This week 10 of us left the trail head on McColl Road just south of Bowser at 9:15. We walked through the forest as we headed down to Nile Creek. The trail wound along the creek to the Inland Highway. 2 hikers peeled off to head back and 8 of us carried on under the highway to start the gnarly, muddy trail to the falls. It’s a trail of mud, fallen trees, support ropes to help over log bridges and up slippery banks and lots of running water, often with sketchy crossings. We found a perfect spot on the river for lunch in the sun. A few hikers headed further up the creek, about 15 minutes, to the falls. There are lovely small falls on the way. However we did not see the bigger falls as it has grown in a lot. Still an awesome walk. After enjoying the sun and the river during lunch we headed back through mud and other gnarly bits. When we arrived back at the underpass we took the ridge route back along Donkey then Mystery Trail. We were back at the cars in 5.5 hours and just over 13 km. A wonderful day with a terrific group. Submitted by this week's hike leader Michele Hind This past Monday the Probus hiking group met for a Seal Bay hike. The plan was to go to Melda’s Marsh and then head to some of the lesser used trails. Those trails eventually took us back to the Forest Loop and onto another series of lesser used trails. We worked our way down to the beach where we had our lunch stop in the sun. After that, it was a quick walk back up to the parking lot.
This month our Hands On Cooking group, led by Nina Goodman, made four flavourful and varied soups - Mexican corn chowder accompanied by homemade buns; Thai chicken soup with grilled roti; a Chinese soup with homemade wontons; and a dessert-style fruit soup accompanied by cream-filled and chocolate-glazed profiteroles. Delicious! A small group of determined bikers completed the 30 km ride today despite cooler conditions. We cycled from Bosleys parking lot near Quality Foods in Comox and around the Kin Beach loop, ending at The Park for coffee.
The March 28th General Meeting featured speakers Mike and Gill Thompson with an exceptional presentation about their January 2023 journey to the Falklands, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula. Their photo slide show featured the many types of penguins, whales, seals and birds seen in the rich seas in these areas, along with scenery from the three locations including whaling stations on South Georgia and Shackleton's and Wild's graves, Point Wild on Elephant Island, the Port Lockroy post office and the British Antarctic survey building. They also spoke about the biosecurity in place to keep this pristine land free from invasive species.
Judi and Dale hosted a spectacular evening featuring Pinot Wines from far and wide. Our hosts treated us to Spaghetti Carbonara and Pork Loin. A dozen of us noshed on appetizers, salad and 3 desserts. As we ate our delicious meal we tasted 7 wines. Later, we were quizzed on them. What fun it was…🥂 The Probus hiking group met at Raven Lodge on Monday for a "resort snowshoe outing". It was a relatively short outing on well-packed trails that took us on the Old Cabin trail, to the Crooked Creek trail and then up and over the knoll on the Tree Beard trail. We stopped at Raven Lodge for a visit at the end of the hike before heading home. Many thanks to Teresa and Bruce for providing the trail passes! The Probus Peddlers took advantage of the sunny, warm weather last Sunday to pedal a favourite route from Quality Foods on Lerwick to the Lazo Road and Sand Pines area.
The weather forecast was appealing, so it was time to rally the Probus Paddlers for the first trip of 2024. March is early for kayaking, but it was an opportunity to get out during the annual herring spawn. We launched from the Little River Ferry Terminal and paddled North under sunny, warm and calm conditions as seen in the photos. Trip summary: 2 paddlers, 13.3 km, 2.5 hrs. Bob Allan Kayaking Group Coordinator With all the snow that came down over the weekend, snowshoeing was a must do! The Probus hiking group met at Raven Lodge and headed out into a forecast of wind and snow. We travelled to Lake Helen Mackenzie on a beaten track and once there, started to break trail along the lake until we came to the Piggot Creek bridge. After crossing the bridge we again broke trail, but this time through deep snow, following the Lake Trail route. After a quick lunch we returned to Raven Lodge to dry out, warm up and have a hot drink. |