On Sunday, October 8 Doug Rebagliati led a hike across the Darcy Mountain plateau. The foggy morning did not look very promising but by 10 o’clock we were hiking in glorious sunshine. We began the day by parking my van in the pasture off Willis Road. The upshot of this was that by the time we got back to the van at the end of the hike the windshield and windows were covered with muddy smears left by curious horses or cattle. We then drove to Pat Parsons’ homestead where we parked the other vehicle.
We began our hike by walking to Izzits Lake, which was glassy smooth, creating a perfect mirror for the yellow trees and rocky hillsides that surrounded it. We then began a sweaty hike up onto the plateau. The landscape up there is a beautiful mixture of forest and meadows interspersed with ponds. We came across several old homesteads whose inhabitants must have struggled to survive up there. Doug figured that they were eastern European peasants to whom the idea of owning land was paramount. All the good land having been taken, they were reduced to high-elevation, marginal land. The area was likely called Savage City because the inhabitants were foreign and they lived in the wilderness.
After walking for about three and a half hours we could see Iron Mountain and Baldy to the north and began our descent to the van. The clear air and sunlight gave us a beautiful view of the whole valley.
Our next field trip will be Oct. 19, when John Henry will lead us on a geological, educational walk along the ridge at China Ridge. This will be an easy, two to three hour trek. Meet at Billy’s at 10 a.m., with lunch, water and camera. Phone John at 250-295-7154 to confirm. Our next meeting will feature a talk on the Copper Mountain mining operation by one of the mine’s engineers. Please join us on Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. at Riverside Centre for this event.