The Wedge and Good Water Rim trail

November 12, 2023 by Catherine Forest in Canyons, Camping spots, Utah, Mountain biking

The Wedge, also called The Little Grand Canyon, is located in Eastern Utah and despite its amazing beauty is relatively unknown. It is on BLM land, 20 miles east of Castle Dale and about three hours from Salt Lake City.

It’s so special to camp (for free!) right on the rim of this spectacular canyon. We were afraid it was going to be crowded but there was almost no one there. The area is so large that we could not see any other campers from our spot.

The Good Water Rim bike trail starts and ends here.
It’s a 21,5 mile loop.

This unique trail is a singletrack that parallels the contours of ‘The Wedge’ in the San Rafael Swell. If you do only choose to do a portion of the Good Water Rim Trail, I recommend to ride the west side where the views are more impressive.

The trail hugs the rim most of the way. The views are simply incredible.

Note that the wedge campgrounds are divided into two separate areas. Sites 1-7 fork left as you drive in (we picked site 7B which was huge). These sites generally do not have access to the stunning rim views that most people are after.
Even though you are not really on the "Little Grand Canyon", Site 1 is gorgeous and remote. It's at the end of the road and has a nice view since it is "perched" on a little outcropping.

View from the East trailhead Overlook. We were completely alone for miles.

I’m sure it gets busier during the shoulder season when the weather is perfect, but I wouldn’t want to be here in the summer as there is no shade. It was pretty cold at night in November, but the days were perfect (for us northerners, at least) to hike and bike. Hey, there’s a reason it’s called the off-season and we had the place to ourselves!

Little Grand Canyon Overlook with the San Rafael River a the bottom.

What we discovered is that the most amazing sites right on the rim are directly AFTER site 9. These are not official BLM spots, but as long as you stay in the boundaries and camp on a designated site that has a fire ring, it is OK.

People with small children or pets might not want to camp on the ledge as there is obviously no fencing whatsoever.

One of the many amazing campsites along the canyon. If you sleepwalk, don’t camp here!

Many spots have been closed off and there is lots of cryptobiotic soil, so stay off and watch your step.

There is no water and no garbage cans, but there are very clean pit toilets at the trailheads and overlooks.

The dirt road is well graded all the way to the campsites. You won’t need a high clearance vehicle to get to them.

It’s pretty high (6,200 feet), so the nights are cold.

Mount Baker Wilderness, Washington

September 04, 2023 by Catherine Forest in Hiking, Washington

For years, we’ve looked at Mount Baker’s peak from Vancouver and thought: one day, we’ll make it there. I’m not sure why it took us so long since it’s not even an hour and a half from the border, but we sure are glad we finally did!

We had no idea that Mt. Baker is an active glacier covered volcano (with thirteen glaciers!). In 1975, steam emissions and fumarolic activity reminded the locals that this beautiful mountain could change their lives forever.

Picture Lake at sunrise with Mount Shuksan

There is no camping near the trailheads and signal is spotty at best (download the maps of the trails you are planning to hike - there are many side trails everywhere). There is some boondocking on Forest Service roads or camping at Silver Fir (no signal and popular - reserve ahead). Douglas Fir Campground is a bit far but is a beautiful spot worth checking (no signal and popular as well - reserve ahead).

We found a great boondocking spots on a Forest Service road nearby.

Another great boondocking spot up a rocky road

Getting an early start is key to beat the weekend crowd.

If you’re planning to go on the weekend, make sure to get to the trailhead early (like 8 am early). Buy the Northwest Forest pass online and print it at home (must be printed within 2 days of purchase - you can buy it at the Visitor Center in Glacier but that’s 40 min away) and on the premises if and when the Visitor Center is open (but it sounds unreliable).

Beautiful Mount Baker from Chain Lakes Trail

Instead of doing the whole Chain Lakes Loop, we took Chain Lakes Trail all the way to Hayes Lake and back to Artist Ridge and we checked out Ptarmigan Ridge for about 500 meters until it starts going down. It is one of the most rewarding hikes near Vancouver in terms of view vs effort.

Earlier in the season, the trail is full of wildflowers. At this time of year, you get blueberries and huckleberries. In a month, you will likely get snow.

Some people do Chain Lakes Loop as a day hike and some spend the night at Mazama Lake or Hayes Lake (camping near Iceberg Lake is not permitted). These two backcountry campgrounds are First Come First Serve, so getting an early start is advisable. It can get pretty crowded on the weekend (no platforms). You don’t need an extra permit (just the same Northwest Pass to park your vehicle at the trailhead).

Hikes worth checking:
-Chain Lakes Loop
-Lake Ann
-Ptarmigan Ridge Trail
-Yellow Aster Butte
-Table Mountain

The total cost for this awesome weekend (other than the gas to get there): $5 (that’s the price of the Northwest Forest pass for a day - $30 for a year).
That’s a steal!

Ontario

July 24, 2019 by Catherine Forest in Ontario, Camping spots, Mountain biking

Cooking dinner in a rest stop is a great way to save money on campings on long drives. We stop in a (free) beautiful spot to stretch our legs and cook dinner and keep driving. After that, it doesn’t matter much where we spend the night.

Exploring a beautiful free campsite just outside of Lake Superior Provincial Park

The start of the Cadet expert girls at Horseshoe. Mara got stuck at the very back…

So, how do we deal with the heat when relying mostly on solar? Even with 750 Watts of panels, we can’t run the AC in the bus. We could pay for a 55$+ campsite, but we try to find public beaches where we can spend the day and sleep in free spots. We haven’t paid for a campsite since we left the Yukon. Actually, we very rarely pay for campsites anymore since it is so easy to find free camping spots, and since at this time of year you need to make reservations in advance to have a good campsite (and in our book, if you pay for a campsite, it better be a good one).

When we cover a lot of ground like we are doing this summer, our go-to strategy is to stop during the day (and often for dinner) at beautiful spots along the way, stretch our legs, bike, swim, and keep driving afterwards. By then, it’s dark and it doesn’t matter much where we spend the night as long as it’s not too noisy. It allows us to save money (since we are spending a lot on gas during this time) and not worry about making reservations in advance.

In Canada, iOverlander is the best app to use to find free camping spots. Be aware that most users are in vans or 4 x 4 vehicles, so scout out the recommended spots in advance if there is no information about vehicle length in the comments to avoid bad surprises.

The XCO Mountain Biking National Championship was a bit of a bust. Aïsha crashed during her first preride and got a concussion, so there was no racing for her. She is still healing and focusing on the Western Summer Canada Games at the beginning of August. Mara felt strong and ready, but the crazy hot weather at 42 C with humidex was really rough for a Yukon kid. She battled hard, but crashed near the finish and lost 3 positions, finishing 14th over 21 strong girls. It was not the results she was hoping for and she was quite disappointed.

Mathilde is still too young to compete at National level, but took part in the Ontario Cup the next day. The weather was a bit cooler, but there was A LOT of traffic on the course. She’s still quite happy with her race.

The girls are now on Instagram and they will share their own race reviews (and lots more) there. Give them a follow if you want:
@aisha.roldan
@mathilde.roldan
@mara.roldan.mtb