The Grouse Grind: Climbing Mother Nature’s Stairmaster

Now that the sun has finally hit the West Coast of British Columbia I’ve been making more of an effort to do all the things I read about in the guidebooks. Swimming at Kitsilano Outdoor Pool, jogging round the seawall and drinks at Granville Island have all been great fun to tick off the list, however my latest adventure was a little less relaxing. The Grouse Grind is a 2.9 kilometre hike up the side of Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver, is open from May to November, and is the alternative to taking the four minute gondola ride up from the mountain base. ‘Up’ being the operative word. The trail consists solely of steps and rocks, and is a relentless climb with an elevation of 2,800 feet. Despite this, Grouse Mountain estimate that over 100,000 people a year complete the hike. The average time to get to the top is up to 90 minutes, though the current course record is 25:01. No pressure then.

Let's start at the very beginning. A very good place to start. Or not.

As well as being one of those things you just have to do whilst in Vancouver, the Grouse Grind is a fantastic workout. With over 2,830 steps, they don’t call it ‘Mother Nature’s Stairmaster’ for nothing. This is why I decided to tackle the Grind for the first time this week whilst on a visit to the mountain with my brother and his girlfriend. I set them up with their lift tickets, handed them my backpack with a change of clothes, pointed them in the direction of the gondola, and off I went to the entrance. I’d been building up to this day for a while and was surprisingly nervous. The fact that the Grind had been closed for some hours that morning due to a medical emergency didn’t help. I had that feeling in the pit of my stomach as if I was about to walk in front of a million people and make an important speech. In French. Naked. Nevertheless, I took a deep breath and set off.

The British in British Columbia: A Visit to Victoria

I haven’t written much about the places I’ve travelled to in the last six months, mainly due to time constraints and other more blog-worthy happenings, but I think my latest adventure deserves a post all to itself. Victoria is the capital of British Columbia after all, which is why my boyfriend and I hopped on the ferry for a spontaneous getaway last week.  I’d heard many great things about the city and the vast majority proved themselves to be true. It’s official – I heart Victoria.

Looking across the Inner Harbour towards The Empress Hotel

The journey from Vancouver to Victoria took approximately 4.5 hours, and included a bus to Downtown, a SkyTrain to Richmond, another bus to Tsawassen  Ferry Terminal, a ferry to Scwartz Bay and a final bus to downtown Victoria. We were all checked in to our hotel room on Quebec Street by 1pm, and by 1:03pm we were sampling the delights of Victoria’s beautiful Inner Harbour. We took in lunch at The Irish Times, the city’s most famous Irish Bar, and spent the afternoon wandering around the little town, stopping only to eat fudge, drink cocktails and take a free tour of the Legislative Buildings. Canada’s political system is based on that of the UK, so being a Brit I found the building and the information interesting and at times amusing, particularly the part with the portrait of the Queen and Prince Phillip.

The portrait of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in the Legislative Buildings