I've ridden the trails up around Blackjack Ridge a few times now. The views up there are amazing and it's always worth heading that way if I just have the time for a local ride. But, every time I head up I stop at the same steep rocky section that heads over the top, leading eventually to the trails near Lucid Lake and the lower road that runs the SW side of Mount Benson. I decided this time around to come at it from the Lucid Lake side, with a plan to turn back if the rocky, steep section looked too nasty from the top end.
Here's the route:
1. Entered at Doumont
2. Left towards Boomerang
3. Left again
4. Pass Boomerang and keep left
5. Continued along length of Mt. Benson and turned up road that leads to Lucid Lake
6. Followed creek bed leading up Blackjack Ridge.
7. Through new gate. (Logging roads look very new up here)
8. Best view on Blackjack Ridge, overlooking Nanaimo Lakes
9. Another nice spur road with an outstanding view
10. The steep rocky section... heading down this time
11. Descent towards Boomerang Lake
12. Out
The uphill creek bed at #5
The creek bed continues like this for about a kilometer
New logging gate at #7. A few newer logging roads connect up here.
180° Panoramic view looking SW from the best view location on the ridge (#8).
Nice section of spur trail (#9).
A shot along the power lines at #9
Just past this location the road begins a steep descent towards the spot where I decided against continuing on previous rides (#10). It's a great deal easier going down, although there are a few spots where I slowed to a miserable crawl. No pic unfortunately... It's funny how the thought of photos disappears when your watching your front tire so carefully. :)
First and Second Lake from location #8
Great ride. I want to return to look at the lake just 0.7 km east of location #8. Google Earth shows an unnamed, frozen-over lake about half the size of Round Lake. Next time!
I took a short ride to find the old Beban Coal Mine today. I entered at Doumont Trail, rode Blackjack Ridge's lower valley to Nanaimo River Road and made my way on blacktop up to South Forks and Nanaimo Lakes Road to find the entry gate shown at the top of the light blue line.
Dark blue - Logging Road that Runs the length of Mt Benson (SE, rear
side). Light Blue - Intended route entering from Nanaimo Lakes Road.
Pink - My GPS track
The gate was very well blocked with large rocks and so I made my way
SE, looking for a way in. I eventually found a narrow gap between two
rocks at 49.107337° -123.998888° and continued south to the mine site.
My entry point into the trails
The mine site - letters correspond to the photos below:
a. I'm not sure what this is, although it looks like nothing more that a shelving unit, (feet on left side). It's in very good condition and looks to
be a little too new to be a mine site artifact, although there is little other reason for it to be there. Probably Beban's personal Scotch whisky stash. None left! :(
b. Threaded rods protruding from a building foundation
c. Difficult to see here with the thick undergrowth all around. This is a deep vertical shaft. It's marked off with a scrawny bit of lumberman's tape
d. Deep Shaft
e. Same deep shaft. Very loose ground and a very deep hole, so this is the best I can do I'm afraid. :)
f. This is the same shaft, but I backed up to see the marking tapes.
g. Chunk o' anthracite coal. Lots of this stuff kicking around
h. Remnants of some old piece of equipment
i. The obligatory junked car photo.
j. Tailings pile
k. (no photo) Another shaft... filled.
It struck me after I had left the site that the original "Beban Mine" waypoint that I lifted from Wikipedia, (seen on the photo with all those yellow letters above), is likely the location of another shaft. The Beban Mine was in the news during the sixties when a boy had ventured into the mine and was unable to get out. He died in the mine. This mine, as I understand it, went in off a slope, and I'm guessing that had I searched this Wikipedia waypoint I would have found that shaft. GOOD... I have a reason to return on another ride!
**BE WARNED: If you head into this area, keep your eyes fixed on the ground. There are numerous vertical shafts and all are covered with thick undergrowth during the spring and summer. It looks like logging crews have marked trees for cutting or leaving, but aside from their tape, little has been done to call attention to the shafts. In addition, the ground is loose and crumbly near shaft edges. Be careful! ;)
FINALLY, we did it! We managed to punch through to Moriarty Lake and Nanaimo River Road from the north. We tried this a few weeks ago when there was still snow up in the nose bleed region, (1015m). This time, the ridge we were climbing to the east of Mount Moriarty was clear all the way, (sweltering hot actually), and we were able to ride right over the top at 1090m (3576ft).
