The Great Outdoors

September 16, 20161 Comment

This past weekend has probably been the best ever. So, so, so much fun. So much sunshine, so many outdoor activities, so many goals ticked off the list.

And the weather has been absolutely glorious! After the first two week of September washing us out and freezing us to the core, we were convinced we’d be in for a rough Autumn. Mother nature had other ideas though, and blessed us with non-stop sunshine and mid-twenty degree days.

This weekend we had planned for our mate Reuben to come up for a visit. He and Jill (this beautiful married couple) have been living in their van, travelling around BC, climbing rocks like crazy folk. Jill is down in Vancouver at the moment, learning how to become a yoga instructor, so Reuben thought he’d pop by to give mountain biking a red hot go.

One lap of Easy Does It (the basic green run on the mountain) and he was bored, which made Andrew and I SO HAPPY. Reubs rode bmx as a kid and picked up mountain biking so quickly. We managed to tick off a tonne of blue runs, snuck in a black and made it to the garbo zone for a full hour long run. Safe to say he was one happy chappy, and I ticked off so many personal goals that day too. It was by far the best day I’ve had on the bike and I have Andrew to thank for being the perfect balance between coach and riding buddy.

I’d also been out with a work mate a couple of days ago (who snapped the below picture you may have seen on my instagram), and the combination of those two days out means that I’ve now ridden every blue and green run on the mountain – happy days!

The next morning, my legs had seen better days but with a day off together we pushed ourselves to head back up the mountain – without a bike this time. Andrew and I hopped in the gondie as soon as it opened, rode it as far as it would take us and set out on an alpine hike.

We took the Harmony Meadows to High Note to Half Note Trail, which would have been around 10km and took us 2 hours, 40 minutes. We had to cut it short due to Andrew’s riding plans, but I was secretly ecstatic about that.

The hike was stunning, alpine hiking is insane and like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. The thinner air and constant uphills made it challenging, but we made it through and still smiled by the end!

We actually started in the opposite direction to what is recommended (the chairlift to take us to the the proper trail head didn’t run until 11am), so we begun in rough, open conditions, full of loose rocks and mediocre scenery.

I’m glad we got that out of the way though, because as we turned the corner an hour in, we were dumbfounded by the sights.

Photos absolutely do not do it justice, because the views of Cheakamus Lake and surrounding mountains were breathtaking.

A couple of tips for long hikes:

Clif bars are the greatest thing in the world
As is water
Don’t buy that last wine at the bar the night before
Wear sunscreen. FML
Have a good hiking buddy and make fun conversation about all the amazing adventures you’ve already been on
When you start climbing steep hills, stop that conversation immediately
Apologise to your knees for the downhill slopes
High-five at the end because you didn’t die!

With all the riding we’d been smashing out, I’d forgotten how great hikes can be. This weekend definitely showed me how incredible Whister is in the summer, and how many activities there are to fill your spare time.

We finished up the weekend with healthy nachos, plenty of guacamole and beginning season four of Scandal. It was grand!

Very tired, but super content.
Hanbel
x

I Choo Choo Choose You

June 20, 20161 Comment

Hellooooo friends and family! Still alive over here, kicking life goals and generally enjoying every moment. #sorrynotsorry

I’ve been working for a couple of weeks now, and absolutely loving it. There’s tonnes to learn and so many different processes that I’m not used to (not to mention that Whistler is still unfamiliar to me), but it feels so good to get the brain working again. It’s a great team to work with, our boss is one of the kindest and funniest people I’ve met and I’ve also had the pleasure of training with two other girls around my age.

On on of our days off, one of my co-worker gals, Crina, and I decided to make use of the beautiful weather and head off on a little hike.

We made our way down to Function Junction in search of the train wreck. Following the trails through intense greenery and beautiful trees, we found our way to the train line.

Where we played around, because why not?

Nailed it.

The trail was super easy, and only around 5km long – a nice introduction for us both.

Time for a little back story about the wreck… In 1956 a train came off it’s tracks trying to make up time and speeding along an area in repair. The nearby families and community decided to leave the boxcars there and subsequently set it up as an authorised graffiti zone.

Every boxcar is covered inside and out with artwork, with many incredible faces staring back at you.

You’re also in the middle of a forrest, clamouring over roots and around trees to take it all in. It was pretty spectacular and such a unique set up.

Forgoing the train tracks, we took the trail back to discover Cheakamus River and it’s gorgeous waterfall. Seriously, this place does not get any better!

