Tales from the Outdoors is an ongoing interview series featuring some of the most inspiring and motivational local athletes. Encompassing a multitude of outdoor pursuits across all skill levels, these are the stories of Vancouver’s finest adventurers. To see previous interviews in the series, click here.
Hiking the Continental Divide Trail
On April 25, 2014 two friends set off from their front doorstep in Jasper, Alberta, with the intention of skiing, snowshoeing, walking, hiking, climbing and crawling their way to Mexico via the Great Divide and Continental Divide Trails – a trip that would cover over 5,400 km of grueling terrain when all was said and done.
Liam Harrap and Jacob Alleyne planned meticulously for months ahead of the 8-month trek which lay ahead of them. Planning included scouring over countless maps as well as dropping four food caches which would support them through the initial traverse from Jasper to Banff. Liam and Jake set off on skis, with backpacks weighing about 100 pounds each, ready to embrace whatever came their way between Jasper and the Mexican border.
Fast-forward 8 months and 1 amazing adventure, and Liam and Jake would complete their trek on Dec 31, 2014 in Puerto Palomas, Mexico. Averaging about a half-marathon of distance per-day, it’s an impressive feat to say the least.
Liam and Jake were kind enough to answer some questions about their journey:
Liam and Jake Share their Story
Outdoor Vancouver: Tell us a bit about yourselves and also about your time spent in Vancouver, prior to the trip.
Liam: I was a member of the Varsity Outdoors Club (at UBC) and UBC Triathlon Club. I did lots of trail running on the North Shore – loved the area. Just running the seawall and by Spanish Banks is excellent! Lighthouse park was also a favorite for running. I love to ski by Garibaldi Lake (The Sphinx) and off the Duffy Lake Road. A favorite hut of mine is Snow spider, near Joffre – its a super cosy hut in a good snow area. I love hiking near Sky Pilot (near Squamish), super cool with lots of pointy peaks and lakes with awesome ocean views (being born in Vancouver, I’m fascinated with ocean and mountains mixing together). And hiking by Mount Harvey (North Shore) is also pretty awesome – beautiful flowers.
Jake: I was also a member of the Varsity Outdoors Club and UBC Triathlon Club. I love going for runs through the UBC endowment lands and along the seawall all year long. My favorite backcountry hut is Brian Waddington Hut, it has so much great ski terrain to offer. I love long day traverses along the North Shore, like the Spearhead and Neve traverses. I also loved the ski up Mount Garibaldi.
OV: Why did you decide to do this trek?
Liam: We wanted to do something “big” after graduating, before we had responsibilities (jobs, wives, children, etc). About three years ago, around Xmas time, Jake and I shook hands on hiking the Divide to Mexico while skiing at the ski hill in Jasper (Marmot). We wanted to do something “from our doorstep”. Earlier that year, I had gone to the Banff Mountain Film festival, where they showcase adventures relating to mountains. There were some awesome stories (like an Australian going by horse from Mongolia to Hungry)! However, they always involved people travelling somewhere else to start their adventure. We wanted to start ours once we left our door. Our destination was Mexico, but it wasn’t the “main part” of the trip. We were interested in the “in-between”.
Jake: I couldn’t have said it better myself…
OV: How was the route-finding? Did you have any previous experience navigating something like this?
Liam: We got lost. Lots. Like lots lots. When the darkness and snow came in the fall, it became a normal thing. We would be hiking 5 hours in the dark, and the trail would be covered with a couple feet of snow. It could be difficult to find the way. And there were the odd times we would mail ahead maps by accident…and so we would be map less, which didnt help… I have lots of navigating experience, from hiking and climbing around Jasper and Vancouver (Summer and Winter). However, they were always “week-end” trips or “week trips”. Not 8 months. In the end, who cares if you get lost? We had our house on our backs.
Jake: Snow and darkness is not a good combination when it comes to route-finding (or simply staying on a trail). There were a couple mornings when we would wake-up and realize we are not in the right area. We would have to look at our maps and decide the best way to get back to our route (with the least amount of backtracking).
OV: What was your fitness like throughout?
