Saturday was our second day in Whistler and also our busiest day. We woke up earlier than usual in order to drive out to Joffre Lakes Provincial Park. We had run into a couple when we did the Peak 2 Peak Gondola trip that suggested we make the 40 minute drive out to the Joffres Lakes to go hiking. They also suggested that we get to the park before 9am because the small parking lot fills up crazy quickly with hikers and campers.
We got there a little after 9 and found parking easily. Joffre Lakes Provincial Park consists of three lakes: Lower Joffre Lake, Middle Joffre Lake, and Upper Joffre Lake. Each of the lakes are glacier fed and a beautiful turquoise color. The walk from the parking lot to Lower Joffre Lake only took about 5 minutes and was a very easy, mostly downhill, walk. There is a nice viewpoint on Lower Joffre Lake and you can see the lake and mountains in the distance.
My brother Tyler and I then continued on to make the long, uphill trek, to Middle Joffre Lake. The hike to Middle and Upper Joffre lakes is very difficult but well worth it, as you have a fantastic view of the mountains, icefields, and rushing streams that come from the Matier Glacier. From the parking lot to Middle Joffre Lake, it is a 5km, or 3 mile, rocky, steep route up the mountain. And man, was it a difficult hike. There were more than a few moments when I contemplated turning around and going back down the mountain but I stuck it out (with multiple breaks to catch my breath and drink some water) and made it up to Middle Joffre Lake.
Despite the difficult hike, I’m very happy that I continued to hike up the mountain because the view of Middle Joffre Lake was spectacular. Because the lake was created by a melting glacier, the lake water is a pristine turquoise color. It was like nothing I had ever seen before.
Because the water comes directly from a glacier and is up in a mountain you could say that the water is “pretty cold.” That didn’t stop my brother from doing a backflip or two off of a fallen log in the water. He came out of the water shivering but he drew a little crowd that was impressed with his backflip so it was totally worth it.
We hung out looking at the lake and taking photos for a bit and then decided to make our way down the mountain. It had taken us about an hour and 10 minutes to make it up the mountain, (supposedly it was supposed to take 3-3 and a half hours to make it up to Upper Lake?!) and it only took us about 35 minutes to make it down the mountain. On our way down, we passed hiker after hiker unlike our trip up where we only saw one other group going up the mountain.
After we got back to Whistler, we were scheduled to go ziplining. Our tour with Ziptrek Eco Tours began at 4:10. We had signed up to do the Eagle Tour, a tour designed for individuals who had previously ziplined (we have ziplined before in both Hawaii and Mexico) so this sounded like the perfect trip for us. The trip consisted of 5 lines, the first being the longest.
Our two guides were Sarah and Colton. Sarah was only 21 and originally from Australia. She had been in Whistler for about a year and a half working in the resort village. Colton was originally from Ontario. He had been working for Ziptrek for about three months and was planning on staying in Whistler during the winter so that he could try-out for the Paralympic Snowboarding Team. He had lost his leg from under the knee about 3 years ago in an accident. Both of our guides were super energetic and you could easily tell that they loved living in Whistler and working in the village.
I absolutely loved ziplining in Hawaii and Mexico, and therefore it was on my list of must-do’s on our vacation. While I don’t necessarily love heights, I don’t hate them, and I enjoy the rush that you get from ziplining. It is the closest feeling to really flying that I will probably ever get (besides flying in a plane) and it is such a fun experience once you get over the initial step off the platform and into the air. If you ever get the chance to go ziplining, I highly suggest you take it!
The next morning, we headed out to the train-wreck located in Function Junction. The story has it, that decades ago, a train derailed south of Whistler and seven train cars were left scattered about near the Cheakamus River. A new suspension bridge was recently finished in July to make it easier for tourists to make their way out to the abandoned cars. Previously, hikers had walked along the train tracks to get to the cars and that didn’t make the train drivers too happy so the bridge was put in. Over the years, the train cars have been transformed into works of art as they have been covered in graffiti. They have also been transformed into a bike park as there are wooden ramps built around the cars and on top of them. It’s kind of a crazy site.
You are able to climb in a few of the abandoned cars as well as climb on top of them. I did both. I was kind of nervous to climb on top of the car, but it was kind of cool to climb up the ladder and walk around on top of the car. Lots of little kids and adults alike had also climbed on top of the cars to explore.
After exploring the trainwreck, we left Whistler and made the 4 and a half hour car ride south back down to Seattle. We plan on going out to Mount Rainier tomorrow!
