mountain Travel Tips), including some of my favourite back-country recipes.
Ciao for now!

The Aussie Top Up Method

How long and how often you stop during a hike is very goal dependent.  However, an Australian study may hold the answer if you are wanting to stay at your optimal condition through out the day. 

Check out this 'Aussie Top Up Strategy'.  

The study gave a group of athletes various eat, drink and rest schedules, and closely monitored each patients' body for signs of fatigue, dehydration and discomfort. 

Optimal schedule:
Stop every hour for 5 min (only) during streneous physical activity: eat, drink, and rest during the break.  After the fist hour you will drop to 90% your optimal condition and bounce back to 95% by the end of the 5 min rest.  When following this schedule, after 3 hours you will have only dropped to 85% (bouncing back to roughly 90% after the rest).  As 9 hours rolls around you will still be operating at 70% of your optimum.  Even at 12 hours expect to be functioning above 60%.

Compare this to another scenerio.  The atheletes in this trial rested for 15 min every three hours.  By the time they reached their first rest, atheletes were only functioning at 70%.  After the 15 min break they did rebound to 80% only to plunge 50% by their next rest at hour 6.  By hour 9, 30% and around 10% at 12 hours.

The obvious but interesting observation is that in both scenerios, the actual duration of rest is the same.

I will be trying out this strategy for my next few trips. 

September 2010 and Yoho's passing

Above: Cow Camp in Little Paradise.  Below: Summiting a peak above Munson Pass

 Overlooking Upper Tyax Creek Valley

 Below: Cinnabar Basin

 Lizard Peak

 Lorna Lake

 Permanent Snow Patch (mini glacier) on Lizard Peak.  Below: Looking South from Lizard Peak

 Above: Wolverine Tracks.  Below: Fish Lake

 Shadows on the shoulder of Lizard Peak

SCREE!!!

Spetember brought mixed emotions for us.  On the bright side of things I guided several amazing hiking trips through the South Chilcotins.  I also had a couple of good horse packing trips with Jaimie as well.  I developed a passion for Salmon fishing and was able to catch 22 sockeye with the season was on.  I was also lucky to have a good friend of mine, Ryan Titchener, come from Jasper and assist me with a trip I was guiding out of Eldorado Cabin. 

Tracey, on the other hand, was left to deal with Yoho, who was deteriorating at an alarming rate.  It finally reached a point where he was experiencing many more bad days than good ones.  When it got to the point that he lost control of his bowels, which had to be an awful thing for him to have happen (he was such a composed dog when healthy), we decided that it would be more merciful for us to let him go.  September 29, 2011 at 4 pm: we had Yoho euthanized in our arms.  We knew exactly when he passed, the light in his eyes faded out like a candle being extinguished.  Our boy was gone.  It was a painful drive back knowing that he was in our trunk with a plastic bag wrapped around his remains.  We brought him to a favourite spot and placed his remains where he loved it most (while living here in Lillooet).  I felt his ears one last time and let him go.  We are able to look over where we placed him on a daily basis and know that his spirit and the lessons he taught us live on.  It is a little unfair for Pinto, we are expecting him to live up to Yoho's legacy, to be even half the dog that Yoho was will be good enough.  Perhaps it would be best if he didn't as then maybe when he too passes on, it may not hurt quite as much.

Eldorado Chili

I've had a lot of success with this recipe.  It is a hearty meal that satisfies the hunger brought on after a long day on the trail.  This is a vegetarian recipe that even staunch meat eaters will enjoy.

Serves 3 people

Eldorado Chili
1 cup split red lentils
8 sun-dried tomato*
1 Tbsp beef bouillon (vegetable based for vegetarians)
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp dried onion*
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder*
3 cups water
*Substitute 6 roma tomatoes (wrap in news paper and pack in your cook pot), 1 medium onion and 2 cloves of garlic.

Options:  Add a bell pepper, jalapeno or cheddar cheese to round off the meal.

At home:  Combine all dry ingredients in a sealed plastic bag.  Carry fresh ingredients (incl. cheese) separately.

At Camp:  Mince garlic and chop vegetables (if applicable).  Combine vegetables and dry ingredients in a pot.  Slowly add water and stir well.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and reduce heat; simmer for 15 to 20 mins.  Add additional water if looking dry.  Add cheese to each serving.  Serve with: pita, bread, or instant rice.

Going out with a bang! End of Summer 2010

We were told by the initial vet that Yoho should exercise as little as possible... how can we do that to him!?!  Yoho loves to hike and loves the mountains.  Instead, our goal is to get him out as much as possible so that he can live his final days to the fullest.  He no longer will eat anything but Salmon, which is good, as Salmon are running in the Fraser and I have started fishing to keep him (and us) nourished.  Over the end of the summer we have taken Yoho and Pinto up three more mountains: Two in one day near Tenquille Lake, and one above Blowdown Cabin with Jess and Estelle Stewart (our dear friends) visiting from Jasper.  FYI, Blowdown Cabin is now my favourite place.

 

 Tenquille Lake Trip

 Pinto and I in Fossil Pass

 Tracey Yoho and I in Fossil Pass

 Pinto and I on his first summit - Copper Dome

 Leaving Mt McLeod.

 Tracey and Estelle during a very buggy approach to Blowdown Cabin

 Tracey and Jess hike through the swarms.

 Jess in Blowdown Cabin

Hiking 'Yoho' Peak, above blowdown cabin

 Yoho looking into the great beyond.  Yoho Peak was his last summit.

 Yoho ensuring that Jess was OK

Boot skiing down last winter's remains.