I think, in my head, I was planning on a non-main-trail hike, in other words not on the main trail that goes around upper and lower Thetis Lake. In the end that’s not quite what happened although there was a good portion in the first half of the hike spent in the Salal and amongst other trail encroacher plants along the north and east side of the park near McKenzie Lake.

GPS Data: 8.1km – 2h01m – Garmin Website – GPX (right click to download)

Managed to forget to put the battery in my camera before the hike… no photos:(

GPS data: 15.8km – 3h15m – GPS route

A 15km hike from Mt. Work to Thetis Lake Park. Click on the map to see details on the Garmin website.

I actually had some difficulty trying to figure out where we could do a 20km hike; it seemed like what I was looking at on the map wouldn’t get us enough distance. We ended up deciding on Thetis Lake Park with the idea of trying to figure out how to link Thetis Lake with Mt. Work. We started at the main Thetis Lake parking lot and headed north toward Munn Road. In the end we didn’t quite make it to Munn Road, but we were close. I figure the next time I feel like doing a 20km hike I’ll probably do a one way trip and finish up at the north end of Mt. Work.

Minus the blisters, which suck, it was another great hike on south Vancouver Island.

Oh wait, I do have something else, aside from blisters, to complain about. What is the deal with people leaving bags of dog shit on the side of the trail? I guess some of the shite bags might be biodegradable, but it makes zero sense to me why someone would go to the trouble to pick up dog crap with a plastic bag, and then leave the friggin thing in the forest.

GPS Data: 16.6km – 3h18m – GPS route

A 17km hike at Thetis Lake Park near Victoria, BC. Click on the map to see details on the Garmin website.

Old and rusty car or truck parts in Thetis Lake Park.

Michelle navigating a creek crossing in Thetis Lake Park.

Arbutus tree in Thetis Lake Park.

Thetis Lake Park Skunk Cabbage. It kind of stinks.

New shoes for Michelle.

White Fawn Lily in Thetis Lake.

GPS Data: 5.3km – 1h32m – GPS route

A 5.3km hike at Thetis Lake near Victoria, BC. Click on the map to see GPS info on the Garmin website.

Looking toward Mt. Finlayson from the tallest point in Thetis Lake Park. Is that a lap dog?

Geese on Thetis Lake.

The view from the beach at Thetis Lake.

Some dudes in a canoe on Thetis Lake.

Thetis Lake reflections.

McKenzie Creek in Thetis Lake Park.

McKenzie Creek in Thetis Lake Park, part deux.

Evidence of punks, even in the boonies near Thetis Lake.

GPS Data: 6.0km – 1h17m – GPS route

A 6km hike at Thetis Lake. Click on the map to see details on the Garmin website.

GPS Data: 3.6km – 0h53m – GPS route

A 3.6km hike at Thetis Lake. Click on the map to see GPS details on the Garmin website.

Most of our time was spent on real hiking trails as opposed to these wide/safe ones.

Part of Upper Thetis Lake on a rainy day.

Not the greatest photo, but a solitary kayaker on Thetis Lake kind of sums up the feeling of walking around in the forest - quiet and relaxing.

It’s really starting to feel Spring-like around here with cherry blossoms all over the place, relatively warm temperatures, less precipitation, and some Springy smells. The hike tonight was great with a clear, starry sky and good trails. Slightly disappointed – did not see a single slug tonight.

GPS Data: 6km – 1h18m – GPS Route

A Wednesday night hike at Thetis Lake near Victoria, BC. Click on the map to see detailed GPS information on the Garmin website.

We met the non-lost brother through some light flashing and yelling near the dividing line between Upper Thetis Lake and Lower Thetis Lake (the Trillium Trail). Without much of an idea about where to start looking for the lost brother — Thetis Lake and the neighbouring wilderness is pretty big — we decided to head off around Upper Thetis Lake in a clockwise direction, while the non-lost brother set off in a counter-clockwise direction. Did I mention that it was wet out? It really was, but over the course of the evening the rain let up, thankfully. After about 15-20 minutes we got far enough around Upper Thetis that we could see a familiar light across the lake (the non-lost brother). At this point, and somewhat miraculously, we the searchers were able to locate the lost brother audibly; we were really close to him, but were separated by water, meaning that we had to back track 15-20 minutes to get back to the Trillium Trail where we could reach him by land. Another 30 minutes or so passed before we and the non-lost brother were able to locate a cold, wet, and tired lost brother.

It took some effort, but we (searchers and lost one) made it back to the parking lot at Highland Road. I tend not to believe much in mysterious forces at work in our everyday lives, but it was interesting how things unfolded tonight. Play safe peoples, especially in the dark, scary wilderness (yes, I realize Thetis Lake barely qualifies as wilderness).

GPS Data: (Distance: 11km / Time: 3h26m / GPS Route)

Map of our hike / lost person search at Thetis Lake near Victoria. Click on the image to view GPS data on the Garmin website.