Trip Report by Ben Shewan
A rather poor forecast for the last weekend of October kept me guessing if conditions would be anything less than horrible right up to the last moment. Adrien had suggested Mt Amadis as the destinaton and Spring and I both agreed whole heartedly that International Ridge was a place we'd been dreaming of for ages
Meeting up in Mission afforded me the luxury of sleeping in late and we all piled into my car for the last stretch out to Cultus. The TH was easy to find and I enjoyed the fall colours on display during the intial sections of otherwise dreary logging road.
Eventually we exited the Provincial Park and proceeded steeply up the trail until reaching the ridge line where the grade lessened considerably. Stopping for a snack we were enticed by periodic views of Cultus and out into the valley before plunging into cloud once again.
I was in the middle of explaining how people from the eastern Fraser Valley were a little more sophisticated and urbane than some Vancouverites seemed to believe when I was interrupted mid-sentence by several rifle blast from the valley below. A very typical resolution to a Chilliwack dispute I assured them, nothing to worry about
Once on the ridge the trail was surprisingly distinct and well maintained for a place that doesn't seem to get many visitors. The mist and cloud made the ascent very atmospheric.
Just before we reached the top I somehow managed to slip and bloodied my nose requiring me to have a wad of tp stuffed into one nostril for the remainder of the morning. A SAR extraction was considered but ultimately abandoned due to a lack of helicopter landing zones.
We popped out into a clearing just below the summit and were treated to some sweet views of Baker and a pocket of blue sky above. HDRification ensued with mixed results...
Once on the apparent summit Adrien expressed concern that we weren't standing on the true peak and disappeared into the bush leaving Spring and I to follow for fear that we wouldn't fully conquer the mountain. Satisfied once we'd reached the true high point we took some pictures and headed back down to the clearing for some lunch.
The skies has closed up a bit by then and it even started to drizzle a bit during the descent. Despite this I felt lucky that we'd gotten to see Baker despite the allegedly crappy weather.
The forest had some cool photo ops where the sun provided interesting lighting effects with all the cloud and mist.
The walk out was uneventful and we entertained ourselves with a spirited discussion of the subleties of the Canadian tax code versus the American system. A compelling topic and one we'll surely have to revisit again
Big shout out to Spring and Adrien for gittin' er done! Both of you are very courageous and kind of a big deal. In conclusion, Mt Amadis rules and you should go do it, preferably now.
A rather poor forecast for the last weekend of October kept me guessing if conditions would be anything less than horrible right up to the last moment. Adrien had suggested Mt Amadis as the destinaton and Spring and I both agreed whole heartedly that International Ridge was a place we'd been dreaming of for ages
Meeting up in Mission afforded me the luxury of sleeping in late and we all piled into my car for the last stretch out to Cultus. The TH was easy to find and I enjoyed the fall colours on display during the intial sections of otherwise dreary logging road.
Eventually we exited the Provincial Park and proceeded steeply up the trail until reaching the ridge line where the grade lessened considerably. Stopping for a snack we were enticed by periodic views of Cultus and out into the valley before plunging into cloud once again.
I was in the middle of explaining how people from the eastern Fraser Valley were a little more sophisticated and urbane than some Vancouverites seemed to believe when I was interrupted mid-sentence by several rifle blast from the valley below. A very typical resolution to a Chilliwack dispute I assured them, nothing to worry about
Once on the ridge the trail was surprisingly distinct and well maintained for a place that doesn't seem to get many visitors. The mist and cloud made the ascent very atmospheric.
Just before we reached the top I somehow managed to slip and bloodied my nose requiring me to have a wad of tp stuffed into one nostril for the remainder of the morning. A SAR extraction was considered but ultimately abandoned due to a lack of helicopter landing zones.
We popped out into a clearing just below the summit and were treated to some sweet views of Baker and a pocket of blue sky above. HDRification ensued with mixed results...
Once on the apparent summit Adrien expressed concern that we weren't standing on the true peak and disappeared into the bush leaving Spring and I to follow for fear that we wouldn't fully conquer the mountain. Satisfied once we'd reached the true high point we took some pictures and headed back down to the clearing for some lunch.
The skies has closed up a bit by then and it even started to drizzle a bit during the descent. Despite this I felt lucky that we'd gotten to see Baker despite the allegedly crappy weather.
The forest had some cool photo ops where the sun provided interesting lighting effects with all the cloud and mist.
The walk out was uneventful and we entertained ourselves with a spirited discussion of the subleties of the Canadian tax code versus the American system. A compelling topic and one we'll surely have to revisit again
Big shout out to Spring and Adrien for gittin' er done! Both of you are very courageous and kind of a big deal. In conclusion, Mt Amadis rules and you should go do it, preferably now.
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