13th Annual Northwest Challenge 2001

On October 20th and 21st, 2001, with the help of the Rover-landers and many great volunteers, I organized, the 13th Annual Northwest Challenge in Squamish, BC, Canada.

After vehicle inspections, at 8am Saturday morning, Ten teams of two vehicles each departed on the first stage with cryptic instructions and some GPS co-ordinates for two different courses. Along the way the teams had to punch their orienteering cards to prove they had been there and collect their points. After many great obstacles and a few unexpected challenges teams started to make there way back to the base camp at Alice Lake Provincial Park.

After a dinner break, I left to set-up the course and about an hour later teams departed for Stage two. It was another hour or so before the first team came up the trail to the first special task on Brohm Ridge. It was snowing and the trail up to highest point already had 6" of snow on the ground. I could tell some teams were getting a little tired by this point but they only had one more flag to find as far up the trail as the snow had allowed our crew to go. With another course completed teams handed in there punch cards and headed to bed for some much needed sleep.

8:00am Sunday morning came quick for thoughs who had been out on the trail passed 2am. It was raining quite heavily and everyone looked wet and tired. We had a drivers meeting and headed up the Indian Arm FSR to a great trials site. It was snowing heavily at the area selected for the trials and after an long and exciting course through deep water and mud it was decided to abandon the second course and head back to the base camp for clean-up, awards and good-byes.

One task along the way was to collect as much garbage from the trails as possible and teams were awarded points for the most garbage collected which ended up being a tie breaker.

Everyone had a great time and it was another successful Northwest Challenge.