Corky Lake Snowshoe

There was an even bigger group on today's snowshoe trip to Corky Lake.  25 people showed up for the trip! I am amazed at the interest in snowshoeing.  But it's hard not to see why it's gaining popularity.  Once you invest in a pair of good snowshoes, it's a cheap fun activity that costs hardly anything.  There are many places that you can snowshoe for free.

Rob and my crazy friend, Gail

Here is the trip report done up by my friend Tim Gardner who helped on the trip.

Bjorn Norheim and Tim Gardner got the Caledonia Ramblers off on the right foot for 2013 by leading 24 other Ramblers and guests on a snowshoe hike to Corky Lake and back Jan. 6.

Unlike other recent Rambler trips to the lake, Bjorn chose to take the snowshoers on a slightly different route, starting at the south end of Willmann Road and then heading southwest to the Greenway Trail. The snowshoers then headed north on the Greenway Trail for a relatively short distance before heading northwest on another marked trail towards Corky Lake.

Has the Mayan Apocalypse actually happened?

The initial trail into the Greenway Trail was well packed, as was the Greenway Trail itself. However the trail into Corky Lake had not recently been used and leaders had to break trail through about 1 1/2 feet of snow at times. Fortunately, the system Bjorn and Tim used to communicate with each other proved extremely effective.

Tim led the more eager Ramblers at the front, while Bjorn stayed in the middle of the pack to provide sober second thought. On occasion, Bjorn did supply Tim with some very instructive (and colourful) advice that allowed Tim to limit his number of off-trail 'adventures' to about half a dozen.

Tim flags our route

After Tim Flags a tree, we continue onwards

After overcoming a couple of Corky Lake impostors (mirages), the Ramblers finally landed at the shores of the elusive lake and had lunch. The route the snowshoers took back is one many Ramblers have traditionally used to access the lake - east to the Greenway Trail, north on that trail to the unplowed Westcrest Drive, then east on Westcrest Drive back to Willmann Road. Snowshoers then just had to head south to their vehicles.

Lunch break at Corky Lake

The day turned out to be a great day for snowshoeing as forecasted snow failed to materialize and the temperature hovered around zero degrees Celsius. The sun even came out at the end. The total trip took about 3 1/2 to four hours.

(Corky Lake is named after a dog Bjorn used to have that nearly drowned in the lake.)