Bearing in mind that the name of an Area page should be something that is likely to be entered in a search page, and should be meaningful when the site is browsed by users not necessarily located on the same continent, may I suggest a name more like "Capitol Region District (Victoria BC)"?
You're quite right. My aim was to ensure that people knew they were opening something with no snow and ice in it - hence the "urban" emphasis. But of course the current title wouldn't produce much in the way of search results. I'll change it right away. Thanks for this valuable suggestion.
Hi. The page is set up for and best viewed at a screen size of 1280 x 1024 pixels - as the disclaimer at the top of page 1 says. This is the size of my monitor.
I'm aware that this means that the page doeasn't show well on other (particularly smaller) screen sizes but I'm afraid I lack the html skills to do anything about it.
I can only hope that the content of the site might compensate for the necessity to scroll across the page every now and then. Certainly I've had no other complaints of this nature, so I guess most folk can live with my limited computer skills.
Do I know you? It seems more than a coincidence that I should send a recent mail to a group of select friends that featured Pueblo Mountain, an obscure and seldom visited peak in SE Oregon, when you cite Pueblo as an example of the correct use of scrolling.
Be that as it may, I have neither the time nor the inclination to improve my page beyond its current level. I don't really care how "pretty" it looks so long as people can get what they want from it - and judging by the number of grateful private memos and emails I get, plenty find it very useful indeed. If some choose to ignore the information thereon based upon cosmetic issues, as you suggest, that's their loss. I make the information available in my own time at my own expense and distribute it via SP for free. Isn't that reason enough to be grateful?
On the same subject, I would very grateful if we could now terminate this discussion.
Thanks Arthur. The page is used a lot by CRD residents, averaging about new local IP's/day. But it's nice to see the area receive wider attention on the front page of SP.
yesterday, we went to hike sugarloaf mountain, and completely missed out (see other comment). we eventually come across a group heading to mt braden and, after explaining our predicament, they graciously invited us to join them.
as we subsequently found out, they were headed up a back route to mt braden. it is a stunning hike, and was well worth the effort. the route climbs up a rocky ridge which first parallels the mt braden ridge then circles around (in a U-shape) up to the back of mt braden. the hike is longer than, but considerably easier, than the frontal route. much more of a view also.
the instructions to the frontal route up mt braden are clear. at the "two minute" mark, rather than climbing up the embankment to the southern trail, continue on up the old logging road. eventually ( 10-15 minutes), you will come to where an old, third bridge washed out, where the old road crossed to the left bank of the valley.
leave the road here, and remain on the right bank of the creek. the trail climbs to the right, and eventually gets up onto the rock ridge. follow the flags to the top of mt braden. be careful, however, the flagging can be spotty at times, and, in places, it could be fairly easy to get off the trail. not recommended.
the hike around the back is longer but less slope, whereas the south approach is steep and a fair brutal climb. since the southern route appears a little more worn, it would appear that the back route is less well known. for a person doing the full route, i'd suggest going clock-wise, but if pain is your pleasure, do the reverse.
Seems easier to do this in one rather than respond individually to the comments above.
My intention in developing this resource for CRD hikers was to show them the standard routes to the main Sooke Hills etc summits. I wanted to give everyone a head start and then let people branch out and learn for themselves all about a fantastic resource that we, as Victorians, have on our doorstep. It is well outside the intended scope of this page to give everyone every detail of every route to the top of every hill. Opinions vary about what are the best routes anyway and the above are simply that, one man’s opinions.
To address “hikerdude’s” specific concerns.
1. The indirect ridge route he describes on Mt Braden is, indeed, a fine hike. It’s called “Route 66” by some and the “Upper SW Route” by others. There are, in fact 7 routes up Mt Braden from all four cardinal points (one of which I cover in the “McDonald to Braden Traverse” section). Go up there with your map, GPS etc and explore them all and, if you want, add details to this page in the form of comment, as hikerdude has done, or develop and add your own separate page to SummitPost. I don’t have a monopoly on all this!
2. I’ve read over my Sugarloaf description carefully and can find nothing seriously wrong with it. Many others have used it to find their way to and up the mountain successfully. Of course, what is clear to some is not always clear to others, and that is why I added the “Tracklog” section (including Sugarloaf) to the page about a year ago. Just to remove all ambiguity I’ve now added the coordinates of the junction to Sugarloaf off the Veitch Creek Road and amended the text so that times to Braden and Sugarloaf are consistent, ie “from cars” according to hikerdude’s suggestion.
For those interested in learning more about the many Sooke Hills summits and routes not described here, I would suggest you join one of several knowledgeable local clubs that offer regular trips to the more obscure destinations in the area. Or just get out there and explore!