This is life for me these days; working with some cool cats, finally making money instead of spending it all, and getting out biking or hiking in my spare time.

Andrew updates:
He has started coaching in the park, and can’t wipe the smile off his face. He has started to discover the fun side to tipping, and even got tipped in beer yesterday. I’m super proud of the effort he’s been putting in over the last couple of weeks.

Whistler is the kind of town that doesn’t open until 10am, doesn’t get going until the afternoon and parties late into the night. It’s also the kind of place where nothing happens unless you make it happen. Andrew has been down at the base of the mountain most mornings, organising lessons for other coaches, shadowing their classes and now getting his own gigs. He’s consistent and reliable and I think the senior staff are starting to notice and reward him for it.

Happy happy days over here! Much love,
Hanbel.
x

Hitting the Frog and Toad

May 25, 2015May 25, 20151 Comment

Distance travelled: Approx. 3150km
Towns Visited: Carnarvon, Exmouth, Coral Bay, Monkey Mia, KalbarriPassengers: Just us two. (Andrew and myself, for those playing along at home)
Reason for us driving So. Damn. Far: For Andrew to swim with whale sharks, which he absolutely loved! As soon as I grab his Go-Pro I’ll post some underwater snaps.

The Pinnacles

Car snack of choice: Honey flavoured NutriGrain. As addictive as crack. Or so I imagine.
Road Trip tunes: Various Triple J ‘Hottest 100’s from ’93 onwards.

Accommodation: 1 x overpriced motel, 5 nights camping, 2 nights hotel style
No. of car issues: 1 (the battery briefly carked it)

Best meal: Dipping Andrew’s chips into my Vietnamese Chicken Curry, Kalbarri
Best bakery: CORAL BAY. My goodness.

No. of breath-taking sunsets over the ocean: 2 (both in Coral Bay, go there right now!)

Hikes: 3, all incredible. The first one was through a Gorge in Cape Range National Park. The others were in Kalbarri National Park, as well a sneaky visit to Nature’s Window

Cape Range National Park

Kalbarri National Park

No. of ridiculously touristy activities: Just the one, surprisingly.
Monkey Mia: Some Dolphins, a lot of tourists. Not recommended at all.
Selfie sticks created: This gem:
No. of “Wolf Creek” towns passed through: 2. DO NOT GO TO THE FOLLOWING PLACES:
– Overlander
– Hamlin Bay
Unless you would like to get kidnapped/raped/murdered; then go right ahead! Send me a postcard.

Best Snorkeling: Turquoise Bay. One half is for “drifting”. So when you’re feeling incredibly lazy, just jump in the water and float while the scenery changes for you. Thank you strong currents!
Coral Bay was equally convenient. 50m from the Caravan Park is the Bay. Another 20m off the shore is all the snorkeling you need!

No. of Quiz Nights: 1 in Exmouth. Goddam I love Quiz Nights! Especially when you have no idea they’re on and you team up with 1 x German girl and 1 x Chilean guy.
We didn’t win, but we learnt a lot, and had a good laugh!

No. of Whale Shark selfies: Countless

Places to revisit: Coral Bay (if you haven’t already gathered how much I loved it there). It’s just a beautiful slice of heaven up there. Snorkeling at your doorstop, fantastic caravan parks, THE BAKERY, relaxed and friendly people. I’d go back in a heartbeat.
Kalbarri’s hiking was incredible though, we did went through gorges and one coastal walk, which didn’t even scratch the surface of what they have to offer. I’d love to return in warmer weather and check out their beaches and snorkeling too!

Kalbarri National Park – Coastal Walk

In conclusion; we loved the trip, but would definitely do things differently the next time we go. Having never seen Northern WA before we wanted to check it all out, but that meant we were on the move. A lot.
The constant driving and setting up of the tent took a toll on us at times.
I’d also research a lot more. This trip snuck up on us, and therefore, we decided just go drive and ‘wing it’. It worked sometimes, but we also had a lot of downtime which made us a bit fidgety (we’re not used to relaxing!) and I think we probably missed out on some awesome things to do.
It also pays to have a 4WD (Andrew has a 2×4, so we managed a lot but couldn’t drive onto certain beaches or a whole National Park in Shark Bay).

HOWEVER: Australia is seriously beautiful, and I’m so happy that we managed to see more of it.
Goddam, we are so lucky to call this breathtaking country home.

Hanbel.
x

The World of Hanbel

Working on Living that Dream

Tag: hiking

The Great Outdoors

I Choo Choo Choose You

Hitting the Frog and Toad