New Years Eve Snowshoe

That's the lights of Vancouver below from Dog Mountain on Mt. Seymour. 

Neil and I spent 2.5 hours tonight snow shoeing on Mt. Seymour. The crowds had gone home and it was a wonderful moon lit trek to Dog Mountain. Once there we enjoyed a little mulled wine to warm the body. 

The snow was deep - really deep! Everything was flocked in snow. 

The snow shoe path was well carved out. Neil enjoyed trying to plow through the deep snow! Hope you had a peaceful holiday season and Happy New Year! 

Final Marcothon Day!

Here's Fergus for our final Marcothon run today. It was cold so we both bundled up. 

The mountains were looking good and very enticing! 

All done! Well that's the Marcithon for another year. Congrats to all who participated! 

Happy New Year! 

Snowy Mountains in Vancouver

It was a beautiful afternoon in Vancouver. The skies cleared and the snow that has been falling in the mountains was in clear view. Nice view of the Seymour Range. 

In this photo I captured the sea plane coming in for a landing. Nice view of the Grouse Range. 

My run today went from Coal Harbour over to English Bay. Many people out today enjoying the seawall and the parks. Spin classes resume tomorrow after being closed for the Christmas break. Yeah!! Spin and run...now that makes a good day! 

Christmas Vacation

Prior to Christmas we had a family dinner and an outing to the Van Dusen Gardens Christmas light show in Vancouver. It was really well done - recommend it! 

Christmas Day we had a run in the snow in Golden Ears Park. The snow is plentiful on the hills and mountains surrounding Vancouver this year. 

  Today we went snowshoeing at Manning Park which is just a couple of hours east. There was feet of snow to play in. We completed the snow show trail around Lightning Lakes which was about 2.5 hours. Fabulous undulating trail that was runnable! It was amazing - no one was there. We were the last car in the parking lot when we returned. 

Snow is predicted for tonight so we will seek another snow outing tomorrow. Hope your Marcothon is still going. Only a few days left...keep it going! 

Wet and Windy

This week in Vancouver has been wet and very windy for the Marcothon. So windy our barbecue was lifted and tossed into the garden. I have managed to do 25 minutes every day. Neil not so lucky! 

Here's my running partner...resting up! 

More wet and windy conditions forecast for the coming week. Busy days ahead this week with a few Christmas parties to attend...it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. 

Success for the First Day of the Marcothon.

Here's Fergus my running partner. It was windy, wet and cold for our first 2015 Marcothon run. 

This picture was taken from inside my car. Tempting to not get out and face the elements! Looks like it will be another wet, dark run tomorrow night. Managed a spin class too! Hope you had a good first day in the 2015 Marcothon. 

December - Snow Shoeing and the Marcothon Begins!

Saturday night Neil and I ventured to Grouse Mountain for some Snowshoeing. It was our first snow outing this winter. The mountain was full of winter activities. Santa and his Reindeer are in the wooden hut behind the skating rink. Good times! More snow for the mountains is predicted this week while we get showered with rain in the city. 

Grouse Mountain has added some very sparkly lights along the trails close to the chalet. Good photo opportunities. 

It was a very clear night that gave us great views of Vancouver below. 

Tomorrow (in 1 hour) is December 1st! Time for the Marcothon (Scottish Event) where you must run every day in December for a minimum of 25 minutes. Sounds easy enough...but my experience at being successful reminds me it takes good planning. It can be a real challenge mid week with the dark evenings and the seasonal parties. It's just what we all need - I become very thankful for our long driveway and property some evenings!  Other activities (Spinning, TRX, Yoga) don't count but do please keep them up! Happy Marcothon...Santa Shuffle next weekend! 

Fall Travels

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This fall we travelled to the United Kingdom where we spent time in London and Scotland. 

We always enjoy our time in London. 

This trip we attended a World Cup Rugby Game at the Olympic Stadium. Wow what a fantastic stadium. We saw New Zealand vs Namibia. Great night out! 

We always enjoy the sights of London. Especially Westminster Abbey where there is a statue of a relative on my side of the family recognized. He is also honored by the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain and Eros. Lord Shaftesbury was a famous Victorian politician and philanthropist.

It was a wet day in London when we visited the memorial and Eros. 

Once in Scotland, Neil and Graeme ran an ultra marathon together. Marathon de 

Ben Nevis, 64km's, a No Fuss Event. Here's Neil and Graeme early on. 