Hikerdude – I’m sorry you couldn’t find Sugarloaf. By way of compensation, contact me and I’ll give you a personal guided tour.
gives an overview of crd park boundaries in the area.
"opencyclemap.org"
in the search box, type in "mt ragged, victoria, bc, and the map takes you there (just like google earth). the magnification function is a bit touchy so go slowly, but eventually you will be able to see most all the mountains within the area, bound by humpback road on the right, sooke road on the bottom, and sooke river road on the left.
includes some of the trails described by vancouver islander.
"http.crdatlas.ca"
a map by the capital regional district of the crd area. unfortunately, has crashed on my computer tonite, but worth exploring.
"google earth"
a good resource, though not as comprehensive as one might like for the area.
in combination, all of these sites will give the researcher a good "overview" of the mountains in the sooke road area.
last week, we got a bit confused by the instructions given and wound up missing the spur up to the back of sugarloaf mountain. for the newbies to this hike, here's a bit more information.
at the sixth pole, the trail is easy to pick up, and the blue car mentioned is just inside the entrance. it's about 10 minutes to veitch creek and the cedar tree "bridge", then up a small embankment onto the old veitch creek logging road.
to the left is the return route from sugarloaf as described in v'islanders commentary. to the right is the portal to the sugarloaf and mt braden trails. after approx. 15-20 minutes, the overhead power lines appear, and the spur to sugarloaf is the next left. it does have a few flags at the start, but they're a bit difficult to see, as, unfortunately, we walked right by. there's a fair bit of blowdown wood covering the spur right at the entrance, so doesn't look like the picture with the dog! anyways, head up the spur and you're on your way.
when hiking to a new area, i normally like to take along a hard copy of hiking instructions, map, etc., to refer to when appropriate
last week, when i tried to print off a copy from this site of the hiking instructions to sugar loaf, didn't work too well. the font was way too small and difficult to read. after i got back, i played with the print function, and found that the "landscape" option worked really well on my machine. doing it this way doubles the number of printable pages, so you have to do a bit of work looking for the particular pages that you want, but once found, it's easy to print off.
as an aside, my partner had his smartphone which didn't prove quite up to the task this time. there's good cell phone reception in the area but with a small screen, shade and glare, it can be hard to read, and it does take some time to load. wound up taking more time than using a decent hardcopy.
as explained, the old veitch creek logging road is the portal to trails to sugarload, mt braden, and mt ragged. the old road is still in good condition, with little erosion or other degradation. also, there are few difficult slopes between where one starts on the road and where one reaches the intersection/spur to the mts braden and ragged trails.
the road follows the creek, rising above the creek from the start, then the creek doing the same later to meet the road just prior to the above spur. the creek can be mostly seen through the trees, and is very pretty indeed. also, the road passes through some nice west coast rain-forest, so is very beautiful too.
if you have a youngster that is either interested, or you'd like to interest, in being outdoors, then the old road is a definitely recommendation. to the mt braden spur intersection and back is about an hour which should be kept in mind. at the intersection the road disappears out of view, but presumably it goes on considerably further, if a longer walk/hike was desired.
i want to take my 8 yr old granddaughter back for a hike later this summer. would be perfect for her.
I went over the route on July 29 and would comment that, imho, the route is sparsely flagged in the bottom third and not at all thereafter. Navigational skills still need to be well to the fore on this one, particularly in the salal choked gullies prior to reaching the old road. A great route but not as much as a doddle as some might interpret from Jim's comment.
Thank you for the new Amigos section, so far have only done Alan's Alp. A few years ago we tried to find Tony's from there and missed the trail that I now see is obvious! we went down the other trail and almost ended up at sooke rd! We now look forward to getting to T. T. and Davids Delight and to the 4th Amigo. Your site is extremely helpful and have used it many times to look up a new hike! With all this amazing wilderness and your descriptions and track logs at our disposal we will never want for a new hike! Thanks again and happy hiking!
nartreb - Sep 15, 2006 1:16 pm - Hasn't voted
namingBearing in mind that the name of an Area page should be something that is likely to be entered in a search page, and should be meaningful when the site is browsed by users not necessarily located on the same continent, may I suggest a name more like "Capitol Region District (Victoria BC)"?
vancouver islander - Sep 15, 2006 3:12 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: namingYou're quite right. My aim was to ensure that people knew they were opening something with no snow and ice in it - hence the "urban" emphasis. But of course the current title wouldn't produce much in the way of search results. I'll change it right away. Thanks for this valuable suggestion.
vancouver islander - May 2, 2010 6:56 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Web page displayHi. The page is set up for and best viewed at a screen size of 1280 x 1024 pixels - as the disclaimer at the top of page 1 says. This is the size of my monitor.
