Another blog? I too think I am a little insane considering I don't update my other blog enough. However I am convinced because this blog has a specific focus it will update itself.
For the past four nights I have not slept in the same place. No, this did not make me realize I am easy but rather I live a pretty interesting life. Recently, I have been thinking more and more about the future and am coming to the conclusion that I most likely will not be settling down anytime soon. As I anticipate the places I will be going in the coming years, I expect I will be laying my head in some amazing places, both conventional and unconventional. Since I like documenting things and organizing life into categories (in attempts to make sense of it all) I thought taking photos of the places I lay my head would be neat. We will see how long it lasts.
So for the first post, I chose the King Hut.
As the title of the post suggests, the King Hut is located near the Murtle River in Wells Grey Park in British Columbia. Clearwater, BC is the closest community and has served as the base for a wide variety of trips for friends and I.
The King Hut was built in the mid 1990's by the Wells Grey Outdoor Club. It is located on the Murtle River Trails, which serve as cross country ski trails in the winter and mountain bike/ walking trails in the summer months. The hut is used by most people as a warm stop while cross country skiing. It is just under 7km from the Murtle River Trails parking lot on the 30km loppet loop. The hut is a little disproportionately located for a half-way stop if completing the loppet loop.
So why was I there? Cross country skiing of course. Anyone who knows the Adventure Studies Program at Thompson Rivers University will know that classroom classes cannot be all blocked together, but rather be organized in such a manner as one week of classroom courses, then one week break, then one week of classroom courses, etc. So it was a week off and nothing to do, so a friend and I decided to head up to the Clearwater area to see what it has to offer by way of cross country skiing. Surprisingly it has a lot and I definitely look forward to exploring the trails more. So we were all prepared to do some winter camping (tent and all) but the nice people at Helmcken Falls Lodge acquainted us to the trails and to the King Hut.
Prior to heading up to Clearwater, a little bit of Internet searching had to be done to get a good grasp of the cross country skiing scene in the area. The Murtle Lake Trails have limited information on the Internet as their site was hijacked by an Asian real estate firm and the nordic club is dissolving at the end of the 2011/2012 season which is extremely sad. But what can you expect when there are only two members left. Fear not though, the kind folks at Helmcken Falls Lodge have said that they will continue to maintain the Murtle River Trails as it is one of the activities they offer their guests.
The hut itself was more than we expected. We were told it was very "basic". But when you are prepared for winter camping, anything with four walls and a roof is well above basic. The hut is one room, with a huge wood burning stove and includes a little table and a loft bed. As well, at this time firewood, candles and toilet paper were all provided at the hut along with an outhouse. My recommendation would to still bring your own stuff if you plan to spend the night. For our two nights, we however opted to sleep on the floor in front of the stove. It wasn't much warmed and I am sure Jo thought it was quite cool as she was in front of the door which was quite drafty. However, I highly recommend heading out to the Murtle River Trails and the Kings Hut. Cross-country ski day-trips from the hut are limited but you do have options, head further down the Loppet Loop then turn around and head back to the hut, or try the Upper River trail, which is not groomed and may or may not be appropriate for cross-country skis. Snowshoeing the Upper River Trail would be more enjoyable for most.
In conclusion of the first post, the photo depicts the precise location where I laid my head for two nights in February 2012.
To expand on the cross country skiing in the Clearwater area check out the following websites. Also, I believe the Helmcken Falls Lodge may maintain a few more trails in the Wells Grey Park so I would highly recommend contacting them as well.
Candle Creek- http://www.wellsgray.ca/site/winter/nordic_skiing/candle_creek_trails.html
Wells Grey Outdoor Club (they maintain Candle Creek and sometimes Frank Lake)- http://www.wellsgrayoutdoorsclub.ca/index.html
