Some of my friends and I decided (after much e-mail) to take a weekend up at Strathcona Park on Vancouver Island. This little pic is our camp site. It rained when we arrived, and a little off and on while we were there, but overall, it was beautiful.

Of course, as soon as we got there we reverted to our natural states. I being an engineer (or just plain man) decided it was time to pursue the stupid - dam a river. Over the course of the weekend we made many additions to our dam. Of course we like to believe what we do affects things (like the salmon migration) but the lake that this river feeds into is dead. (It's artificial. Mike's feet had more life in them.)

The lake that makes this valley so beautiful was created by BC Hydro in the 50s. I think it provides power, but I don't know. There are still stumps in the lake from when the basin was filled.

Saturday, our first real day there, we went on a hike up Ralph River. The river has cut a canyon in the rock, so there are many rapids and waterfalls. The water (as far as we could tell) is from rain and a glacier.

Sunday was a larger hike. What you can't see in this picture is the sign that says "CAUTION Bears in area" and the fact that we have only 2 liters of water between all of us. (Mark was clever enough to bring a canteen, but it's getting warm in the car.) The hike was again beautiful. We started in near rain forest (very springy path) and climbed into alpine.

The hike up was long, and some of the members of our group had a bit of a problem with the ascent. (They should get off their comp sci butts!)

When we reached the top, we were treated to an amazing vista. Some of our party wanted to hike to the glacier (ME!), but we would not have made it with everyone. (Water was a problem.) After a blissful lunch we meandered off the mountain, and wished for a 7-Eleven.