<commit_before>---
title: "SCT Day 3: An Unexpected Meal"
description: "after a very difficult, technical, and wet hike, we make some unexpected friends at the luxurious Confederation Lake hut"
header:
  image: https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2877/33520038694_a04f54b208_h.jpg
category: hiking
tags: [hiking, Sunshine Coast Trail]
---
It is still raining hard when I wake up. With that in mind, the first thing I do is change out of my warm and dry merino wool baselayer into still-damp socks and underwear when it's 5 degrees outside. Solid start to the morning. I can already tell it's going to be a long and difficult day. I see that Alex's shoes are in a newly formed puddle of mud.
<figure style="width: 50%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2827/33989673330_eb39217d1c_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>There's something I find captivating about a flame heating up water.</figcaption>
</figure>
Hot tea makes life immeasurably better. 

After a warm cup of tea and a couple scoops of peanut butter and some m&amp;m's, I venture outside our hut, umbrella in hand (nothing is truly waterproof, expect umbrellas), and I'm greeted by a spectacular vista of fresh snow and fog skimming the tops of the trees in the distance. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2889/33563783943_f45276295a_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>A dock right in front of West Inland Lake Hut.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2884/34374139025_424f415cda_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>You can see the fresh snowfall on the peaks. That's where we were headed next!</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2890/34215743862_dbdc28de91_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Raindrops.</figcaption>
</figure>
We pack up our bags and start hiking. Since we weren't able to make it to Anthony Island hut on the east end of Inland Lake, which is where the trail continues, we have walk the perimeter of the lake to get to Anthony Island, effectively adding another 4 kms to our day. We don't have any definitely plans on which hut we are aiming for today - we are planning to see how we're feeling when we get to Confederation Lake, which is about 13 kms away, and see if there's enough time remaining to make it to Fiddlehead Landing. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2881/34374139385_8a089843fd_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4170/34374139435_a587ebd540_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2848/34332771286_b85ff5680c_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
The views along the lake are simply stunning. There is a hint of sun, and I'm hopeful that the weather will improve, because our shoes are already starting to get wet. I'm wearing a relatively new pair of Gore-Tex Salomon trail runners, and it predicably fails to keep the rain out. <a href="http://andrewskurka.com/2016/waterproof-gore-tex-shoes-second-chance-complete-failure/">Gore-Tex doesn't work!</a> My advice? Buy light and breathable trail runners and just suck it up. It'll dry faster. 

We eventually get to Anthony Hut, but instead of turning left and continuing on with the trail, we misread the sign as indicating a different trail and continue going straight. It would be another half-hour before we realize our mistake and backtrack. Our supposedly short hike to Confederation Lake is getting longer and longer.
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2839/33979313190_de09d77098_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Some of the brutal trail conditions we had to navigate. By this point, our shoes were completely soaking wet.</figcaption>
</figure>
Shortly after we backtrack and get back on the correct trail, we run into heavy trail debris, making it much more difficult to spot the trailmarkers and slowing us down considerably. We need to (ungracefully) dodge, jump, duck, and weave our way through the dense forest. For some parts we're just bushwhacking. 
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2864/34232818681_f9a127bdd0_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
Then, to add to the difficulty, the trail becomes steep, with dozens of fallen trees in our path thrown in for good measure. The hiking gods are not in a good mood today.
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2805/33521596044_14ac1a5dbc_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>The look of a broken man.</figcaption>
</figure>
Alex was slowly 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4158/33553016533_797b32178a_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4181/34232829061_7c4516dae3_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>I was in good spirits, just happy to be out of the office :)</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4174/33553016183_875d9f8a15_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Our first encounter with snow. It would not be our last...</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2863/34232828401_dfb6f398f1_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Finally at Confederation Lake. Getting from where we were in the previous photo to this point was a battle. A silent battle. No energy spared in between for photos.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4163/33979312830_b764d8ceb0_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Look at this cabin. First class. Insulated. Would AirBnB.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2855/33553015453_e1ec03b91b_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>This cabin is bomb. My Therm-A-Rest NeoAir Xlite sleeping pad set up - I highly recommend this pad!</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2877/34363695735_342f0568bb_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Alex helping with the cooking, sporkful of peanut butter in mouth.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4191/34363702165_fd18ef86bd_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Classy cabin comes complete with candles. Unintentional alliteration.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2887/33979312760_9d42206ab5_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Snowing hard outside. In April.</figcaption>
</figure>

Start of day 4

<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2847/34363701935_5f4b99014b_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Incredible view from the steps of the cabin the next morning.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2873/34322271476_f06cddc006_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Delicious, delicious oatmeal.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4159/33553015133_38b217f4f8_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Making some unexpected friends (Fiona on the right, Janna on the left)</figcaption>
</figure><commit_msg>Added to part where we reach hut<commit_after>---
title: "SCT Day 3: An Unexpected Meal"
description: "after a very difficult, technical, and wet hike, we make some unexpected friends at the luxurious Confederation Lake hut"
header:
  image: https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2877/33520038694_a04f54b208_h.jpg
category: hiking
tags: [hiking, Sunshine Coast Trail]
---
It is still raining hard when I wake up. With that in mind, the first thing I do is change out of my warm and dry merino wool baselayer into still-damp socks and underwear when it's 5 degrees outside. Solid start to the morning. I can already tell it's going to be a long and difficult day. I see that Alex's shoes are in a newly formed puddle of mud.
<figure style="width: 50%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2827/33989673330_eb39217d1c_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>There's something I find captivating about a flame heating up water.</figcaption>
</figure>
Hot tea makes life immeasurably better. 

