This was a bucket-list hike for me. Teal blue water and a view at the top of the world. This has been on the to-do list for awhile now. Three years ago, I documented our first backpacking trip to Garibaldi Lake. We all made it but it was a lot of uphill steps for a Little Bro who was just 5 years old at the time. Three years older and stronger now at age 8 and 10, I knew the kids would probably have enough stamina (and I would be prepared with enough gummies) to make it. And just like last time, my sister and her friend who is a nurse came too. Having 4 adults to 2 kids also made it feel safer.
On the day of the Big Hike, the alarm goes off at 5:15 am. We have been taking about 'The Big Hike" for so long now, the kids were pretty cooperative to wake up insanely early to embark on our big adventure. The kids are carrying more than they did 3 years ago but somehow the parent backpacks still weight in at 40 pounds. Of course, the kids had to pack their favourite stuffed animals - Otter and Beaver got strapped in and went along on our big adventure.
We broke up the hike into 2 nights and 3 days. The mission for Day 1 was to make it up 972m of elevation and about 10 km to the campsite. The first 6-7 km is just a series of fairly steep switchbacks - we distracted ourselves by playing the alphabet game, the guessing game and "If I went to Garibaldi, I would bring..." With summer coming late this year and the weather being so hot, there were parts of the trail that were quite flooded which meant for some extra fun creek crossings. The kids embraced their inner ninja and bounced across the lake balancing on the rocks that were above water. The regular route to the campsite was completely washed out and everyone had to either brave knee deep water or climb up higher on an unofficial trail. Our family are avid fans of The Amazing Race so when we passed the bridge and saw the two options, we used our best Phil Keoghan voice and announced to the kids: "Roadblock - Lake or Climb. In Lake, teams will brave the glacier waters and walk 1km in search of the campsite. In Climb, teams will bushwhack an unmarked trail in search of the campsite. The last team to check in may be elimated"
We all opted for Lake and braved the glacier water. All of us except for Little Brother who wanted to embrace his inner mountain goat and he rock climbed/ bouldered beside us along the trail. According to my Garmin watch, the trek from the Rubble Creek parking lot to the campsite was 11.78 km and it took us 5 hours and 26 minutes. AllTrails said it would be 9km so somehow we ended up trekking almost another 3 km. We were so happy to find two lake-side campsites. Famished and exhausted, we were so happy to drop our heavy packs and eat lunch. Leftover pizza never tasted so good.
Last year we opted for the freeze-dried backpacking meals but our kids were not a fan (i.e., Little Bro threw up after he ate the mediocre freeze-dried macaroni) so this year we decided to pack foods we knew they would eat even if it meant more weight. For our two dinners at the campsite, we had chicken with rice and fettuccini alfredo with pepperoni. For breakfast, we had granola, oatmeal and biscotti with hot chocolate. It was all pretty amazing. Super Dad even packed up several bottles of Gatorade and San Pellegrino. Everything tastes that much better when you worked hard to get it there. Plus, the view for our meals was pretty spectacular. Depending on the time of day, there were quite a few mosquitoes but Super Dad and Little Bro had their super fashionable mosquito nets so they weren't bothered. The mosquitoes seem to only like Big Sis because she got a dozen bites on her feet and I only got one.
After dinner each night, we played cards beside the Lake but both nights, we were pretty exhausted. You know you've pushed the kids to their max when Little Bro asks if he can go to bed before we have even made dinner. I think both nights by 9:00 am, everyone was passed out.
The hike to Panorama Ridge was not easy. The good part was that since we were starting and ending at Garabaldi Lake, we didn't have to pack the tent or all the food and gear with us. Hallelujah. I don't think my shoulders or my lower back would have survived. The kids didn't have packs at all and we just had daypacks.
The hike starts out quite easy but the melting mountains meant again washed out muddy trails, creek crossings and the last 2 km to the summit is still entirely covered in snow. We were ready for this though with gaiters, crampons, poles and for the kids, we put ziplock bags around their socks which work pretty well as makeshift gaiters. It was a really hot day and the glare from the snow made the last couple kms to summit pretty difficult. Little Bro was getting really tired and for a bit, I was worried he wouldn't make it but we came up with a game where we name a province or state and he tells us the hockey name or hockey player from that team. That really helped distract him from the grueling ascent to the top and we made it altogether just in time for the lunch. And the view from the top really is as spectacular and as amazing as I had hoped for. It was the most scenic view we could ask for as we ate our peanut butter bagels.
Not going to lie. This hike was hard but look at this view. That made every step worth it.
We ate our lunch overlooking the teal colored lake and even had a huge golden marmot join us for lunch.
On the way back down, we all had different methods of getting down the snow covered trail.
The kids slid on their butts down the mountain.
My sister, Simon and I tried to ski/run down the mountain.
From our campsite to the top of Panorama Ridge and back was 14.82 km and it took us just over 6 hours. So proud of the kids - it was a hard hike for me so I am extra impressed that the kids made it. I guess when you have a crazy mom that makes you do hard things like this, you don't really have much of choice than to come along and try to have some fun while you're doing it.
After a delicious dinner and much deserved chocolate for dessert, we crawled our weary bodies into the tent and slept until the sun woke us up fairly early in the morning. At 6:30 am, the lake is so beautiful and you can hear the birds chirping and there are so many fish jumping out of water. It really is magnificent.
The trek back down was harder than I thought it would be probably because we were already so sore from the previous 2 days of hiking. Super Dad started taking things out of the kids backpacks to make it easier for them until he was carrying 3 sleeping bags, 2 camping mats and 7 water bottles. We started making up a song to the tune of the 12 days of Christmas and listing all the things he was carrying "8 gummy fishies, 7 water bottles, 6 pepperonis , 5 Babybels, 4 puffer jackets, 3 sleeping bags, 2 camping mats and a big canister of bear spray"
I tried to help and carried Little Bro's pack for a little while and had my 40 lb pack on my back and his backpack in front. Felt like being pregnant again. After a km or so, he was good to carry his backpack again which was great because hiking with 2 packs is super awkward. Later, Big Sis needed a break from carrying her pack and it was too big that I couldn't carry it in front because I couldn't see over it so I just carried it on my hip for several kms. Felt like when she was toddler and I would carry her on my hip everywhere we went.
So yes we can do hard things. Crazy hard things. We might question our sanity and why we consider these things are fun when it feels too hard but then we conquer it and we do it together as a family and it feels so good.
Those are the core memories that I hope will last them a lifetime.
