Dawn Patrol: Mount Seymour

Words by: Brent Hillier   Photos by: Brent Hillier, Eli Relke & Cam Thorpe


With the cold snap last week I was left with few options for skiing, even fewer options locally here on the North Shore.

Dawn Patrol: To go ski or bike at an unpleasantly, perhaps even unnaturally early hour.

We loaded the Brento Wagon with four bros and gear and chugged our way up Mount Seymour at 6am. The plan was to ski up the resort for sunrise, and down the groomed trail. No pow, means no reason to go anywhere else; especially out of bounds.

Good Morning Vancouver! 06:00; What's the O stand for? Oh my god it's early! And oh my god it's cold!

She may not be fast, and she may not be pretty, but the Brento Wagon gets the job done.

At the top we jumped out of the car and realized just how cold it really was. The entire process of getting boots and gear together was accompanied by a number of curses and exclamations. It was cold! And not a week earlier we were skiing in +12°C conditions.

From left to right: Eli Relke, Jordan Drinovz & Cam Thorpe making our way up Mystery

I have a saying I picked up a few years back from some of the XC Skiing Instructors on Cypress Mountain: "Be bold and start cold." Usually that means stripping down to a base layer, soft-shell pants, ball cap and some thin gloves. This particular morning meant wearing everything in my pack.

Even a retired Seymour Patroller does his part to keep the public safe. The major question is: How did that rock get there?

We couldn't have timed it better. The sun just peaked over the horizon as we stopped at the top and passed the thermos of coffee around.

We ripped the skins off and made our way down. Back at the car we loaded up and got out of there like we robbed the joint. Home for second breakfast by 9am. It wasn't the adventure we wanted but it was the quick rip we all needed.

When was your last dawn patrol? Comment below.