Explore BC: The Minnekhada Wild

Over the past week, spring in Vancouver has made its presence known with the usual sporadic bouts of rain and sunshine. I find that the weather has such a powerful influence over my mood and that I'm always immediately heartened by the smallest ray of sunshine peeking through the grey rain clouds. Luckily, I shall be done with my very last semester of school in a couple of short weeks and will soon be able to enjoy the lengthening days without any academic cares. Until then, I shall sustain myself by looking back at these lovely hiking pictures from a few weeks ago (when the sun was shining and it felt more like spring than it does now).

Minnekhada Regional Park had been on my hiking list since we started making hiking plans during the later months of autumn. However, due to plans falling through or bad weather, my friends and I were never able to make the short journey to the area. Luckily, I was able to wrangle the fiancé into joining me one fine weekend and these pictures were the happy result. 

The view from the high knoll.

If you are searching for an easy hike, this trail comes highly recommended for hiking newbies. We found that this park provided a lovely view with minimal physical exertion; something that my significant other, who isn't as enthusiastic about difficult hikes as I am, greatly appreciated. Also, be prepared to share the trail with young families and other couples-- we often encountered intrepid young'uns meandering their way through the trail with their parents not far behind.




The gorgeous walk through the marshland.





I honestly cannot wait to do more hikes in the near future; every time I look through my photo albums, I'm overwhelmed by the urge to drop everything and go explore some new trail. Sadly, I must heed reality-- that is, work, school. and my health. Since before hiking the Black Tusk, my knee has been giving me some problems whenever I have tried to run as my usual pace (and, as someone who has run for over 10 years, I am used to running at quite a pace). As a result, I must sadly rest until I can face an entire day of hardcore hiking without injury. Until then, I'm happy to say that I've been keeping up with my goal of working out regularly at the gym (5-6 times a week). Quick update: I'm currently squatting 125 lbs. and deadlifting 155 lbs. (#gainz). You might be able to tell that I'm pretty happy with my progress!

Speaking of goals, how have you been keeping up with yours?