After a warm cup of tea and a couple scoops of peanut butter and some m&amp;m's, I venture outside our hut, umbrella in hand (nothing is truly waterproof, expect umbrellas), and I'm greeted by a spectacular vista of fresh snow and fog skimming the tops of the trees in the distance. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2889/33563783943_f45276295a_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>A dock right in front of West Inland Lake Hut.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2884/34374139025_424f415cda_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>You can see the fresh snowfall on the peaks. That's where we were headed next!</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2890/34215743862_dbdc28de91_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Raindrops.</figcaption>
</figure>
We pack up our bags and start hiking. Since we weren't able to make it to Anthony Island hut on the east end of Inland Lake, which is where the trail continues, we have walk the perimeter of the lake to get to Anthony Island, effectively adding another 4 kms to our day. We don't have any definitely plans on which hut we are aiming for today - we are planning to see how we're feeling when we get to Confederation Lake, which is about 13 kms away, and see if there's enough time remaining to make it to Fiddlehead Landing. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2881/34374139385_8a089843fd_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4170/34374139435_a587ebd540_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2848/34332771286_b85ff5680c_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
The views along the lake are simply stunning. There is a hint of sun, and I'm hopeful that the weather will improve, because our shoes are already starting to get wet. I'm wearing a relatively new pair of Gore-Tex Salomon trail runners, and it predicably fails to keep the rain out. <a href="http://andrewskurka.com/2016/waterproof-gore-tex-shoes-second-chance-complete-failure/">Gore-Tex doesn't work!</a> My advice? Buy light and breathable trail runners and just suck it up. It'll dry faster. 

We eventually get to Anthony Hut, but instead of turning left and continuing on with the trail, we misread the sign as indicating a different trail and continue going straight. It would be another half-hour before we realize our mistake and backtrack. Our supposedly short hike to Confederation Lake is getting longer and longer.
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2839/33979313190_de09d77098_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Some of the brutal trail conditions we had to navigate. By this point, our shoes were completely soaking wet.</figcaption>
</figure>
Shortly after we backtrack and get back on the correct trail, we run into heavy trail debris, making it much more difficult to spot the trailmarkers and slowing us down considerably. We need to (ungracefully) dodge, jump, duck, and weave our way through the dense forest. For some parts we're just bushwhacking. 
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2864/34232818681_f9a127bdd0_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
Then, to add to the difficulty, the trail becomes steep, with dozens of fallen trees in our path thrown in for good measure. The hiking gods are not in a good mood today.
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2805/33521596044_14ac1a5dbc_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>The look of a broken man.</figcaption>
</figure>
The trail is wearing down Alex mentally. It's surprising to me, since we did some exceptionally difficult hikes last summer (like Hanes Valley, Crown Mountain, and BCMC in one day!), but then again, this hike is different in its isolation and condition. Unfortunately, the trail is about to get even more challenging. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4158/33553016533_797b32178a_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4181/34232829061_7c4516dae3_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>I, on the other hand, am having the time of my life.</figcaption>
</figure>
It isn't long before we see fresh snow from the previous night. I think we are near the 400 meter mark, and since Confederation is close to 700 meters, I suspect that before long we'll be doing some "snow stomping", as Eagle put it. 
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4174/33553016183_875d9f8a15_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Our first encounter with snow. It would not be our last...</figcaption>
</figure>
No, we did not magically teleport from our first sighting of snow to Confederation Lake. That could not be further from the truth. It couldn't have been more than 4-5 km from the photo above to the photo below, but it took us a few <em>hours</em> to reach the hut. Why? Well, it isn't long before the snow starts to pile. No problem: we have snowshoes. But the snow is patchy on the uneven forest floor, and it isn't deep enough to support us all the time. Every step feels like a gamble, with the odds stacked against us. 

Alex tells me that he fell through the snow and stepped straight into a nIce cold puddle of water at one point. I don't think we are going much faster than 1 km/hr during this section.  

A veritable eternity later, we finally spot the hut. I'm elated. 
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2863/34232828401_dfb6f398f1_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Finally at Confederation Lake. Getting from where we were in the previous photo to this point was a battle. A silent battle. No energy spared in between for photos.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure style="width: 70%; margin: auto;"> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4163/33979312830_b764d8ceb0_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Look at this cabin. First class. Insulated. Would AirBnB.</figcaption>
</figure>

<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2855/33553015453_e1ec03b91b_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>This cabin is bomb. My Therm-A-Rest NeoAir Xlite sleeping pad set up - I highly recommend this pad!</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2877/34363695735_342f0568bb_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Alex helping with the cooking, sporkful of peanut butter in mouth.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4191/34363702165_fd18ef86bd_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Classy cabin comes complete with candles. Unintentional alliteration.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2887/33979312760_9d42206ab5_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Snowing hard outside. In April.</figcaption>
</figure>

Start of day 4

<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2847/34363701935_5f4b99014b_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Incredible view from the steps of the cabin the next morning.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2873/34322271476_f06cddc006_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Delicious, delicious oatmeal.</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure> 
  <img data-original="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4159/33553015133_38b217f4f8_h.jpg" data-action="zoom" class="inline-image"/>
  <figcaption>Making some unexpected friends (Fiona on the right, Janna on the left)</figcaption>
</figure>
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