Whistler impressions

It is not getting boring. When will the first real skiing picture from Whistler be posted ???

Icebouldering

Because of 50+ cm fresh snow, Miki and me were unable (even with a 4wheel drive truck + snowchains) to get to our original destination - the Hope Icefall, as the logging road leading up there became to steep. So we searched for some ice around Coquahilla Highway and found a beautiful playground.

Nice weather

but bad snow in Whistler on Wednesday. It had rained some days ago and the whole surface was hard ice with 3 cm snow cover. Watching jumps was more fun than skiing. But it will snow the next 4 days and the weekend will hopefully be great again.

Geo Tags

Some Pictures of the webalbum have been geotagged now. How cool is that?

Vancouver

Lighthouse Park

Little photosession on the free afternoon after the second final. It took 2 hours by bus to get to Lighthouse Park one way but the light was worth it.

Winter on Wreck Beach

Whistler & Mt. Cayoosh Range

Skied in Whistler on Saturday, some steep bowls with nice snow but most of the area is tracked now. Slept in tent under the gondola and went up with Joost & Mike to Mt. Cayoosh Range northwards of Pemberton. Found a steep slope full of powder + 5cm crystals at the snow-surface. Reached our designated destination, a ridge sothwards of Mt. Cayoosh at 3.30pm and had a long run back to the car, most of the time in the dark.

Mt. Cayoosh, sunset
















Mt. Whistler, view northwards

Mt. Cypress Dawn Patrol

After a rainy Monday, Joost had the glorious idea to check out the conditions on Mt. Cypress on early Tuesday mornig. Meeting point was 6.30 am at McDonalds at UBC, where we started the day with a horribly weak coffee. The sky was clear and we expected a great sunrise and fresh powder as we drove up. Right time, right place - a beautiful, cold and sunny morning at 8.45 am at the summit. See the panorama to Horseshoe Bay and the Lions as well as deep champaigne powder on the way down. Mt. Cypress officially opened...not.

Whistler

Whistler opened earlier than expected this season since it was snowing the whole last week. We went up with the Greyhound Friday evening. I camped at Whistler Creekside right beside the gondola to pick up my season pass early next morning. I woke up at 5 am as the first people arrived to queue up for tickets. We had two great powder days in pristine snow. Unfortunately I left my camera in Vancouver but expect skiing pictures soon! Get an impression of the conditions here (Choose November, 14)

Skiing season has begun

Midterms are over and skiing can start. Just purchased the Whistler Season Ticket some minutes ago - the montain opens next week. This weekend we'll hike up somewhere and see if we can find any snow.

New Pictures

Vancouver

Midterms

After enjoing all the previous weekends outside, I had to spent this weekend learning at home and in the library for midterm exams preparation. I'll have some exams the next 2 weeks and am quite confident to pass them well, as I made nice learning progress during the last week. It has been raining nonstop for a week...skiing season will begin early probably.

Skaha

A desert in BC? Located about 5 driving hours eastwards from Vancouver, Skaha is sheltered from pacific precipitation by the surrounding mountain ranges, making it a great alternative to rainy Squamish, not to forget the oppurtunity of seeing more of BC landscapes during the ride. We had a great weekend outside, with frosty nights in the tent, scrambeld eggs & bacon for breakfast and sunny climbing days on solid rock. After about three years (including four new rubber soles) of misusing my climbing shoes, they are finally done and amortized after this weekend. See the pictures of this beautiful colorful autumn landscape, probably the last summer days of 2007.

Average road in autumn

Mt. Seymour

Weather seemed to become better on Mondays so Dave and me decided to hike on Mt. Seymour which is located northwest of downtown Vancouver. Great weather actually, close to freezing point in the morning.
It`s possible to scramble around several sub-peaks before you reach the actual summit of Mt. Seymour. Stunning view into the wilderness in the north and the Vancouver-Area and Mt. Baker (USA) in the south!












True colors































First peak I guess













I need a polarizer!
















I'm living on the peninsula in the background

Longhike

Last Weekend again back in Squamish, this time with the UBC Outdoor Club. Raining all time, off course, which made climbing even a bit more adventurous. We were joining the trad climbing group at the Smoke Bluffs. It's great fun, and really demanding to place the right gear in these nice, parallel solid crags, not to forget you have to climb that route the same time. We spent the evening & night in Evans Lake, a nice remote place in pristine wilderness and had a big party there. Sunday really sucked because the rain turned into a storm that made staying outside awful. So we headed back to Vancouver and made some plans for Monday -> Thanksgiving holiday.


Dream Equipment


What a nice clean crag!


Pacific Rain

First Snow

Nach einer Woche Regen haben sich heute nachmittag die Wolken zurückgezogen und den Blick auf die Berge über der Stadt freigegeben. Alle Gipfel sind weiß gezuckert!

Carbon Footprint

Your carbon footprint is a representation of the effect you have on the climate in terms of the total amount of greenhouse gases you produce (measured in units of carbon dioxide). Many of your actions generate carbon emissions, which contribute to accelerating global warming and climate change. By measuring your carbon footprint, you can get a better sense of what your individual impact is and which parts of your lifestyle deserve the greatest attention.

Determine your Carbon Footprint here:
SafeClimate.net CO2 Footprint Calculator

Armed with information about your personal CO2 footprint, you can more readily take effective action to shrink your emissions, thereby minimizing your personal impact on the climate. Look at ways you can reduce your carbon emissions simply by turning down your household appliances and thinking about your transportation options. You might be surprised how big an impact such a seemingly small action will have - and the best bit is, you probably won't even notice the difference!
http://www.mycarbonfootprint.eu/

Squamish II

Eigentlich wollten wir trotz sehr unsicherer Wettervorhersage am letzten Freitag schon nachmittags nach Squamish, was wir dann jedoch wegen Regen abgeblasen haben. Statt dessen haben wir am Samstag um 8.00 den ersten Bus genommen, nur um bei der Ankunft in Squamish festzustellen, dass, trotz tollen Wetters, eine Stunde vorher wohl ein Schauer runtergangen sein musste - alle Felsen nass.
Kein Problem, die Sonne schien und wir haben eine schöne Stelle für die zwangsläufig verfrühte Frühstückspause gefunden. Man musste sich etwas durch Gebüsch kämpfen und kam dann auf Granitklippen oberhalb des Pazifiks raus:


















































Nach ca. 1,5 Stunden haben wir es dann mit Bouldern versucht und die Felsen waren trocken - jedenfalls die überhängenden, ab der Kante wurde es nass. Super Spaß.


















































Leider war es nicht möglich richtig gute Boulder Bilder zu machen, da es im Wald zu dunkel war. Gegen Mittag gab es dann einen zweiten Schauer, aber, weil Wald bekanntlich den Niederschlag puffert (Interzeption, ne) konnten wir trotzdem mehr oder weniger weitermachen.
Rückfahrt nach Vancouver am Abend diesmal nicht per Truck, sondern mit zwei anderen Boulderern aus Richmond, die wir abends am Parkplatz angesprochen haben. Sehr nett.

Neue URL

Ich habe die URL geändert. Neue Adresse: www.tmathow.blogspot.com

Webalbum im Blog

Vancouver

Lighthouse

Das Wetter ist wieder gut und so waren wir heute abend in Lighthouse - Granit am Pazifik. Danke Stefan für den Tip!