Harold O'Connor, George Wallis, and Tom Keogh (cook) at the BC Mountaineering Club's Black Tusk meadows camp, said to be "probably 1930."

For those focused on exploration, a camp cook must have been indispensable. Was the cook one of the untold heroes of these camps? It could not have been easy to cook for a large group of hungry people at roughly 1700 metres (~5500 feet), with basic supplies and probably a lot of insects swarming about. Hope he was paid well.

The BC Mountaineering Club's summer camps were big expeditions. The men and women would not be able to carry camping gear, equipment, food and supplies for a large group of people in backpacks alone.

Thank goodness for horses, such as these trekking to the camp at Black Tusk meadows in 1935.

This was the sixth camp attended by G. Wallis who took the photo.

Without horses, BC Mountaineering Club summer camps may not have been feasible. With so many supplies to take for a large group for two or more weeks, horses were the only way to get everything they needed to the site. Even carrying one tent canvas to the site would have been heavy and bulky, let alone several tents, and all the food, blankets and equipment needed.

And with sites such as this one at Black Tusk meadows being approximately 1700 metres (~5500 feet) in elevation, these camps were a long trek to get there. Year unknown.

Stopping for a smoke seems to be at least one of the reasons this group is taking a break from a hike in the Black Tusk area in 1914.

A group of mountaineers pose for a group photo in 1914. Location unknown but likely to be a BC Mountaineering Club Camp, perhaps around the Black Tusk Meadows. The woman fifth from right reached the top of Black Tusk as she is seen in item 57-006 on the summit. How many more of these women also reached the summit?

Mountaineers at the BC Mountaineering Club Black Tusk Meadows trip in 1916. The man in the front seems to be cleaning or maintaining his hobnail boots. A wise decision seeing how important good boots are for giving you solid grip when mountaineering.

Rosemary Weaver in the meadow beneath Black Tusk, 1935

Holly (last name unknown), Nellie Chapman and two unnamed mountaineers on the slopes of Black Tusk. Nellie explains in the photo caption that she and Holly “climbed part way up the chimney and through the shale which slid from them”, which they found to be “rather exciting”. She also notes that the snow on the downslope is from a “moving glacier”. Taken in 1910.

A sense of adventure was not the only thing that drove early settlers to explore the mountains. Many felt attracted to the plants, insects, birds and other animals they found. For them, summer expeditions were a time to research as well as climb.

The BC Mountaineering Club had a Botanical Section that at one time had more members than active mountaineers. In 1918 they joined with Vancouver’s Arbor-Day Association to form the Vancouver Natural History Society.

In this photo, a botanist is at “work” in his tent in 1917. Although the location is unknown, it is possible he is on a summer expedition to the Black Tusk meadows area.

This photo was taken in 1935, but the location of this camp kitchen is unknown. It was probably for a BC Mountaineering Club summer expedition and may have been their camp at Black Tusk Meadows. With a group of hungry mouths to feed after a long day's climb, having a camp cook was essential.

A bugle hangs on the line by the tent. The cook would have used it to call the campers to the dining tent when their food was ready. That sound must have been a joy to hear for the campers.

Members of the BC Mountaineering Club spent summers among wildflower meadows near Black Tusk and Garibaldi Lake. Surrounded by such beauty, it is no wonder they fell in love with this area and wanted to see it protected from natural resource extraction.

This passion for place led to their advocacy for the creation of Garibaldi Park.

Unknown mountaineers on the summit of Black Tusk (2319 metres) in 1914. The peak was first climbed in 1912, and although it is not known when the first woman reached the summit, it is likely that the woman in this photo may have been one of the first; being followed in later years by many more.