Here's the route in brief:
1. Started at Doumont Rd. entrance to logging roads
2. Turned right at the intersection NW of Boomerang Lk. onto Branch 142
3. Left onto 155 main
4. Turned left off of 155 towards mountain ridge NE of Moriarty Mountain onto 155N
5. Passed "snow" waypoint
6. Turned right onto key trail linking the northern logging roads to the southern roads (thanks Google E). There's a nasty downhill section full of young alders shortly after this location.
7. Right turn to Moriarty Lake
8. Lunch at the lake shore
9. Descent towards Nanaimo River Rd. on Branch G
10. Nearly went to 4th Lake... oops. (I've been staring at this route for too long).
11. NO GUARD at the gate on Nanaimo River Rd. Their schedule is extremely odd!
12. Turned left to follow the lower Blackjack Ridge route back to Doumont
13. Doumont Rd.
Plenty of dust out there today. The logging trucks were working and we had a few of them blast past us doing 9 869 862 km/h, leaving us confused and dazed in a cloud of thick dust. The bikes were kicking up plenty too, measurable by the layers of dirt up my sinuses.
The ride up the ridge, (a left off of 155 Main), was noticeably different from the last time we came this way: The dryer weather and some wear from quads and bikes have loosened dirt and rocks making the road surface quite a bit looser than we both remembered it. It was pretty easy going, only the wheel had a tendency to spin out more times than last. It's a great climb up there... I love how Moriarty Mountain opens up on your right as you get higher. The weather was so good today; it would have been a good day to bring my decent camera. Hindsight is 20/20... I was stuck with only my GPS pics again.
We reached the end of the road as planned and explored the "brownish key trail" we have both been spying on Google Earth, (item 6 above). Part of me thought this was going to be a complete waste of time and I thought we were in for a line of dead branches and stumps that only appeared to be a trail from satellite. I was delightfully surprised!
A big log marks the entrance on the right, which starts about 120 yds
before the end of the road. This short joiner trail is about 100 yds
long.
It was a good quad/bike trail and had obviously been carved into place by riders who were doing exactly what we were doing; looking for a route to the lakes and Nanaimo River Road. i.e. Getting access to the Nanaimo Lakes area even when the logging gates are closed. (Of course, this is completely legitimate, otherwise there would be signs posted to prevent it).
We made it through with little trouble. Occasional ditches have been strategically placed to make access more difficult than a straight trail, but these ditches are more of a mild nuisance than a trail stopper. We continued downward through a series of these ditches, perhaps four or five.
After descending a fair way we reached a "T." From here you can turn right to Moriarty or left to Nanaimo River Road and Fourth Lake. Time was an issue today and we decided on saving the " check Fourth Lake gate" ride for another time. (Note, Aug 31/12: We've discovered there is no gate. Hahaha). We began to climb once more and than started to descend towards Moriarty Lake. There are terrific views of Moriarty Lake and a couple of other no-name lakes as you crest the round road leading to the lake. We stopped at a large "tank trap" at the end of the road and decided to walk the remaining 170yd four iron shot to the lake. Ahhhh, lunchtime at the lake.
Moriarty's Lake Shore
We rode the circle road once again and arrived back at the "T" intersection. Continuing straight we rode a steady and quite lengthy descent down to Nanaimo River Road. From here we continued along the less-than-exciting N. R. Rd. back towards more familiar logging roads and zipped straight through the unguarded open gate. This annoys me! They stopped us a week ago when we attempted to ride through here and turned us back with fully loaded bikes, forcing us to ride the #1 highway down to Cowichan Lake. Today, they decide that it's okay to leave the open gate unattended. Who's writing their rule book?
A quick left turn took us back onto more familiar roads. We rode the lower Blackjack Ridge road back past Boomerang Lake and followed the tank traps back to Doumont.
What an outstanding ride today! Finally, we conquered Moriarty Lake and we found a way through to Nanaimo River Road and beyond. :) It might be a bit of a struggle going the other way, although it looks quite do-able. We'll see.
Quad riders: We need you guys to ride between location 6 and 7 to help stop those alders coming through the road! :)
Just a short local ride today. I left the house with the intention of fishing at a local no-name lake about 1km NE of Round Lake, (dubbed Dragonfly Lake by some of the more "flowery" local residents).
