Other things to do in the Mountains that aren't tiring: Operation Lamb Roast

Its true, The Rockies are flipping amazing, they're huge, they're rugged and they have more adventure within them than I even know how to begin explaining,

HOWEVER, there are things you can do out there which don't tire you out,

Dans friends' Dad in law has a cabin out near Rafter 6 Ranch which is a respectable 45 mins drive from Downtown Calgary. Its nestled in the foothills with some shockingly gorgeous views along the valley into the Rockies proper.

Every Easter, these guys have a hog roast, using a lamb, so we'll call it a Lamb (Hog) Roast.

After the preparations are made: Lamb (Hog) attached to a roasting device

and plenty of salty water doused on said meat, there is time to drink and enjoy

the company and the sights and some daring souls go for a horse ride.

Below is an image of Me, Andrea (AKA Baby) and Dan on our horses.

I forgot what Baby's horse was called, but Dan and Me were riding brothers

Dans' horse was called Braveheart, and was in the movie and had climbed the Calgary Tower,

mine, his older brother was called Cruise, had done nothing and wanted to eat anything green that we walked past

[i think the girls choosing the horses had more of an insight

into real life than I had first imagined]

On our return the Lamb (Hog) was looking a great deal better

(didn't I say Dan was getting good with his camera)

this was a pot luck weekend (over here thats when everyone brings a dish or two)

And here is the finished article, regarde:

After the meal it was onto party time, and to top it all off

some superb guy broke out the Guitar. Seriously this guy knew every

song we asked for, even though I sang the first line a good 2 mins before it was needed....

Continue to:

Be Excellent to each other!

Other things to do in Calgary away from the Mountains

There are other things to do in Calgary apart from Mountains and Campings

Dan and Simone have a really great Yard which has become the perfect spot

for evenings by the fire where we were introduced to such delights as "Smores"

which is when you melt a marshmallow and some chocolate on a stick or fork

then stick the gooey loveliness between 2 crackers. These are especially

good with a fine Brandy or Whiskey

to help beat back the cold.

(image supplied by the emerging genius Dan Gun,

coming soon to a National Geographic near you!)

Then there is Curling, which needs no explanation apart from its a great

deal harder to do than you think...

Then of course Michelle invited us to some kind of Dub Nightclubs'

Birthday Part at Broken City Nightclub, where there was a nice bit of cake,

and what might possibly be the best bit of rapping I've ever witnessed when

Michelle's friend Ouda rhymed

"RAw, rAW, I like it rAW!

women-use-my-vegatables,

to make,

ma coleslaw!"

And lest we forget "the main event", which was the one and only Gift of Gab!

From Blackalicious and yes he did do Alphabet Aerobics!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvPnM2Q1nwU&feature=related

(a must watch, he starts each verse with the next letter)

Cant you tell?

Lovely..more soon dudes,

Be Excellent to each other!

Ribbon Falls

So so so, another weekend, another Hike!

This time we are heading to Ribbon Falls, the crew had 2 new additions, lovely Monica Aguss and my new room mate Chelsey Ann McPhederan. We also had Phoenix the poodle on board.

The Ribbon Falls 5

This hike was truly beautiful, with some serious eye Trifle, some of the peaks up there stagger belief.

We set off in high spirits, the sun was out and there were quite a few people on the trail. the trail follows the river up hill and very once in a while mother nature decides to give you a glimpse of what an amazing country this is. The river carves out the most amazing pools and water falls. Dan and I were so excited that we had to stop and 'woop' at every single one (much to the chagrin of the girls)

Every Pool looked very 'swimmable' though it was still very cold water up there

Me and Phoenix by the falls

We got to the top and its glorious, the views from the falls up to the peaks on either side is just awesome. We had brought a packed lunch, and you can sit in the mist from the falls and get nice and chilly after the hot walk up there.

Phoenix loved it since the presence of people meant food on the ground which meant Gophers were all over the place. She got particularly interested in one under the rock we were using as a seat, so Dan thought he'd give her a hand.

Like the Greek god atlas he grasped the seat boulder with both hands and shifted his weight....

Have you ever had those moments when the world just seems to slow down?, well in the moments that Dan was trying to shift the 1/2 ton boulder I saw Phoenix clawing underneath and was thinking "this isnt going to end well', I was pretty certain the poor dog was going to get trapped. The rock shifted and soon gravity was showing Dan the way so he had to let go of the boulder, which crashed over (I'm pretty sure the Gopher was quite alarmed) and sent some picnic over. The only real casualty was one of my apples ended up in the River! (So much for leave no trace!)

After a quick lunch it was back down the hill for Car Park Yoga then back to Calgary...

More coming soon Guys

Into the Mountains: Part 2 a. Nihahi Ridge

It was a sunday, Dan and I had imbibed the night before so with thick heads and poor planning we headed out in the car to Kannnannnnaassssskkkkkiiiiisssss country again.

We picked a route up Nihahi Ridge, by the time we got to the car park, it was snowing, did that phase us? It did not! So with trail map in hand 1 bottle of Powerade and big smiles we began our

ascent.

Halfway up we were already doubting the grand idea of hiking in the conditions, but Dan and I have a slight competitive handicap so neither of us were going to admit it. The powder was 2 ft deep and it was almost blizzard conditions!

I should remind you that we had neglected to tell anyone where we were going. "School boy error"

But it was an adventure none the less and as the hike plateaued out before the final push to the ridge we were really nervous about avalanches, not falling onto us, but sliding away from underneath us, the top had no cover and the was little vegetation, so yes, we were bricking it.

To lift the mood Dan prayed to Allah, Buddha and Jesus asking for a snowboard and some kit because the Powder was lovely, and this was in June people! We waited a few moments and when nothing came we pushed on up the steep stuff...

We got to the ridge, this thing runs for a good few kilometers, but the ice and snow stopped us from getting over the hump, so we elected to peek over the top and giggle at how scary it all was.

Hiking up is all well and good, but down in that slippery stuff was a real challenge, but we got down, finished our Subways and headed for home! We were still in 2 pieces!

Heres what it looks like on a good day:

http://www.braggcreek.ca/kananaskis/trails/nihahi.htm

Stay tuned