This is the song that never ends.........

Listening to people sing on a bus for hours all the way up to Squamish was annoying and it made the bus ride very long and tedious. Despite this, it did keep me awake and set my mind on the hikes that lay ahead. As we approached our destination I could not take my eyes off Garibaldi Mountain. Believe it or not, at the end of the day we would be viewing what seemed to be one of the most beautiful lakes on the planet. The first hike took roughly four hours to complete. During the hike all I wanted to do was throw down my dreaded pack and curse it, but the distance markers inspired me to continue. Our spirits elevated as we stopped for a nourishing lunch and a view of The Barrier. I was instantly rejuvenated at the site of the majestic and angelic glacier fed Garibaldi Lake. Dinner shortly followed our arrival. All that I can recall of that was hot dogs and Diego scraping burnt Kraft Dinner off his plate.
"Riley....... I think the tarp collapsed..... Oh wait, it was the tent." Repairing a collapsed tent at three o'clock in the morning is not as amusing as it sounds. Jeremy and Riley cleared about half a ton of snow off the tarp as I held the metal pegs in place. Thankfully, we managed to get back to sleep. Waking up to even more snow outside our tent a few hours later came as a surprise though. So did not being able to wear my hiking boots because they were frozen solid by morning. Too bad they didn't come equipped with a defrost button!
Riley and I attempted to make pancakes for breakfast. Believe me, if you're planning on making pancakes when your mom isn't around, remember to bring some margarine to grease the pan. Maybe then your pancakes would taste better than ours. Our day worsened somewhat (a lot, actually) when we were told that we would not be hiking up to Black Tusk because of the dangerous conditions. Instead, we got the privilege of attending "school in the mountains." Although I disliked attending class in a frigid shelter, the snowball fight at lunch made up for that. I remember having a very good laugh when Devon screamed, "Sweet, I hit her in the face," and Mr. Stead tackled Riley McEachern. The day certainly went by quickly, but left us with a beautiful sunset at the shores of Garibaldi Lake.
Our last day in Garibaldi began with an early wake up call. We quickly cleaned up camp and set off on our journey down the mountain. Braedon Goodman sung what appeared to be a symphony the WHOLE way down. I wonder if he's considered auditioning for Canadian Idol? Although our descent was quick, all I could think about was my aching feet. Wearing shoes two sizes too small because my hiking boots were frozen was not the smartest decision I've made in my life. I ended up with a blister on every one of my toes. They basically ruined my homecoming and made what was supposed to be a relaxing shower, painful and agonizing. Water and blisters don't mix well.