A letter from the Cascades
Dear friend,
I did my first backpacking trip back in July. I wanted to show you the most picturesque mountain meadows I’ve seen in British Columbia and tell you about my itinerary.
I went on this adventure with V., we started our ascent on a hot afternoon of July. The plan was to hike up 15 km, set up a camp and come down the next day. We wanted to avoid the ultimate mid day heat and 13 km felt manageable, so 2 pm was when we started our adventure.
It was one of these rare hikes when you are rewarded from the very first kilometer. There was no long climb to “earn” the view: the full panoramic view on mountains unveil before you with all its vibrancy and carpets of blooming wildflowers.
Although throughout the hike there was some ascend, I didn’t feel exhausted. Perhaps, I was feeling “high” on an adventure and didn’t feel the weight of the backpack.
Nonetheless, we stopped frequently, not only to catch our breath but to absorb the landscapes that surrounded us.
We knelt to take a close look at the stones and wildflowers – all with various shapes, forms, tints, and colors. Scarlet paintbrushes and fluffy pasqueflowers, like sparse stars in the sky, which names I don’t know. I wish I could describe each one of them to you.
The air felt amazing too – fresh and grassy, it was such a precious gift to be on this trail before the wildfires season began.
We met very few people coming our way, which made the whole hike feel like the mountains belonged just to our little group.
When V. and I finally arrived to the campsite, it was very quite and almost empty, hidden away from the main trail behind the trees. The light was fading fast, and by the time we set up the camp it was twilight. We had little time left to cook our dehydrated dinners. V. had a some sort of dehydrated meat with rice, which he reported tasted decent. Mine – a surprisingly bland curry. Still, it was a very enjoyable dinner, and it felt very rewarding.
The next morning, we woke up late and took our time. Slowly, we made breakfast (dehydrated eggs) and coffee, enjoying our time in the forested shade. Not rushing and staying behind after other hikers were long gone, we packed our gear, and by 11 am we too were on our way down. The path we took was the same, but it felt somehow different: maybe it was the lighting, maybe it was just me.
Also, it was Saturday, which meant the trail didn’t belong to our little group exclusively anymore. First, we saw a trail runner. Then another one, and three more, and five more. I was amazed how early these people might’ve started their ascent if they hit almost end of the trail by 11 am. Then we saw a sole hiker, looking for a First Brother Peak while his friends had already hiked it up and had left him behind.
Still, it was an equally peaceful descent, as the rest of the trail. Yes, if I could describe this hike in a few words, I would say ‘peaceful’ and ‘blooming’.
It was a beautiful experience, worthy of every minute.
I hope we can do one soon again,
Until then,
Diana
