Ocean Bridge Volunteers

By Peter Scholefield

On Labour Day of this year, I Ied a group of 7 Ocean Bridge volunteers on a trail maintenance project on the Mt Artaban trail up to the peak. We started our hike from Camp Fircom where they were staying for the weekend. I got them to carry trail maintenance supplies, including two signposts and  signs. We stopped to install one post and sign at a trail junction part way up the mountain before continuing our 3-hour hike to the peak. At the top, we enjoyed a relaxing lunch and the amazing view across Howe Sound. We met three other hikers at the peak who had come up the north side trail and they had started from the public access at Camp Artaban. I got the volunteers to mount another post and sign on the trail just down from the peak then we did some clearing of windfallen trees off the trail on our way back down to Camp Fircom.

The group returned to Camp Fircom the following weekend. Due to poor air quality on Sunday, 12 September, caused by forest fire smoke from the USA, the 8 Ocean Bridge participants at Camp Fircom wisely decided not to do any of the proposed physical work on clearing a new trail through Camp Fircom property. However, they did offer and, under my supervision, completed the installation of two signposts at each end of the proposed new trail leading from the camp to Mt Artaban and to the dock at the Halkett Bay Marine Provincial Park.

A few of the volunteers taking a break