A picture of Graeme along the route. Nice Scottish scenery. 

Here's John Kynaston finishing - well done John! 

Here's Donald finishing. Love his tartan shorts! 

Here's Neil and Graeme finishing! Well done The Ambrose's - 8hrs, 11 mins. 

We also did a family hike up Stac Pollaidh. 

We enioyed the Loch Ness area and dinner at the Dores Inn - the local pub. Always nice! 

Once home we were off again to Banff in the Canadian Rockies. 

Fergus came with us and we all enjoyed the hiking in the Banff area. This photo was taken at the top of Sulphur Mountain, 8,041 feet. We hiked up - most take the Gondola. 

The temperature was cool but fresh! 

The mountains and skies were spectacular! 

Fergus and I kept up the hikes while Neil attended the conference. 

Home now - this photo was taken from Mt. Seymour with Kendall and Chris on Saturday. 

Buddies! Kendall and Fergus.

Happy Halloween! 

Back in Action

I've been a bit out of action with the effects of a virus that not only attacks you when you are young but re-visits you in adult life. There is now a vaccine to prevent it in adults, I would highly recommend it! 

Saturday Neil, Dave and I went back to our local favourite climb up Mt. Seymour. I let the guys go ahead as I really didn't know how I would fair up in the heat. I haven't done any climbing in three weeks. Although I am proud that I managed to walk a minimum of 10,000 steps every day. I really like my new FitBit to measure my daily activity. It gave me something else to focus on these past few weeks. 

Here's me in my new bug jacket - a gift from Dave and Helen. It's a good one that even has a zipper on the hood so you can open it to eat and drink. Something that will come in very handy on our local mountains in the summer months. Although, this year with the hot dry summer there is no moisture therefore minimal bugs! 

Neil and I enjoyed a bike ride on the seawall after our climb up Mt. Seymour. There are clouds of smoke behind us. The winds are blowing the smoke from the serious forest fires in Washington State. There was an air quality advisory warning for the Fraser Valley. 

Here's Neil, Dave and I on the journey up Mt. Seymour. 20,000 plus steps yesterday - nice! 

BC Day Long Weekend - Evans Peak

What a great outing to do on the BC Day long weekend. It doesn't get any more of a "Coastal BC hike" than this one!  "Very Difficult" the sign says on the route to Evans Peak in Golden Ears Park. I have lived in the area most of my life but have never been up this challenging route in the majestic Golden Ears area. So glad Chad and Marla invited us to join them on this local gem of a hike. We started at the West Canyon Parking lot and followed the signs. The trail was very well marked and well maintained. However, it did provide a very steep work out which took us 2.5 hours straight up to the top. 

   Here's Chad - leading the way with a steady pace. 

  Marla and I both took a pole and I was glad I did. It really helped coming back down the steep slope. 

   Once up top of Evans Peak the views were spectacular. This photo is looking down to Alouette Lake. That's North Beach below which was full of people enjoying the hot weather. 

   Here we are at the top. I must remember to take my buff off for photos! I needed the buff to capture      the sweat going up. It was 33 degrees C! 

   We enjoyed lunch at the top and tried to identify all the peaks surrounding us with 360 degree views. We did good - local knowledge! 

  There were a couple of sections with rope closer to the top which always add to the fun factor.    Here's Marla and I on the way down. 

 Height: 3,714 feet. (1,132 meters)

 Elevation Gain: 3,117 feet (950 meters) 

 Time: 4.75 hours (including all stops) 

 Round trip: 12.1 Km's 

This hike starts out very tame and as you climb higher it really kicks up in all aspects. It is never too dodgy though and is a well marked trail the entire way. This was my first day using my new "Fit Bit". I did aprox 23,000 steps. Near the top on a steep section my heart rate was 150. (I was walking!) Thanks Chad and Marla for a great day out on the trails! 

Today I did 18,000 steps with a 1 hour run, 40 minute bike ride, and other household chores. My goal is at least 10,000 steps every day which is the daily recommendation. I can exceed that on non work days but will need to be creative to get my steps in on work days. I think I am going to like my new little purple wrist band that gives me the time, number of steps, heart rate, calories burned, Km's, and number of flights of stairs. I'm not much of a gadget person but this seems to be just what I need for those working days. Happy Stepping!