Ajax Inside Out

They say you have to learn to crawl before you can walk and walk before you can run. But if you are a baby with places to go and important things to do sometimes that progression is just too slow. Since Kate had already skied Ajax while inside her mommy’s tummy this last winter, she decided it was time she hiked it in the summer, this time strapped to the outside of her mommy. Never the one’s to disappoint our little princess; we grabbed Stella and the new baby carrier and headed up the Ute Trail towards the top of Ajax. Kate napped for the first part of the hike, but she woke up in time to take in the best views of the day. 

Looking back down towards town and the airport in the distance.

The Dumps from the trail up Gents Ridge.

The gondola and the top of Bell Mountain

Stella thought it was a bit hot and dry for her taste, but luckily there's a snow-making storage pond about 2/3rds of the way up that was a welcome sight for her tired paws. She got her second wind at this point and we had to keep reminding her to wait for us the rest of the way up.

"Daddy, I think I see a fish in here!"

We made it in just over 2 hours, which is slow for lots of people in this town but pretty good with a baby strapped to you.  We were a little nervous about how Stella would do on the gondola ride back down, but as tired as she was, she barely had the energy to freak out. Once she made it on, she collapsed on the cold metal floor for the ride back down. 

Highlands Bowl from the Sundeck.

"All in a day's work daddy."

Stella enjoying the view from a few stories up.

Saturday night I finally made it out onto the river for the first time since the runoff started here and promptly managed to snap the tip of my rod off while bushwhacking down to the river. Luckily it is under warranty, but it is still a 4-week wait for the repair, so I’ll be casting a spare rod for the next few weeks. Even after breaking it I still managed to roll cast my way into some hungry fish.  

Have a great weekend.