Mount Gardner
Mount Gardner is the tallest mountain on Bowen Island,
a 20 minute trip from Horseshoe Bay. We arrived in time for the
9:30 sailing (see the current schedule at
BC Ferries),
and walked on. About 15 minutes into the trip the ferry stopped
to let a sailboat race go past.
We
arrived at Killarney Lake around 11 am and then started hiking up the
mountain. The lake is a park with trails around it an picnic
tables on one end. We walked up the road next to the lake and then
started up the mountain.
At
1 in the afternoon we happened across a snake sunning itself on the
rocks in the tail.
You could see
the snake breathing (its little sides expanding and contracting at a
human-like rate) while Chris Lemay and I circled firing off pics.
Both these shots were done with my 24-70 IX lens (70 and 38mm
respectivly) but I wish I had my 105mm. (Of course my pants would
be covered in mud if I did have it.) Once the snake did wake up
it scurried into a tree root system.
On the trip up we passed though rain forest, pine
forest, and then some alpine. The mountain isn't high enough to
have true meadows so the only true vistas are when you get to the top
where BC Hydro has cut down the trees.
Along
the way we did get to glimpse the city (through a lot of haze).
It's always funny to see the city you started in and know you have to
walk all the way home (or at least to the terminal.)
This is the view from Gibsons to Squamish to Vancouver. There
are two helipads, and a whole heck of a lot of antennas, generators and
repeaters all surrounded by several layers of fences and barbed
wire. We arrived at 3:50ish so we didn't have much time before we
had to head down.
Tags: hiking(4), Do Not Tag(2), summit(2), vista(2), BC fauna(2), lake(1)
People: David(1), Karen(1)
From: John Harvey Photo > John Harvey Photo - Hiking > Mount Gardner on Bowen Island
Last Modified Saturday, January 21st, 2023 at 23:41:09 Edit
Copyright and Contact Information.
