r/vancouverhiking • u/DueSession801 • 8d ago
Trip Reports Hanes valley loop
Just finished one of the hardest hikes of my life. Thank god i had a stick. 14 miles. I dont know where i got my info but i remember seeing on alltrails that it takes 6 hrs to complete, which is false. so i started at 12 and ended up finishing at 9pm. Got so dark that i had to use my phone flashlight which was dim as shit until i realized it was on the dimmest setting. Went through 5 liters of water and ate 3 cliff bars.
Have to mention that i went clockwise, so i ascended grouse mt and descended into hanes valley, which was the most excruciating downclimb/scrambling with my completely cooked legs. Had to moan through it all, which was very freeing with no people around.
Anyone sees my stick tomorrow please take good care of it as well as it did me.
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u/shouldnteven 8d ago
Hey OP, good work on completing the Hanes Valley loop! It seems like this hike was harder for you than you expected. This is a good example on how to interpret information you find online about hikes. The often do not take into consideration personal fitness levels, daily conditions and other variables.
It sounds like you could have been better prepared, which is hopefully something you take from this hike and apply to the next ones. It is crucial to ALWAYS take the 10 essentials on any hike, even if you think you won't be needing them.
In this case, it sounds like you could have eaten a little bit more. 3 cliff bars for 9 hours of hiking is not nearly enough to keep up with how many calories the body burns. Drinking lots of water is great, but don't forget the electrolytes. Hiking poles would have been way more useful than a wooden stick. A head lamp would have given you much more visibility and would have saved your phone battery in case you needed it for communication.
Again, congrats on tackling this tough hike!
Edit: I just noticed that the photo you took of your stick has the information sign with the essentials behind it...
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u/eulersidentity1 8d ago
Nice work! Yeah it’s very easy to underestimate this hike because the ascent / descent don’t seem that crazy compared to some other hikes. But when you take the length into consideration and the length of the scramble on the scree slope it’s no joke. Having done the loop before one of the first thjngs I would say is I would never do it clockwise because I don’t think I would feel that safe coming down the scree slope. Mostly at the top in sections where it’s really small and loose stuff, he lower sections aren’t hard. I did this loop before counter clockwise and my legs were cramping up and jelly by the end lol. And yea noon is late to start any long hike like this.
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u/tdmalone 8d ago
I did this clockwise yesterday and was so glad I wasn’t going anti-clockwise 😆There’s definitely a lot of loose rocks, took it slowly, but I’m not sure how much I would have hated my life choices if I was going up the other way!
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u/CasualRampagingBear 7d ago
Starting a hike at noon? Absolutely not. End of summer you start that shit between 7-8 am. Miss the crowds, escape the heat a bit, and give yourself room for mishaps in daylight.
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u/Infamous-Echo-2961 8d ago
I made a post about this loop yesterday! I got it done in 6.5hours by running a lot of the Baden Powell and the Norvan falls trail.
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u/DueSession801 8d ago
I actually saw your post last night and decided to send it the next day
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u/Infamous-Echo-2961 8d ago
I’m sorry I wasn’t more specific in how much I ran vs hiked it. I should have been more clear.
That said, the Valley is beautiful! Congratz on gutting it out! It’s not an easy loop.
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u/Ok-Professional1355 8d ago
I always pack to spend the night if I’m hiking more than a couple hours alone. If your phone had died you would’ve been screwed. Did you bring the 10 essentials shown in your fourth photo?
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u/DueSession801 8d ago
I had a portable charger so i was playing music+navi+flashlight with no problem. And usually i do bring most the essentials but idk what made me switch to a backpack with less things last second. One thing i truly regret not bringing was a headlamp, im scared of the dark, especially alone in the woods.
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u/Ok-Professional1355 8d ago
Yeah headlamp is super important. Also first aid, warm clothes, and lots of food. With food and clothes you can spend the night if you need to. And water of course.
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u/lucymcgoosen 7d ago
Were you playing music into a Bluetooth earpiece?
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u/DueSession801 7d ago
No. But it was alr dark and sure i was alone when i started playing and it was pretty quiet through my phone speaker. I just needed some music after hours of continuous silence
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u/DueSession801 8d ago
Also wanna add that my asshole and inner thighs are severely chaffed
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u/jpdemers 8d ago edited 8d ago
With so many steps in one day, it can be normal to have some irritation.
Some people have recommended to apply either Body Glide or Squirrel's Nut Butter to reduce friction and chafing.
Another thing to do is to pay attention to the material of the underwear and socks. Definitely avoid cotton as it doesn't wick moisture well; wet clothes plus friction can cause chafing and blisters. You should avoid cotton for all your hiking clothes! Cotton keeps you cold, wet, and uncomfortable.
For blisters, have some band-aids and elastoplast in your first-aid kit.
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u/just-dig-it-now 6d ago
14 miles? Or kilometers?
That's a hell of a loop, I've done it as a trail run with Crown Mountain added in and I left at 8am and got home after dinner. Starting at noon is a little crazy. There are enough rescues done out that way that NSR has a supply cache in the Hanes Valley (or at least they did when I ran it).
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u/Infamous-Echo-2961 5d ago
Is that the barrel looking thing on legs once the trail opens up into the valley?
I was wondering what that was!
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u/DueSession801 5d ago
Miles. Yeah i saw the cache. I wanted to check it out but my body said no when i saw the near vertical stairs up after descending into the valley.
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u/Secret-Ad1458 3d ago
People have gotten used to this incredibly forgiving world we've artificially created in cities. The natural world is insanely unforgiving, it will actively try to kill you at every turn and not skip a beat at all if it succeeds. It needs to be treated with a pretty high level of respect as that ass kicking hopefully taught you.
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u/oceanman97 8d ago
I mean… sounds like you were a little underprepared/underestimated the route/started quite late