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  Outing #3 - Ammonite Falls / Benson Creek Falls Hike November 1, 2022 Nanaimo, BC 5.40 km /  194 m elevation gain / 1 hour, 10 minutes Sunny day - approx 6 degrees After a 30 minute drive to the parking lot on Creekside Road, the trailhead back up the hill you just came down and around the corner.  The trail takes you, initially, along a forestry road that goes through the VIU Wood Lot before diving down onto a wide trail heading towards Benson Creek / Ammonite Falls. The trail to the falls, from the parking lot is around 5.25km, with approx 750m on the forestry road and the rest on the wide trail.  The trail takes you through the managed wood lot, with active forestry practices on either side.  As a result you don’t get that feeling of being in a deep forest as sunlight pokes it way through from the sides throughout.   That said, the trail is moderate at most, there are a couple of longer climbs, but nothing substantial and you have a primarily clear tr...
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  Outing #2 - A little blue, a little yellow and a little route finding between the two… October 31, 2022 Crofton, BC 7.79 km / 397 m elevation gain / 2 hours, 23 minutes Sunny day - approx 10 degrees Starting from the end of Chilco Road in Crofton, you follow a forestry road into the woods of Maple Mountain, on its eastern side.  The wide road eventually leads you to a sign post that directs you to the start of the Blue Trail and its sister, the Yellow Trail. Both of these trails were created through a works grant for forestry staff when the industry was in troubled times in the 90’s.  They have stood the test of time, and offer a great trail connectivity from Crofton to Maple Bay, offering views that aren’t duplicated elsewhere. The Blue Trail, takes you up the slow, and gives you “peaks” of the coastline below it.  The Yellow Trail, dives down to the coast and gives you undulating views of the ocean, Crofton, Saltspring Island and Maple Bay as it winds along. Both...
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  Outing #1 - Heart Lake Trail October 30, 2022 Ladysmith, BC 8.58 km / 400 m elevation gain / 1 hour, 58 minutes Cloudy day - approx 12 degrees. Starting from near the Frank Jameson Community Centre, this trail takes you along city streets, onto the Holland Creek Trail, before veering onto the Heart Lake Trail.  The trail offers two viewpoints, 3/4 of the way to the top, you have an exposed rock Viewpoint Looking East slope that presents view of Ladysmith, the Harbour and looking out towards Thetis Island.  The second viewpoint is on a low cliff looking over Heart Lake. There are two steep sections to this trail overall.  First (approx 20 metre elevation gain) is after crossing the bridge over Holland Creek, to get up to the forest service road.  Second (approx. 250 metre elevation gain over) is coming off of the forest service road and ascending to Heart Lake.   Heart Lake The first 1/2 of the trail (community centre to turn off onto Heart Lake ...
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