There were elk standing on opposite sides of the lake today. They called each other across the lake for the whole time I was there... excellent entertainment, and much better than the fishing as it happens! I bait fished there for about an hour, and after twiddling my thumbs and seeing no rising fish, I took off with a better plan in mind.
I thought it might be interesting to find the NE shore of Lucid Lake. Paul and I had watched a fisherman on the NE side of the lake when we visited the lake for the first time last year. Coming from Doumont Trail, continue past Boomerang Lake, keep left and follow the logging road that runs along the lower SW side of Mount Benson. Almost 10km past the lake turn right and keep right at the next Y. The trail opens up at the end to a large turn-around area with a fire pit at its centre. This is the best place to park and begin a short hike to the right to get to the lake shore. The trail does continue through a series of "tank trap" obstacles, but the trail eventually ends at a logged-out clearing some distance from the lake.
There must be a group of regular campers at this location: A small lean-to, fire pit and a tall frame designed for some special purpose are located a few metres from the lake shore. A small fishing peninsula has been built, or at least added to, to get a line further out into the lake. The lake's silty bottom looks relatively snag free except for the occasional weed here and there. There were fish rising here! Not many, but one alone was a 100% improvement on Dragonfly Lake.
It was late and there was no time to fish today, but this spot will make a good alternative for one of our local fishing spots.
We just returned from a three day tour of local logging roads in the Cowichan Lake Valley, Nitinat Region and Alberni-Clayoquot region. Fantastic trip!
Brief Summary:
1. Entered at Doumont Rd
2. Followed Blackjack Ridge
3. Turned away at First Lake Gate
4. Took alternate (boring) highway route to enter logging roads at Youbou
5. Right turn towards Cowichan Lake
6. Gassed up in Youbou
7. Turn for Marcus Lake
8. Explored Spur and enjoyed watching Paul extract a week old, rotten banana from his pack
9. Camp (Marcus)
10. Day 2: Hike up to find B24 Liberator wreckage
11. Camp (Flora Lake)
12. Franklin Camp (Leveled Town)
13. Major Logging Road into Port Alberni
14. Civilized lunch!
15. Explored roads looking for a route through to Lk Arrowsmith
16. Qualicum Beach
17. Entered trails at Sundew Gate
18. End at Doumont
We planned to enter at Doumont and make our way past Fourth Lake, following a common route to Cowichan Lake. It didn't go as planned: We got as far as the Second Lake gate where the usual gate controller stopped us. Camping at the nearby lake site was open, (for $20), but access to the logging roads beyond the lakes was not. Apparently there is no access during working days, although access to the area beyond the lakes was to be available tomorrow, (Saturday), for all weekend traffic. This was a huge disappointment for us, because our only alternative was to take the highway south to Cowichan Lake and enter the same logging road network via Youbou. This is what we did.
We gassed up in Youbou and continued on our way to our first major destination, Marcus Lake, with a plan to set up camp and do some trout fishing. We were both impressed with the condition of logging roads throughout this region. The main busier gravel roads are dusty and potholed, but they're in good enough shape to make some pretty rapid headway. It was a Friday, and working logging trucks were using the road. We were both impressed how they make a real attempt to pull over to give oncoming non-working vehicles a wide berth. They kick up a tremendous amount of dust when they pass!
We turned right along the Marcus Lake logging road and continued an increasing climb towards our destination. We were both impressed by the quality of this road and how a mountain spur should differ so much from the rocky roads found in the Nanaimo region. This road became quite steep as we got closer to the lake, and the ride remained very easy throughout.
Waterfall Enroute to Marcus Lake
We stopped at the steepest section where a back hoe operator was conditioning the road surface. It looked difficult to climb in it's current state and we chose to continue on foot to get a look of the lake. The worker, who had waved us on before we parked, shut off his equipment and assured us that the road would be rideable within the next half hour. (Friendliest logging worker I've met yet). :) Outstanding views towards Nitnat Lake here.
