Heading into the Unknown

I finally finished our video about Jenna, Tobi and my (Braeden) trip north of Powell River over the Canada Day long weekend! We are trying to do something new with the whole "Youtube" thing. If you're interested at all in what we're up to, please hit the like button, and subscribe to our channel!!!

Our trip started in our usual style; late. We were trying to leave in the evening before the weekend, but couldn't make the ferry in time. To make sure we got the most out of our 4 day weekend, we set our alarms for 3.30 AM. With about 2 hours of sleep, we made it on the 5.30 ferry, and rolled into Powell River around noon! 

From there we carried on with the goal of reaching a zone north of Powell River that I had found while looking for cool new areas in our BackRoad MapBook. After talking to some local friends, and researching as much as I could online about it, we still weren't entirely sure if it was actually possible to get a truck up there. 

According to my research, the area has active logging, but it is all barge access, with no roads in. I found some vague information about an ATV trail that accessed the area, and we decided to try and squeeze our truck in. 

We poked around Powell River and Lund a bit before getting into the woods. I wanted to try and make a video of the trip, so I ended up running the camera, while Jenna hopped into the drivers seat. She aced the trail, weaving between the tight forest, without any spotting or guidance at all. Super impressive! 

Getting through to the other side was a bit of a surprise. To be honest, I was expecting winching and lockers and all sorts of fun shenanigans. However, it proved to be a relatively easy drive, though very tight, with some muddy and flexy spots. Nothing the trusty Toyota Tacoma couldn't handle though! The road opened up after several deep cross ditches, and we hit prime, hardly used logging roads. 

We explored a few different roads on our way to our goal location on the shore of Powell Lake with a nice view of the mountains behind. Pulling up the the barge landing, we found a decent spot to pop the tent and spend the next couple of nights! 

The next day we went exploring the area. Our first stop was an old homestead. The house itself is long gone, but the foundations are still there, with lots of old homesteady type junk lying around. The forest in that area felt both spooky and enchanted, right near the river, it would have been an awesome spot to live. On the walk in though, we came across several fresh looking bear, cougar and deer tracks in the mud. Getting eerie vibes, we decided to head back to the truck. 

We ended up cruising around the mountains, checking out all the roads and finding some cool views. We found another lake with an old canoe tied up that we took for a paddle around, before cooking dinner on the shore. We went back to one of the higher elevation view points we had found, and watched the sun drop behind the mountains before heading back to our camp site. 

Waking up, we decided to leave relatively early so we could meet some friends in Powell River who were heading back from the island. We had a nice lunch with them, hung out on the beach, and then met a few other friends to camp with that night. We headed up TinHat Mountain. It's typically a hiking trail, but there is also a fun wheeling trail that takes you almost to the top. Of course we drove! The TinHat cabin is a really beautiful little cabin with an incredible view of the countless lakes and mountains surrounding Powell River. We camped that night with a nice mountain view, before heading back down the coast on our way home. 

Tired, but refreshed, we thoroughly enjoyed our solo adventure, new zones, seeing friends, wheeling and camping in beautiful weather. Can't wait to do it again! 

Braeden.