Western Canada

Ok, hiking in western Canada is my favorite so far! Oh the mountains, nothing beats them. And the people, so friendly, even the kids say hi and talk to me. It is not just a nod hi, but a big hi and a little bit of chit chat. I much prefer hiking in the Rockies though. I like the jaggedness, I like the beauty, and the degree of difficulty. Another area I like is the Valhallas in the Kootenays, it also has itsa jaggedness and beauty. The fall colours may not be as colourfull as Ontario but what it lacks in colour, it makes up in splendor and majestry. Maybe a little bit of heaven? There is nothing like climbing up a big mountain, to look back and to think we are just a speck in comparison, but oh are we so much bigger in God's eyes! To think He created these mountains, so huge and vast!


Hiking out here I have seen many bears, moose, elk, chipmunks, birds, deer, marrmots, gophers, and so on and so on. It is so much better then seeing these animals in the zoo. I have yet to see a grizzly bear while hiking though. I have only seen 2 in my life time and that was when I was in my car driving.


Most hikes I have been on around here, esp the harder ones that go up a mountains are switch-backed where necessary. I think I have only been on 1 hike where there were any steps made and it was more of a touristy hike made so anybody can do the hike. But it wasn't straight up stairs, it was to around a cliff which made it accessible for people who don't normally hike to see the features of this trail. The trails that were all stairs in Korea were just that stairs. Maybe to them it was more of a workout and thus better health, I dunno? Or maybe it was to protect the environment due to the large amount of foot traffic they get? Dunno but to me, stairs are definately a harder workout and more difficult than hiking on a flat path that is switchbacked.


The last thing I really enjoy about hiking in the mountains in Western Canada is the view when you get to the top! Sometimes you are above the cloud layers and that is beautiful in and of itself. But to see over thew tops of mountains as far as the eye could see, wow! And to look back down where you just hiked up, what a feeling of accomplishment! But the lack of outhouses and restaraunts on the mountain tops here make it much more nature-esk. When I go hiking, I prefer to see only nature and to listen to nature sounds, not highways, nor music, nor the convienience of having a store to buy things from. I prefer the vastness of God's creation in all its slendour and majesty. And to think what the new earth will be like in the future after God makes His new heaven and earth.

Unwelcome comments

Sorry friends but due to some advertizing comments, I have turned on the word verification element to the comment section. I know it is a hassle but it is better than getting spammed on the blogs.

South Korea

Ok, now to hiking in South Korea. One of the things I liked in SOuth Korea were the abundance of speed bumps, what they call mountains. Ok, they are much bigger than the speed bumps in Ontario. I think most of the hikes I went on in Korea were designed many years ago before people thought about the term 'switchbacks'. Straight up and several were all 'stairs'. What I mean by that is that, for example, a hike I did in Jirisan National Park was just that, straight up and all stairs made by big rocks. It was def man made and it wasn't all even like wooden stairs in your house. So that made for a tiring and gruling hike. But it was great to build up that heart muscle. Another hike I did in Gwangju was mostly stairs but this time, wooden stairs. I think I prefer good old paths.

The Koreans are a very nature loving people in general. I wasn't on a hike where there weren't many Koreans hiking. Some were running, some were hiking downhill backwards (took me a little while to figure out why), many were using the 'monkey bars' they had along the paths. Yes, hiking is a definate way of keeping in shape. The have sit-up stations, chin-up bars, and basically any contraption to aid in physical fitness. They do love to keep their bodies noce and fit. Here I am, wearing my hiking boots, backpack filled with many liquids and clothing prepared for any weather, and the Koreans go breezing by in walking shoes and nothing on their back, except the odd walkman equipped with speakers. SO, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, so now I carry alot less stuff. But I still need my liquid.

The one thing that I found interesting was some fo the hikes that had music piped all the way up. And small restaurants and stores at the top of the mountain. Man, if I knew they had all this stuff, I wouldn't have worried about bringing any food with me.


