Epic adventure here in BC Canada

Can't wait to be in the bush tomorrow

 

Agreed!

gearing up for the creek crossing (Sunday's Adventure to Camp Defiance - Bill Robinsons old cabins on the historic Dewdney Trail)

Massive deep thickets of brush on the opposite side to snag the TR GEAR MIL GRABBER Grappling hook. Once snagged the other end of the BattleCord will be secured with a tensionless hitch around a big tree at the insertion point side of the creek. We will wade across supported by the rope


Stored in a MagPul DAKA take out pouch




MRE

loads of S'mores hot chocolate mix, couple high energy/calorie Eat More bars, HEREFORD CORNED BEEF, spice mix. Going to add a couple of homemade cheese sandwiches too. Got electrolyte powder mix and instant coffee in the pouch holding my SAS MKettle Ghillie Kettle as well. Bananas and apples for the drive up. Might make some hardtack tonight to go with the corned beef. Sht On A Shingle

 

Loaded like a Surrey caravan

 

Only local folks here will get it

 

Camp defiance 2022, off the historic old dewdney trail that was once a trading route and wagon path long before the highway 3.

 

Epic Adventure today!

Trip report / Photos editing/loading. Going to take a few days, I got over 250 photos to wade thru (literally - wade thru, just like the creeks today)

 

Teaser Pics

 

TRIP REPORT!

Woke up at 0530 hours, slammed an espresso coffee, drank a liter of water, inhaled a handful of multivitamins, toast , and fed the House Panthers.

Tossed my webbing rig in the truck and picked up @Twoody88 . We were rolling on the highway in minutes on a beautiful sunny day. Rolled east down Hwy 1 towards Hope BC and Hwy 3 to Manning Park



Entered the canyon and drove thru to our destination - Camp Defiance - Bill Robinsons old cabins from the early 1940's.

It's hard to describe how massive and rugged these mountains are. Pictures will never show the true scale of the extremely rugged wilderness here. You need to experience it in person

 

Parked the truck , got ready for the crossing of the Sumallo River. Although it's a small river, the water is glacial cold, fast current and deep. We lucked out and found a shallow spot to cross. No need for the grappling hook/rope today , although I still brought it along.

@Twoody88 stripped down to swim shorts and boat shoes, putting his clothes in a husky bag for the crossing. I elected to just get wet and cross in my Danner boots, cargo pants and webbing rig. Water was knee deep "most" of the crossing....

we could have crossed on a fallen tree further upstream, but it was slick with moss and twelve feet above the river.

we crossed the first channel, then into deeper water up to our waists near a massive logjam. Dangerous as hell, but that logjam was also a bridge out of the water into the forest. Took us about 45 minutes to cross both river channels, and make it across the deadfall / logjam and into the forest.

 

Was it ever cold !! It's older, pretty sure dating back to shortly after/arround WW1

 

We scrambled, fell, climbed, cursed, and finally made our way thru the rugged, dense, brutal terrain in the forest. Got onto the old Dewdney Trail wagon road, now overgrown in many spots. There was cougar & bear scratch trees EVERYWHERE, about every 5th cedar had deep claw marks / scratches on them, some going 100' up the trees where the animals climbed. Many stumps were torn apart by bears looking for grubs. Bear scat the size of dinner plates, cougar scat not much smaller and full of fur

After 30 minutes of bushwhacking / woods wandering, we reached Bills old cabin. It was an epic moment for both of us.

 

Been passing by these cabins since I was a kid in the 1970's. There use to be three cabins on a clearing, very visible from Highway 3. Never stopped over the years due to the deep river crossing. Over the years snow and encroaching forest slowly consumed the cabins, until a big debris torrent flow from the steep mountain above took out of the cabins. Overgrowth rapidly concealed the third cabin (Bill's main cabin with the giant stone fireplace & chimney).

it was pretty cool today to finally get to see the cabin.

 

I thought Bill Robinson (long deceased) would appreciate seeing smoke coming from his hand built fireplace / chimney, so I lit a few waxed wood shred firestarters and put dry moss on them.

 

We explored every inch of the cabin, fireplace, chimney, and around the main cabin, including the two other cabins destroyed by the landslide/debris torrent.

took a break to boil water for hot chocolate in my SAS MKettle , @Twoody88 has one on order for his new webbing rig, in the meantime he practiced lighting a fire in mine, using my new @Sam Wilson / GEAR CONVOY ferro rod!


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