160 Degree Pano facing Nitnat Lake
Paul extracting a rotting banana that was seeping through his pack after weeks of careful storage
Excellent Mountain and Valley Views
We continued along a spur road that offered some tremendous mountain views. It eventually came to a dead end as did the second spur we found along that route. We returned NW towards Marcus Lake and began our hunt for a good camping spot. There are few on this lake and we eventually settled for the best one we could find; a little boggy and mosquito infested, but it would have to do. Not a great first night for me. I guess it's a poor idea to begin a three day camping trip with no breakfast except for a SBuck's dark, black coffee. I had severe acid indigestion that kept me up the whole night. Poor fishing here... a trout breakfast might have fixed me up! :)
We were packed and loaded by 9:00 and ready to begin leg two of the trip. We headed south, back the way we had entered and followed the Nitnat Main towards the B24 (Liberator) bomber crash site, (Crashed Nov 10th, 1944), that we had seen on "Don's Blog." [edit: Sept 7th, '14, removed Don's Blog link due to malware warning]. This was a great ride up to the crash site. The road is steep, but the surface is in good condition and riding is easy. There are a few drainage ditches towards the end of the road that take some concentration, but generally speaking this is an easy-intermediate ride. I'm surprised we didn't bump into any bears since the road is littered in places with bear crap. We parked at Don's spot and began our climb up the mountain to find the bomber.
Some background on this plane:
B-24J Liberator Serial Number KH-108 Code AT, was on a cross-country training exercise with crew of 11 RAF in Operational Training for RAF Squadrons in S.E. Asia and Burma:
I'm so out of shape! That was the toughest climb I have undertaken in quite a few years. We made our way through large, dry stumps and low undergrowth on steep terrain for about 180m and then began a climb up steeper ground using small bushes as "ropes." :) My recovery time was doubling each time I stopped and the distance traveled between each rest was being cut in half. The site was well worth the climb though: We found many of the locations shared by Don on his blog and some others he had not listed, including the main part of the fuselage that sits on the summit reachable by following debris up the mountain from the prop location.
Here's a quick movie of Google Earth views of the surrounding area to give a better idea of the plane's location. The B24 is at the end of the orange trail of course and not right where it says "B24 Bomber."
The amount of damage to this aircraft is astonishing. There are parts spread across the entire mountain top, particularly along one side where the prop can be found. Those aboard surely died very quickly judging from the carnage.
It's time for a bit of a rant here: [on soap box] War sites like this fill most of us with a feeling of great respect for the individuals who lost their lives serving their country. Why people find it necessary to scrape their names into the last remaining signs that these people ever existed absolutely boggles my mind. One name scraper bothered to say "rest in peace," while others made inane comments about guns or just left a name. In my mind, we visit these places to remember those who perished, rather than giving ANY significance to our own name. WTF, I don't care that Tom Smith was there and nor should he. It's self-flattery to think that anyone should give a shit that you ever visited there! See it... Acknowledge them kindly... Leave with nothing. [off soap box]
After descending the great trail leading to the bomber, we took a right turn towards Flora Lake and set up our tents for the second night. This was a great camp site: a free provincial site with a good collection of firewood. We should have spent our first night here I think; much more comfortable and we got the trout breakfast we had missed at Marcus Lake.
Flora Lake Camping
Flora Lake Looking North
The following morning we continued towards Francis Lake and Franklin Camp. The lake was right beside the logging road... well used, with a large wide boat ramp. I guess it's far enough away from any big towns to keep from being too busy, but it didn't look that appealing to me anyway. Franklin Camp is nothing more than a levelled 1960s small logging town. All that remains is what looks like a water/fuel oil storage tank and the collapsed wreckage of one house at the far corner of town, (just junk left). The alders are quickly reclaiming the roads and deer are already moved in. Satisfying to say that we made it to Franklin Camp, but really nothing to see there. It would make a great go-cart course! :)
A Better Street in Franklin Camp
Works Area: Franklin Camp
Looking Towards the Residences (Streets)
From Franklin Camp we continued north on the main logging road that passes through China Beach camping area towards Port Alberni. We stopped in Port Alberni for a civilized lunch before moving on north west towards Cameron Lake. Paul had hatched an idea to follow a network of logging roads that begin travelling south shortly after passing Cameron Lake. The plan was to connect with the Englishman River Main, a logging road we know, by passing Arrowsmith Lake.
Looking Back Towards Cameron Lake
Too bad it didn't pan out: We tried a few roads that either became impassable or were dead-end spur roads. We returned the way we had come and used the main roads towards Nanaimo instead. Paul headed straight home to tend to an emergency and I sauntered through Qualicum Beach, Parksville, Nanoose and eventually passed through Sundew Gate and rode to Doumont Rd using much more familiar roads. What a great trip. Time for a shower!