The people were very friendly and many wanted to try out their English with me, which usually just was a hi, how are you. But I met many other Koreans who tried to show me the way (which was basically follow the pathy I was already on). One hike I did was a beautiful hike., I stayed up and watched the sun set and on the way down, a Korean slowed down and told me that I should go on the shorter path, the one that was all in the dark. I wanted to take the longer one, the one with lights so I can see where I was walking. But no, he insisted I follow him down the darker path, cause it was safer. Who was I to argue? I followed him and don't think I have ever hiked a path that I couldn't see where my feet were going. It was very rocky and I didn't have any depth perception in that dark of night. But we made it safe and sound and alot slower than I am used to, but I think the lack of light might have something to do with that.


So what is the difference between hiking in Korea and my hike in the Algonquin during Thanksgiving long weekend a couple of years ago? Nothing really except the country I was in. The majority of the people in the Algonqui were Asian. Nothing wrong with that though, since Asians are nature loving people. They are friendly and courteous at times.


The hikes I did near where I lived and taught were great and I did them often. I hiked Mt Hallasan which is South Korea's largest mountain located on Jeju Island. Unfortunatly, the crater was closed when I was there so we just hung out at the store/restaurant near the top. Oh well, I had fun.

Ontario

I love Ontario for its beautiful colouring in the fall. I enjoyed my hiking in the northern areas of Ontario (well from Toronto's perspective). I really enjoyed my hikes in Algonquin Nat'l Park. I went on a Thanksgiving lang weekend which might have been a mistake from a certain perspective. The weekend was a beautiful weekend! It was sunny, all the trees were out in its fall colours! What I like about Ontario is the variety of colours of leaves on the trees. From the colours we get out here in BC - the yellows and browns - plus the reds and shades thereof. It was beautiful! I arrive there on Friday night, get my hotel room and then early the next morning woke up, had the usual McDonalds Pancakes and Sausage breakfast, and set out into the park. It was a great day for a hike or two or three. The fog was lifting out of the lakes and hovering just over the trees. I arrive at my hike - a posted 6 hour hike and I was only the second car in the parking lot. That was great as I didn't want to be hiking in a large line-up of people.

I hiked this hike and the scenery was great! I saw some otters, many birds, and other similar animals. On this hike, I met several people and had great conversations. But on the whole, most people just nodded their head hi, or a quick smile. When I got back to the parking lot 3.5 hours later (on a 6 hour posted hike), wow! All the cars, it was packed full with cars and it was all lined up the road. I drove away and got out onto the highway to a zoo of cars, busses, people, everyone was out here it seemed! All hike’ parking lots were jammed pack with people and there were many accidents. So the rest of the hiking was amongst rush hour foot traffic. Guess that was what I got for going up on the last long weekend of the season. So I did three hikes that day. Sunday I went to church and then out again in the afternoon to do some more hiking. But with all the people, I sat on a beach, read and then did a couple of smaller hikes. Monday I drove home and that ended a wonderful weekend in the Algonquin.

Now, hiking for me in the other areas a little closer to Toronto was not as scenic. It was great getting out but the people there were more to themselves and weren’t as friendly. The trails were more like old railbeds or roads and in my way of thinking were more for bikers and ATV-ers and in the winter months, snowmobilers. But that is just one persons opinion.

The one thing I missed from my hikes in Ontario were the mountains, but I guess with the mountains, one loses the reds in the trees. Never hiked in Quebec though, so I am not sure of what its like there. So that is my experiences of hiking in Ontario! The colours in Ontario in the fall time is quite 'heavenly'..:)

An attempt

I am going to write more stuff in this blog sometimes. I could change my other one but I will keep that one as a humourous blog (depending of course on your sense of humour).

In my next few posts, I am going to compare hiking in western Canada, specifically around where I live and maybe around Banff, South Korea, and Ontario including the Algonquin Park and around the general Toronto area. So keep checking in and make comments if you like.:)