Liam: I think we got stronger [as we went further]. I probably felt the most tired during the ski portion. The backpack was the heaviest during this part. We were just getting “into” the trip. I never thought I wouldnt make it physically (Just keep walking…). We had lots of feet suffering (my feet went black in patches for a couple months) though. Doing 65 km in a day does some nasty damage to the toes…
Jake: As Liam said we only got stronger and gained endurance as time passed. I also agree that the hardest part, physically, was the ski portion, due to the heavy packs and skis on our feet. Once we started the longer days (>50km), my muscles would never really get too sore. It was mainly my feet that just ached badly almost all the time…I had an issue with my knee as we were going through Wyoming and I wasn’t sure if I would be able to continue if it got any worse, but it sorted itself out after a while.
OV: What was the highlight, or the biggest thing you’ll take away from this journey?
Liam: Simplicity. Everything is simple with walking. There is very little stress. Time means nothing. If you get into trouble, just keep walking. Eventually you’ll walk out of it. Even if you’re lost, just keep walking. Soon you’ll get “somewhere”. I also have a different concept of distance. The term “it’s within walking distance” means nothing, all that tells me is there isn’t an ocean between here and there.
Jake: My favourite day was probably skiing up (and down) Mount Clemenceau. It was a bluebird day and the skiing was great on the way down. There was also some very cool route-finding through crevasses we had to do. A couple time during the day a small red plane showed up below us, which was super neat and the last thing I expected to see. It was our first mountain of the trip, but by far my favourite. My concept of distance is also skewed. I would have never imagined hiking over 50km in a day, then wake up the next day and do it again, and again. Week long trips can now potentially be done it a couple days.
OV: What was the worst (or scariest moment) of the trip?
Liam: The ski portion was by far the hardest in terms of logistics and staying safe. We crossed lots of “sketchy” slopes that could avalanche. We dangled above crevasses that we could have easily slid into. We got stuck for 5 days in our tent due to winter storms on the Hooker Icefield and we started to run out of food. One more day and we would have had been in trouble. Luckily it stopped snowing and the sun came out.
Jake: I took a tumble down an icy moraine below the Columbia Bypass. Once I started falling I wasn’t sure what was below me, whether I would stop or not, which was pretty scary…I did stop though and there were only a few scrapes and bruises and a few things ripped off my pack, so it could have been worse.
OV: What has it been like knowing this journey is over – are there elements of the trek that you miss?
Liam: I miss the simplicity. Everything is complicated in the “real world”. Making a bus is terrifying (ie having to be somewhere at a certain time). We never had to make anything, we were in charge of ourselves. If we were late leaving in the morning, we just walked later. I also miss the adventure. Every day there was a story to tell. Everything was new.
Jake: I would have to say the simplicity too. You don’t realize how complicated life can be until you strip it down to the essentials: eat, sleep and walk. I miss simple joys, like the sun on your face on a cold morning, dry shoes or a bagel and cheese with a good view…
OV: What are you plans for the future?
Liam: Well we are working currently for a heli ski operation – Last Frontier Heliskiing in Northern BC (Radio Dispatch). I’m thinking of eventually going back to school. During the trip, we had lots of time to think (too much probably), and I’m thinking of going into a graduate journalism program (I’m not good at writing. My grammar and spelling suck, but I do enjoy it.) . In high school I wanted to become a journalist and when I graduated I went in another direction. Now seven years later, I’m coming back to it. I’ve done a circle. Weird.
Jake: As Liam mentioned we are working for Last Frontier Heli Skiing until April. I am currently applying for jobs related to my degree (Environmental Engineering) all over Canada and the States. As for future trips, Liam and I have a bit of food we had to leave on the Columbia Icefield (it might still be there…) that we would like to work into a peak bagging week sometime. We also think it would be cool to continue up the divide from Jasper to Alaska (just a thought at this point though).
OV: Thanks guys, and congrats on completing such an epic journey!
All the photos are courtesy Liam and Jake. You can see all their amazing photos and read more about the trip on their blog A Doorstep Adventure.