I'm aware that this means that the page doeasn't show well on other (particularly smaller) screen sizes but I'm afraid I lack the html skills to do anything about it.
I can only hope that the content of the site might compensate for the necessity to scroll across the page every now and then. Certainly I've had no other complaints of this nature, so I guess most folk can live with my limited computer skills.
vancouver islander - May 6, 2010 10:56 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Web page displayDo I know you? It seems more than a coincidence that I should send a recent mail to a group of select friends that featured Pueblo Mountain, an obscure and seldom visited peak in SE Oregon, when you cite Pueblo as an example of the correct use of scrolling.
Be that as it may, I have neither the time nor the inclination to improve my page beyond its current level. I don't really care how "pretty" it looks so long as people can get what they want from it - and judging by the number of grateful private memos and emails I get, plenty find it very useful indeed. If some choose to ignore the information thereon based upon cosmetic issues, as you suggest, that's their loss. I make the information available in my own time at my own expense and distribute it via SP for free. Isn't that reason enough to be grateful?
On the same subject, I would very grateful if we could now terminate this discussion.
Arthur Digbee - Feb 24, 2011 12:36 pm - Voted 10/10
Great pageWonderful resources and I hope to stomp around up there some time.
And, yes, I liked the flowers. I don't care who knows it!
vancouver islander - Feb 24, 2011 12:51 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Great pageThanks Arthur. The page is used a lot by CRD residents, averaging about new local IP's/day. But it's nice to see the area receive wider attention on the front page of SP.
I like the flowers too!
hikerdude - Apr 24, 2011 3:42 pm - Hasn't voted
mt. bradenyesterday, we went to hike sugarloaf mountain, and completely missed out (see other comment). we eventually come across a group heading to mt braden and, after explaining our predicament, they graciously invited us to join them.
as we subsequently found out, they were headed up a back route to mt braden. it is a stunning hike, and was well worth the effort. the route climbs up a rocky ridge which first parallels the mt braden ridge then circles around (in a U-shape) up to the back of mt braden. the hike is longer than, but considerably easier, than the frontal route. much more of a view also.
the instructions to the frontal route up mt braden are clear. at the "two minute" mark, rather than climbing up the embankment to the southern trail, continue on up the old logging road. eventually ( 10-15 minutes), you will come to where an old, third bridge washed out, where the old road crossed to the left bank of the valley.
leave the road here, and remain on the right bank of the creek. the trail climbs to the right, and eventually gets up onto the rock ridge. follow the flags to the top of mt braden. be careful, however, the flagging can be spotty at times, and, in places, it could be fairly easy to get off the trail. not recommended.
the hike around the back is longer but less slope, whereas the south approach is steep and a fair brutal climb. since the southern route appears a little more worn, it would appear that the back route is less well known. for a person doing the full route, i'd suggest going clock-wise, but if pain is your pleasure, do the reverse.
vancouver islander - Apr 24, 2011 5:28 pm - Hasn't voted
Response to "hikerdude"Seems easier to do this in one rather than respond individually to the comments above.
My intention in developing this resource for CRD hikers was to show them the standard routes to the main Sooke Hills etc summits. I wanted to give everyone a head start and then let people branch out and learn for themselves all about a fantastic resource that we, as Victorians, have on our doorstep. It is well outside the intended scope of this page to give everyone every detail of every route to the top of every hill. Opinions vary about what are the best routes anyway and the above are simply that, one man’s opinions.
To address “hikerdude’s” specific concerns.
1. The indirect ridge route he describes on Mt Braden is, indeed, a fine hike. It’s called “Route 66” by some and the “Upper SW Route” by others. There are, in fact 7 routes up Mt Braden from all four cardinal points (one of which I cover in the “McDonald to Braden Traverse” section). Go up there with your map, GPS etc and explore them all and, if you want, add details to this page in the form of comment, as hikerdude has done, or develop and add your own separate page to SummitPost. I don’t have a monopoly on all this!
2. I’ve read over my Sugarloaf description carefully and can find nothing seriously wrong with it. Many others have used it to find their way to and up the mountain successfully. Of course, what is clear to some is not always clear to others, and that is why I added the “Tracklog” section (including Sugarloaf) to the page about a year ago. Just to remove all ambiguity I’ve now added the coordinates of the junction to Sugarloaf off the Veitch Creek Road and amended the text so that times to Braden and Sugarloaf are consistent, ie “from cars” according to hikerdude’s suggestion.
For those interested in learning more about the many Sooke Hills summits and routes not described here, I would suggest you join one of several knowledgeable local clubs that offer regular trips to the more obscure destinations in the area. Or just get out there and explore!
Hikerdude – I’m sorry you couldn’t find Sugarloaf. By way of compensation, contact me and I’ll give you a personal guided tour.
