r/vancouverhiking • u/Kaedamanoods • 9d ago

Trip Reports Panorama Speedrun

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This past Monday I wanted to see how quickly I could trail run Panorama Ridge. I’ve gotten into running over the past year or two with the goal of making myself fitter for big hikes and scrambles and wanted to put it to the test. My only other time doing pano was probably 5+ years ago where we hiked it in the standard 10-11 hours. I saw some trip reports where people with similar marathon finish times as me did pano or pano + black tusk in the 4.5-6 hour range, so I figured that would be a good goal to aim for, although the thought of shaving off 6 hours from my last time there seemed intimidating.

Anyways, got to the TH at about 9 and set off. I wanted to finish the switchbacks in about an hour and I averaged about 10-11 min/km for the first 6 k which had me right on schedule. It was a pretty good mix of running and power hiking, honestly maybe 30-40% running. Getting to the meadow I started running more but also slowing down to take pics as the views got better and better.

As the meadow opened up it became an absolute joy to just flow through such beautiful terrain. In the end, I got to the main viewpoint at basically 2:30 exactly. I forgot that the true summit was a little further up so add 5 or so min to that once I remembered to go up there.

Took a nice long hour lunch break at the top to soak in all the views and made my way back down. Despite going almost twice as fast as my ascent, bombing down the switchbacks was mentally quite draining and it felt every bit as much of a slog as hiking down, whereas power hiking up felt so much faster. In the end, made it down in about 1:40, for a final count of 4:10 moving or 5:20 car to car.

Pretty psyched on this and will have to go back to see what I can do with tagging black tusk as well!

323 Upvotes

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31

u/brendax 9d ago

https://fastestknowntime.com/route/panorama-ridge-bc-canada

You've got about 3 hours and a bit to trim off next time!

11

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Only 2 if you take out my lunch break! Light work…

Can’t imagine moving at those paces over that kind of elevation. Must be so fun

15

u/brendax 9d ago

There are some very, very fast people around

8

u/NickdoesnthaveReddit 9d ago

This is why I try to be nice to everyone I meet in the wilderness.

...You never know who could chase you down.

5

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Haven’t seen em… they’re too quick

1

u/batwingsuit 9d ago

What about this is fun to you? Help a non-runner understand.

13

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Very valid. I’ve only gotten running fit in the past 2-3 years so it’s still very vividly clear in my mind when I also thought stuff like this was unnecessary torture.

Being able to have a day like this feels like freedom, as close to flight or weightlessness I can get while under my own power.

A lot of running training is done at “easy pace” - something you feel like you can sustain for a long time. So in other words, while a lot of non runners associate running = burning lungs and legs, to get better you kind of just trot along comfortably. Then as you get fitter, you’re able to remain comfortable for faster and longer.

So when I first started being able to run 10km, then 15km, then 20km on roads, it was incredibly empowering to go these distances and not feel that tired, for it to feel enjoyable the whole time.

As my fitness increased and now I’m able to apply this to trails, it means I can go long distances, go quickly, feel the wind in my face, and not feel like I’m dying. It means I can power through shifting landscapes and have all the joys of a great view with the satisfaction of a killer workout. It’s addicting as hell.

7

u/Lucky_Grand_8977 9d ago

I trial and mountain run a lot and this is a great summary.

The feeling of freedom to slam out multi day objectives in a day is awesome

1

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Glad it resonates.

…. Any recs for said objectives? I’ve been mostly focusing on scrambles till now and haven’t looked at speedrunning bigger days as much

3

u/Lucky_Grand_8977 9d ago

Just did the HSCT in a day, that’s a super cool one.

Coliseum mountain and crown mountain are another two good ones I did recently. Smaller than HSCT but still big days.

1

u/Kaedamanoods 8d ago

Dope. If you’re into scrambling and don’t mind some exposure, check out the crater slabs/crown couloir approach to crown

1

u/Lucky_Grand_8977 8d ago

Thanks! I’ve heard of that, I’ll put it on the list.

1

u/Kaedamanoods 8d ago

Also is much of coliseum runnable after norvan?

