Fri, Jul 8 2016, Sat, Jul 9 2016, Sun, Jul 10 2016 - Two nights at Historic Abbot Hut (View Original Event Details)
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This write-up is long overdue and I apologize to everyone for the tardiness.
It was my second time going to Abbot Hut. For some, it was their first visit. And yet for some it was the first time in the Lake O’Hara area. For them, the eye-candy was a real treat.
At the last minute, Caroline and Peter were able to join us and they were welcome additions to the crew.
The hike in was quite enjoyable. Shabir (not encumbered by heavy packs like some of the others) was the first to get to the Hut while the rest slowly slogged up. Some were busy shooting photos and took their time. Sylvia got a gash on her leg and that was the only injury anyone suffered (thankfully).
Once in the hut, we pretty much had it to ourselves, with only a handful of other ACC guests making their way up.
Given the limited cooking surfaces at Abbot Hut, we had opted on group meals. I cooked a biryani the first night with an accompanying salad which was expertly dressed by Marvella. The salad even had homemade greens contributed by Caroline. The second night Marvella treated the group to a feast, with pasta, a chili, a veggie marinara sauce, and garlic bread. Huge thanks to her!
Everyone helped in doing the hut’s chores (from fetching and melting snow, to cleaning dishes, to cleaning the hut, to lighting the stove). The COC folks make a great team.
And as if getting to Abbot Hut with loaded packs wasn’t enough of a weekend’s exercise for some of the mountain goats, Chak, Lorrie, Marvella, and Peter were crazy enough to descend to Lake Oesa and hike back up the second day! Kudos to them.
The rest of us hung around the hut all day, ate, took pictures, napped, and played games. Christy took out her sketch book and drew.
In the afternoon a small prank was played on Mick. The bathroom door was jamming. Raihan and Noel locked Mick from the outside and then released him within 10 seconds. Mick, thinking that the door had jammed, was being thankful for being helped out! Back inside Abbot Hut there was a huge roar of laughter when Mick announced how he got locked in by the jammed door.
Peter, Noel, and Raihan set up cameras and got some night shots. Sparklers found inside the hut made for interesting snaps.
Up at close to 10K feet, some were feeling the effects of higher elevation. Mark was probably the worst affected and one night was sitting downstairs like a wraith (and scaring midnight toilet visitors)!
On the way down from the hut on the third day, Dave K was a great coach and helped those who needed a bit of help negotiating the scree and boulders.
Down at Lake Oesa, Christy went for a swim! Brrrrr! I wasn’t surprised that she got a bad cold from it which made her suffer in the ensuing weeks. Noel took out a camping chair from his pack, while Chak made tea. It was a nice picnic.
The group then did the Yukness Alpine ledges and took various routes back to Lake O’Hara. The Lake was beautiful as ever. Some went inside the Relais Lodge and ran it out of carrot cake. Thankfully, the Lodge’s coffee supply was not exhausted.
Overall, it was a most wonderful trip with some of my favorite COC peeps and I look forward to visiting Abbot Hut again next year.
Thanks to the Noel, Shabir, Peter, and Dave for driving the rest of us to the event!
PS: I'll add the photo links later tonight or tomorrow.