Bushwhacking in Bella Coola, BC
Jeremy has been meaning to go hiking (but more like bushwhacking) up this mountain in Bella Coola, BC. So one morning we decided to go.
It was supposed to rain in the afternoon so we met up at 8am, packed some sandwiches, had some coffee, then drove to the other side of the mountain where Jeremy had planned to start the trek. The route was up along the valley between the two peaks, with about a 2km vertical climb to the first plateau. It seemed very doable, despite the fact, I was grossly underdressed for such outdoor activity -cheap maroon Zara pants, a sweater I received as a gift from Kazakhstan (holla at cha boi, baurym Beisekeyev), a Hershel fanny I specifically bought for a Halloween rave, and a hoody from the car company Jeep. I also brought a large garbage bag in case it started to rain, while Jeremy and his wife were kind of enough to lend me one of their snow shoe entrapment thing along with a ski pole.
The hike was already pretty steep to begin with, but rock and tree debris along the way combined with the winter weather made things even more challenging. There were certain hops between slippery spots that may have ended in a fall with a broken bone or two. Nonetheless, we remained determined to climb on, but at about 700m vertical height, it started to drizzle. As we started to go down the mountain, the rain had stopped but when we got back to the lodge it began to really rain. It was a good call to leave.
All in all, it was a satisfying trek with a mix of hiking, bushwhacking and mild rock climbing. I haven’t gone bushwhacking since I was in high school, and haven’t felt my life endangered since the street markets of Dakar, Senegal. So it was one of the better days hiking in Bella Coola.