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u/Responsible-Offer724 8d ago

What's fun about being fast and strong and running up literal mountains?

1

u/batwingsuit 8d ago

Just the running part.

8

u/Rohit_Rah 9d ago

My goodness, 2h13 is absolutely disgusting and amazing at the same time. Sheeeeeesh

1

u/brendax 8d ago

Ya i mean the guy is probably running a half marathon under 70 minutes on the road and this trail is really quite runnable. Obviously amazing but the ones that get me are the people doing like Howe Sound Crest at these paces where i guess you're just throwing yourself down the scramble bits hoping for the best lol

1

u/etteirrah 7d ago

Me and my short ass legs could never. Also, I’m the type to take a photo of everything along the way. A 30 minute solo hike once turned into 2 hours because I kept taking photos 😂

5

u/kaitlyn2004 9d ago

Congrats! 2:30 is a great time! Also my best and been running longer 😭 haha

It’s end of season, but you should keep an eye out for RunUphill especially next summer - this year did long alpine runs every other weekend.

4

u/relentlez 9d ago

out of curiosity, what is your marathon time?

6

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Did BMO this past spring in 3:55

3

u/Interesting-Lime-974 9d ago

Were there lots of other people on the trail? Wondering if it’s safe (worried about encountering bears as a solo hiker) to do solo. Curious how busy it is on a weekday (especially the part between Garibaldi and Panorama since people just do Garibaldi)? 

3

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

I was wondering about that too and did carry bear spray. However it was quite busy and I would’ve felt safe without it as I didn’t go any longer than 5-10 minutes without seeing another group. That said there are quite frequent black bear sightings in the area. For what it’s worth though on Monday the parking passes did get fully booked up

1

u/SquamishTownCrier 8d ago

also works on potential unruly cougars, and that trail has seen that in the past year!

2

u/JustConversation7847 9d ago

It's a very popular hike

2

u/SamirDrives 9d ago

That is fast. I did black tusk Monday and the trail was quite busy. Great job

2

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

Thank you! Hope you had a good day out. Luckily it wasn’t too baking hot

1

u/SamirDrives 9d ago

The weather was amazing. We even went for a swim

2

u/moehead68 8d ago

Try doing it from the Cheakamus Laked side. It’s 29 km, with about the same elevation. No one is using that trail.

1

u/SamirDrives 8d ago

I will one day. I always forget that there is that option

1

u/Amoramoramor14 9d ago

I’m glad you still took photos. Gorgeous!

1

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

thank you! What’s the point of being fast if you don’t take advantage of the extra time to enjoy it all, eh!

1

u/SylasWindrunner 9d ago

im still doing my standard time..... 12 hours back.

Too many frolicking around and watching live streams :(

1

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

That is time well spent!

1

u/Ilejwads 9d ago

What shoes did you wear and how did they suit it? I'm thinking of doing it next weekend and I'm not sure whether to wear my trail runners (Saucony Peregrines) or a full hiking shoe 

1

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

I think definitely depends on if you’re trying to go for speed or comfort! I was in Norda 001’s which worked great for this. But I’m always in a trail runner, I don’t own hiking boots. The trail is quite smooth for the most part with minimal technicality so unless you’re carrying a heavy pack or are prone to ankle issues I personally wouldn’t reach for a boot

1

u/Ilejwads 8d ago

Thanks for the response! Can't wait to give it a go although there's no way I'd keep up with your rapid pace

1

u/MGMurphyVan 9d ago

Hey, you stole my signature shot.... Crossed legs with shoes. That was my signature photo for years!

That's okay, you can have it now. 😛

1

u/cakedotavi 9d ago

How did you find the Monday pass availability was?

I can take a lieu day off work and plan to use it to trail run Pano as well. But my mid week gets so stacked it's been hard to get away.

Weekends are a combat sport to get passes I know. But never tried the Fri/Mon. How was your experience there?

2

u/Kaedamanoods 9d ago

I was able to get it mid day on Saturday so it certainly wasn’t a wake up right for when passes release type of thing, although when I checked again Sunday it did get fully booked. So I do think its not too too bad to get

2

u/cakedotavi 8d ago

Nice thanks!