We start the journey at Panorama ridge which is a fairly well known location in BC for its astounding beauty.
For context, here is an image from a summer trek at 02:00 to catch sunrise on the ridge.
After this successful sunrise mission in summer, my partner and I had our eyes on the winter.
Winter images are my favourite, and thought this landscape would look spectacular with some sprinkles of snow.
Unfortunately our only free time to get this in was later in the winter season. Even with all the data it was hard to ascertain the amount of snow on the trail so we still decided to give it a try. We drove a few hours, slept in our vehicle, and attempted the summit at 02:00 again.
It was a much different scene. With only the long route open, we started our ascent in the dark. Not too long after starting - the snow became more apparent. As we gained elevation, we found ourselves sinking frequently.
With my years of experience outdoors, I knew it wasn’t looking good. We were barely moving on the GPS map. Not only the potential to miss sunrise, but with the conditions our day could be now looking like double. While I appreciate my partners undeniable optimism - I had to be the bad guy at around 05:00.
“We aren’t making it” I simply said.
After some back and forth, he could tell I was being serious. Winter is a completely different ball game, and I did not want us to be out there all day and night. The trail was already disappearing, and everything was getting harder and less safe.
I felt a sense of guilt as we turned around.
We got back to our Xterra and took a nap. My hips were incredibly sore from the post-holing, and was feeling rather defeated. Learning when to call quits on a route is a skill in of itself, even if it is not a fun one. Being outside is not always glamorous, and for me it's important to highlight that.
A few hours passed and we were greeted by the sun. Because there was a smaller trail subalpine we decided to walk around to still make the most of our day.
Still slightly defeated and a little disappointed we ended up being treated to a sunset (which is not the most common occurrence here). Reflecting on this trip it made me realize there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Not every summit attempt is successful- and that is okay. There is still beauty and fun to be had.
I titled this image “Remaining Light” and is currently available for collection on the Blockchain.
Cheers,
Sara
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