| “I’m 71 now and I still come here 3 to 4 times a week.” | | “I’m 71 now and I still come here 3 to 4 times a week.” | <div class="ExternalClass55746A80183E4607BC8F8C9245087CB5"><p>“I've done just under 5,000 Grouse Grinds. Way back in the early nineties, a friend of mine, Dawn, got me into it and she was kind of a regular here. She took me up and then I went home and said, you know, I don't think I'm ever gonna do that again, because it's not my thing. But sure enough, Dawn calls me up the next morning, she says, ‘Hey, Gerry, you want to go again?’ And the next thing you know, I was hooked. I’m 71 now and I still come here 3 to 4 times a week.”<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-1.jpg, “I’m 71 now and I still come here 3 to 4 times a week.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-1.jpg | |
| “It's a real culture and community.” | | “It's a real culture and community.” | <div class="ExternalClass25AC284EDDF64983B811005F788A1DCA"><p>“I am doing my third time up the BCMC [Route] today with my arm in a sling after separating my shoulder two weeks ago. It's a nice, easy thing to do 'cause it doesn't put any strain on the shoulder like running does. So it's keeping me mentally sane right now. It's a real culture and community, this mountain. Everybody’s just so positive.
I’m just so grateful that they're continuing to preserve [the trail], to keep it going. I've seen lots of trails throughout the North Shore that are really getting broken down. This one's holding up and just looking better every single time I do it.”
<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-2.jpg, “It's a real culture and community.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-2.jpg | |
| “Whenever I do it I feel good that I accomplished something.” | | “Whenever I do it I feel good that I accomplished something.” | <div class="ExternalClassD4956A6642FE4229B0610D8EE7FB4F13"><p>“I usually do [the Grouse Grind Trail] once or twice a year. I have a degenerative disability, spastic paraparesis, it limits my use of my legs. It started impacting me at about 13 years old. It took me four hours to get up the Grind last time. Whenever I do it I feel good that I accomplished something.
I'm not like an ordinary person doing a hike, I guess. Often people will say to me, you're an inspiration, or I've had people say they were gonna turn around and then they saw me hiking and they decided they were going to finish it.”
<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-4.jpg, “Whenever I do it I feel good that I accomplished something.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-4.jpg | |
| “This park is so accessible.” | | “This park is so accessible.” | <div class="ExternalClassC781569343E14FBD9F8250449231362F"><p>“Today I went up the [Grouse Grind Trail] and I’m going down the BCMC [Route]. I just like to prove I can still do it. I’m from Vancouver Island. The fact that this park is so accessible is number one to me, because I don't drive here, I just take public transit. They really have kept the trails intact, which is really nice to see, cause you want to feel like you're in the wilderness when you're outdoors and you don't want to see it all urbanized.”<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-5.jpg, “This park is so accessible.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-5.jpg | |
| “It was really good, good challenge for me.” | | “It was really good, good challenge for me.” | <div class="ExternalClass6DF7ADF7521E4AC9A57BAB487A318C80"><p>“It’s the first time for me, doing the [Grouse Grind Trail]. And I was really surprised that children like five years old or maybe younger than that climbed. And even seniors climbed so quickly. I was really surprised how Canadians are so tough. . It was really good, good challenge for me.”<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-6.jpg, “It was really good, good challenge for me.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-6.jpg | |
| “I set the record this year for the most [Grouse Grind Trail] hikes in one day.” | | “I set the record this year for the most [Grouse Grind Trail] hikes in one day.” | <div class="ExternalClass16DD629D98C049C7A7AFB67331182C13"><p>“I set the record this year for the most [Grouse Grind Trail] hikes in one day. It’s an event that raises funds for North Shore Rescue. It starts at 4:00 am and ends at 10:00 pm and you see how many Grinds you can squeeze in in that timeframe. I did it last year and fell a bit short. I got second with 18 Grinds. And so that kind of ate away at me. And then I wanted to do better this year, and like, I trained pretty much every day for it. I was originally going for 20 times. But I felt really good that day, and I made it all the way to 21 Grinds.”<br></p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-7.jpg, “I set the record this year for the most [Grouse Grind Trail] hikes in one day.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-7.jpg | |
| “It's my getaway.” | | “It's my getaway.” | <div class="ExternalClass3E34F69B72444E978E3A48315FDD2577"><p>Man on the right: “[The Grouse Grind Trail is] like the best in the Lower Mainland. It’s the ultimate challenge for myself and it's my getaway. By the time I get up there, I have absolutely no energy left. My whole body's shaking. I love it. It does so much good for me that I can talk about it forever.”<br></p><p>Man on the left: “I grew up doing the Grind. But it's been a little while, so I'm getting back into it. I think best time I ever did was like 50 minutes or something. That was when I played rugby though, back in the day.” </p></div> | | https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-3.jpg, “It's my getaway.”
https://metrovancouver.org/services/regional-parks/PublishingImages/humans-of-regional-parks-grouse-3.jpg | |