Surviving the Grouse Grind

The last time that I went to do the Grouse Grind was a solid two years ago, and regrettably, I haven’t exactly kept myself in the best of shape in the meantime. With a little bit of convincing from some friends, I went to tackle the famous hiking trail — sometimes referred to as nature’s stairmaster — bright and early on Saturday morning at 8am.

Given that it was the weekend, the trail was very busy with tourists and locals alike, so part of the challenge was a) getting past slower people and b) getting out of the way for faster people. In any case, I managed to survive the grueling climb in about the same amount of time it took me to do it two years ago, you know, when I was still a young man.

My friend Angela brought her camera along for the ride, so she took a few pictures along the way. Here I am as I struggle up the trail.

After you get to the top, you can choose to either hike your way back down — which can be a little dangerous and a little torturous on the knees — or you can pony up five bucks and ride the gondola back to the bottom. Obviously, we opted for the latter. Here I am with some of my friends. I’m the goof holding the “downloading ticket.” On a side note, being the geek that I am, you can imagine what was the first thing I thought of when I was handed a ticket for downloading.

At the peak of Vancouver that day, it was very foggy, as if we were in the middle of a cloud. Go there on a clearer day, and there are a number of activities and performances to enjoy. They have random stunt shows and a couple of other things to see, but the vicious hike is probably Grouse Mountain’s biggest attraction during these summer months. Go in the winter and you can enjoy some decent snowboarding and skiing.

If you’re ever in Vancouver, I recommend that you set aside a bright sunny morning to tackle nature’s stairmaster. Times will vary considerably, with the fastest of the fastest being capable of finishing in under 35 minutes (there’s a 70+ year old man that completes the Grouse Grind in about 45-50 minutes and he sometimes does it up to three times in one day). The average, relatively fit person should be able to complete the hike in about an hour and a half.