We could see the larches from our hike, but there were none on the mountain with Thunderbird Mine. Given our short window, and perfect accidental timing, I suggested that we put Delphine Mine on pause, and instead head up to the larches.
The most beautiful larches I have ever seen were on our expedition to Paradise Mine (our accidentally long expedition) and the best part was that we were able to drive there. We could drive then, why not drive now? If we drove up we could see the larches with their autumn colours and we could do it in the comfort of the Jeep.
That was the plan. We drove in and first headed to the mining settlement. Evidently there has been some new logging in the area. Well seasoned readers might remember our attempts through here with dense foliage on either side, scratching at the sides of the Jeep. It was gone now. The area had been opened up for a low quality road. The trees were gone, but the expanded road had been decimated by the tires from heavy vehicles. Still, we managed to get to the mining settlement without bottoming out the Jeep even once (which is a personal best for me).
Mining Settlement
Wall
Stack
At the Settlement
The Flat
Greens
We got out, and I showed Keith and Amanda the area. As always it was gorgeous, and we planted the idea of possibly coming to camp there next summer. We wandered around the houses, looked at the trash left behind (cans from the mid 1900's) and marveled at the beauty of the valley and the glacial stream.
Having seen the sights (or at lease a fragment of them) we headed up. We took the ATV trail instead of the main road (as we did last time), put the Jeep in "low," and climbed the mountain. The first bit was good. Sure, we could barely see the road on the 20-30 degree incline but all was good. I recognized the path and some familiar obstacles. We came to a two-point hairpin, made the turn, and paused. When we came two years ago (I think it was two) water runoff had cut a small channel into the road (if it could be called that... let's go with path). Two years later the channel was still there, and moderately wider on the downhill side. I knew that based on our last drive through here that this would likely be our greatest obstacle (except for cliffside narrowness). I got out of the Jeep, I inspected the little washout, and I decided that we could probably make it over. Slowly, cautiously, we rolled the Jeep forwards. Our first set of tires made it to the channel and I held on tight as the driver's corner sank deep into the channel. Our tires were still holding and with a little boost of power I was raised back up as the driver's tire made it to the other side. Another few inches and the driver's back tire was on it's way down. I should mention at this point that there had been some precipitation earlier that day, and though things weren't muddy, they were slick. The back driver's tire crowned the channel side and with a rather unnerving jolt the back end of the Jeep slid downhill a few inches as the tire fell into the channel. No problem, I thought, and like before I gave it a little gas so we could push through the channel. I pressed down on the accelerator and I heard the eerie and discomforting sound of tires sliding on mud.
Crap.
Jeep Stuck
I had Keith hop out and he confirmed that three of the four tires were sliding. Amanda and I got out of the Jeep. I surveyed the situation and was not overly thrilled with it. Looking underneath the Jeep there was less than an inch between the skid plates and the ground. The good part of that was that the Jeep was not resting on its belly and we could likely dislodge it. The problem in all this was that we slid a few inches downhill, and a few inches downhill meant a significant increase in the depth and width of the channel.
I looked at the Jeep and my next question took only an instant to answer: forwards, or backwards? We could have tried for forwards, but it was uphill, slippery, and then we would have to cross back over on our way back down. If we went backwards we could be free and move on (though we would not reach our destination). Seeing the Jeep on the edge of a sharp hairpin turn, and knowing what happens if all tires spin together we opted for reverse.
Given the bizarre angle the Jeep was on we needed to get that driver's rear tire back up a few inches to drop the weight back on the rest of the tires. We looked at the channel, and began to look for some rough rocks that we could throw under the back tire. If we could get enough rocks to form a sort of ramp out of the channel, and they were rough enough for the tire to bite, we should have been able to free up that back tire. We got the rocks, I jammed them behind the tire, cleared a little path out of the channel, and then gave it a whirl. Keith and Amanda opted not to sit in the car with me, and I was sure to strap in my seat belt securely... just in case.
With Keith spotting my front tires I gave a little push and we backed out the driver's rear tire. Phew! The tire was free and we just had to pull the front tires back over the channel. I was slow, and cautious, given the tricky incline and the slipperyness and in an instant I felt the driver's tire making its way into the channel. At the same time I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach, and the rest of me, as the Jeep slid another few inches into the channel and towards the edge. My heart beating some I hopped out of the Jeep and saw that the front tire had come off of the rock supports and was now down in the muck. The Jeep was very close to the edge now and very close to having a little tumble off the aforementioned edge.
This time we jammed a ton of more stuff into and around the tire. We put big logs beside the Jeep and wedged them in to hopefully give us a bit of support in case we slid any further. We put sticks under all of the tires, and some rough rocks under the driver's tire that was stuck in the channel. We took our time, we made it as safe as possible, and then I hopped back into the Jeep. Keith and Amanda still opted not to ride with me, though I could have certainly used the extra weight on the uphill side!
Anyways, carefully, and nervously, I backed the Jeep up, felt the driver's tire pop out of the channel, and then rolled backwards to the switchback.
Phew.
Jeep Unstuck
We were free, but we had missed the larches, but there was still time. We drove down the ATV trail and back onto the main road (which is really just a slightly wider ATV trail). We went up and up and up, passed a few sketchy obstacles, and made it up into the larches.
Unbelievable.
My photos cannot do it justice, but I hope you can get a taste of what it was like to be in that burning forest. We drove up as far as we could (on the road we were on) and then parked the Jeep. It was time for a walk. We were sitting in the clouds, and there was snow on the ground and up in the air. We could see the tip of a peak and we were only a few hundred metres away.
The Whatsit
Up we went. We crossed the snow, and rock, and the treeline, and were up up up. We were a bit delayed and I wanted to call home with an update but I had no cell phone reception on our side of the mountain. I reached the summit, could see over to Panorama, and suddenly had oodles of bars on my cell phone reception.
On the Climb
Down
Mist
Cling
Stoic
Fall
Invictus
O'er the Hills
Colour
Fire
Light
Larchwood
Treeline
The Last
Trying to get to the Top
Cairn
Cairn Closer
Patch
Ascent
Roads
The Summit
Panorama
Back
Me
Emergence
Descend
Tundra Fluff
The Ridge
Change
Beauty
Reunion
Cones
To Bella Vista
The Jeep
The Whatsit Again
End of the Line
Standing on the summit, enjoying the weather and the moment, I called to check in.
Driving Down
Another weekend, another adventure, and another success.
Until next time...