Happy hiking,
vancouver islander
hikerdude - Apr 27, 2011 12:45 am - Hasn't voted
"birds-eye view" linksthe following links provide a "birds-eye" view of the area encompassed by the mountains listed in these "capital regional district" webpages.
"www.protectourparks.ca/maps/sea_to_sea_boundary_map.htm"
gives an overview of crd park boundaries in the area.
"opencyclemap.org"
in the search box, type in "mt ragged, victoria, bc, and the map takes you there (just like google earth). the magnification function is a bit touchy so go slowly, but eventually you will be able to see most all the mountains within the area, bound by humpback road on the right, sooke road on the bottom, and sooke river road on the left.
includes some of the trails described by vancouver islander.
"http.crdatlas.ca"
a map by the capital regional district of the crd area. unfortunately, has crashed on my computer tonite, but worth exploring.
"google earth"
a good resource, though not as comprehensive as one might like for the area.
in combination, all of these sites will give the researcher a good "overview" of the mountains in the sooke road area.
hikerdude - Apr 27, 2011 1:35 pm - Hasn't voted
sugarloaf mountain spurlast week, we got a bit confused by the instructions given and wound up missing the spur up to the back of sugarloaf mountain. for the newbies to this hike, here's a bit more information.
at the sixth pole, the trail is easy to pick up, and the blue car mentioned is just inside the entrance. it's about 10 minutes to veitch creek and the cedar tree "bridge", then up a small embankment onto the old veitch creek logging road.
to the left is the return route from sugarloaf as described in v'islanders commentary. to the right is the portal to the sugarloaf and mt braden trails. after approx. 15-20 minutes, the overhead power lines appear, and the spur to sugarloaf is the next left. it does have a few flags at the start, but they're a bit difficult to see, as, unfortunately, we walked right by. there's a fair bit of blowdown wood covering the spur right at the entrance, so doesn't look like the picture with the dog! anyways, head up the spur and you're on your way.
hikerdude - Apr 27, 2011 1:57 pm - Hasn't voted
hardcopy printoutwhen hiking to a new area, i normally like to take along a hard copy of hiking instructions, map, etc., to refer to when appropriate
last week, when i tried to print off a copy from this site of the hiking instructions to sugar loaf, didn't work too well. the font was way too small and difficult to read. after i got back, i played with the print function, and found that the "landscape" option worked really well on my machine. doing it this way doubles the number of printable pages, so you have to do a bit of work looking for the particular pages that you want, but once found, it's easy to print off.
as an aside, my partner had his smartphone which didn't prove quite up to the task this time. there's good cell phone reception in the area but with a small screen, shade and glare, it can be hard to read, and it does take some time to load. wound up taking more time than using a decent hardcopy.
hikerdude - Apr 27, 2011 2:48 pm - Hasn't voted
old veitch creek logging roadas explained, the old veitch creek logging road is the portal to trails to sugarload, mt braden, and mt ragged. the old road is still in good condition, with little erosion or other degradation. also, there are few difficult slopes between where one starts on the road and where one reaches the intersection/spur to the mts braden and ragged trails.
the road follows the creek, rising above the creek from the start, then the creek doing the same later to meet the road just prior to the above spur. the creek can be mostly seen through the trees, and is very pretty indeed. also, the road passes through some nice west coast rain-forest, so is very beautiful too.
if you have a youngster that is either interested, or you'd like to interest, in being outdoors, then the old road is a definitely recommendation. to the mt braden spur intersection and back is about an hour which should be kept in mind. at the intersection the road disappears out of view, but presumably it goes on considerably further, if a longer walk/hike was desired.
i want to take my 8 yr old granddaughter back for a hike later this summer. would be perfect for her.
vancouver islander - Jul 30, 2012 3:13 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Emperor MtnI went over the route on July 29 and would comment that, imho, the route is sparsely flagged in the bottom third and not at all thereafter. Navigational skills still need to be well to the fore on this one, particularly in the salal choked gullies prior to reaching the old road. A great route but not as much as a doddle as some might interpret from Jim's comment.
Summit Jumper - Oct 9, 2016 4:57 pm - Voted 10/10
AmigosThank you for the new Amigos section, so far have only done Alan's Alp. A few years ago we tried to find Tony's from there and missed the trail that I now see is obvious! we went down the other trail and almost ended up at sooke rd! We now look forward to getting to T. T. and Davids Delight and to the 4th Amigo. Your site is extremely helpful and have used it many times to look up a new hike! With all this amazing wilderness and your descriptions and track logs at our disposal we will never want for a new hike! Thanks again and happy hiking!
vancouver islander - Oct 10, 2016 1:35 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: AmigosMy pleasure! Check out the new Crow's Nest and Screen Peak sections too.