Searchmont BackCountry
LAC CHERIE BUSH ROUTE
This remote route cuts 17 kms off the trip from Searchmont-to-Aubrey Falls / Black Creek
Early December – Significant Snow
Sean and I identified on a map what looked like a bush route shortcut from Searchmont to Aubrey Falls, shaving 17 kms off the trip. It was early in the season and no one was out. We trailered up the Whitman Dam road to km 26, then unloaded at the Saddle Lake Fork. Snow was about 6″ deep and it was enough to get started. We fired up the sleds and east-bound we went, crossing the stellar bridge, then up in elevation we started climbing via that long hill that goes for several kms.
Hard Workout
The snow just kept getting deeper. Sean and I each took turns breaking trail until the XCR could no longer make progress. By now, we were above our knees in snow which was quite phenominal to see so early in the season. We walked ahead, packing down a path, then returning back to the sleds with one guy pulling and the other pushing. Progress was slow but steady. The helmets were peeled off and the jackets wide-open to help cool down our bodies. We finally made our way to the west end of Lac Cherie and that much closer to the Laughing Lake Road near the Domtar junction.
A Tough Go
As Kenny Rogers once said, “Know When to Hold Them and Know When to Fold them”. That was exactly the situation we got ourselves into as we rode right into the middle of an unfrozen swamp at the top end of Lac Cherie. It didn’t look pretty. Should we gamble and go full throttle right through and hope for the best or should we turn around and get ourselves the heck out? Damn It, we were so close and only 4kms away from the Laughing Lake Road / Domtar junction. Fortunately, we made the right call and turned around. Oh well, you can’t win them all. We reversed our path and headed back out to the Whitman Dam road. From there, we shot north to Ogidaki Mountain for an afternoon of deep power riding and more grueling punishment of closer to waistline-deep snow.
