Training Log Archive: revy

Day two of our SUP surfing course in Tofino with Norm Hann. Day one was mainly classroom discussion as the weather was not conducive to being on the water. Way too windy... today was much nicer though a little drizzly. Spent the day at Chesterman's. First session was mainly flatwater skills on the south side with a short surfing session on the north side. Was surprised at how punched I was after catching a couple waves. Legs were like jello - I think it was a bit of adrenalin and poor pacing as never felt quite the same for the remainder of the sessions. I had a pretty big board so catching waves wasn't too challenging. Mostly waist high waves with occasional shoulder high. Afternoon session was quite positive as well.

Last day in the Cowichan Valley and debated Maple Mtn vs Mt Z. Decided on the slightly shorter ride to Maple. Looped Tony's Arbutus and Phloem. The former was an old school trail with some nice views and interesting rocky sections. Managed to ride the proper TF ride this time (there are way more trails on the ground than on TF). The latter trail is a maching built flow trail which I thought was well done. DIdn't have to ride the brakes much which ranks highly in my books.

Maple Mountain with Russ and Vikki. Fairly warm and muggy today. Lots of trail debris from the storm but mostly small branches. We went up the climbing trail and then down Maple Syrup. Quite an enjoyable ride - some of the rock slabs were a little slick but that added to the fun. Now that I know what to expect on this trail I enjoy it way more - the multiple punchy climbs on the descent are no longer a surprise.

Left Victoria today and met Russ/Vikki in Duncan for a few days of riding. The weather today was very "active" and I wasn't sure a ride would happen. It was rather windy when we started but much more sheltered in the trails as most of them were on the lee side of the mountain. Despite the lee aspect we still witnessed one tree fall down while riding. We luckily avoided the rain and trails weren't excessively muddy. I pulled up a suggested loop from TF that worked pretty well. Most of the lower trails are actually quite rideable in an uphill direction. We made it to the summit for the views... down trails were fun and we didn't even hit the best known trail (Double D). Really enjoyed the ride as some of the smoother local trails.

Hartland with Courtney. After the heavy rain yesterday I was curious to see how the trails would drain. Found them to be slick in spots and of course some puddles but overall acceptable riding. Rode some of the tried and true options (Crazy Train/Trillium) and also ventured on some of the lower trails. Due to the dump expansion the trails along the fenceline will be decomissioned. Might be the last time we are able to ride them which is too bad. The new trail below Trillium is a nice addition though perhaps more as a climbing trail coming back from the north end of the park. Lower trails are always annoying because there are so many junctions and trail variations that it is hard to maintain flow if you don't know where you are going. Since our last visit here the parking lot size has been doubled and today both lots were full. I guess VIctoria isn't immune to the recent explosion in mountain bikers.

Easy hike up Bear Hill with Courtney, my sister and my mom. Nice little walk and not too far from their house. The west trail is the most used one for future reference.

Elk Lake loop with my dad. Wind picked up for 15 minutes as the sunset but otherwise nice conditions.

Forecast called for a rainy day but the worst of the weather was supposed to arrive after lunchtime so risked heading out for a paddle this morning. The tidal app I downloaded claimed that slack tide would be around 11am. Given that we were paddling through the narrows in the Gorge tidal current was quite relevant... I was a bit suspicious that the app wasn't correct when we passed through the narrows on the paddle out and the current was moving much faster than I expected. No problem to paddle the rapids standing up in this direction. We paddled all the way into Portage Inlet with a nice tidal assist - it took about 45 minutes. Once we turned around it was quite obvious that we still had a flooding tide to deal with so a little slower heading back. A building headwind didn't help..

The tidal rapid was still flowing the same speed. I gave it a go using theback eddy but I was pretty much only able to hold my ground. Decided to clamber along the shore under the bridge which wasn't too bad with the SUPs. Would be much harder with a kayak.

Rain started about an hour before we finished. Ended up more adventurous than planned but still a fun paddle. The app seemed to have the correct time for high tide but incorrect current. Not sure why and if I can trust it...