Brewhahome: One Hut, Too Many Hikers

Trip Date: Saturday, January 11th to Sunday, January 12th, 2025

This report covers our trip to Brew Hut over the weekend of January 11th–12th. With 23 people in total, it was a successful trip with great weather.

Trip Leaders:
Duncan MacIntyre, Quintus Zhou

Trip Members:
Tejas Vijay, Jay Jurado Belamide, Ellen Scott, Joseph Chiao, Edward Riley, Joanne Ho, Helena Sverak, Ann-Cathrin Muller, Robyn Mueller, Laura Romer, Aieshini Udumulage, Meg Slot, Selman Ozer, Lorin Jacob, Ekam Juneja, Chloe Garzon, Lauren Holloway, Julia Jancelewicz, Andre Yu, Richard Hermann, Raditya Rizqia.

Day 1: The Climb Begins

Our trip to Brew Hut started bright and early, or should I say dark and early, on Saturday morning. My car group, featuring Duncan, Joseph, Ann-Cathrin, and me, left Vancouver at around 6:15 AM. With seven cars in total, we all planned to meet near the trailhead around 9:00 AM. But first, an essential pit stop at Tim Hortons in Squamish. I mean, hiking without coffee? Absolutely not. The caffeine kicked in just as we pulled up to the meeting spot, so we were caffeinated and ready to (barely) function.

Once we arrived, drivers dropped everyone off with their gear before parking further down the road. While waiting for the drivers to return, we did a thorough gear check. Snowshoes? Check. Skins? Check. Avalanche beacon? Uh oh. Turns out, the beacon I borrowed from the clubroom was dead as a doorknob. No batteries. Luckily, Joseph came to the rescue with some spare AAA batteries (someone get this guy a medal). Beacon beeping. Note to self, always double-check your batteries.

See, this was my first big trip, and I overpacked like I was preparing for an apocalypse. I came prepared, maybe a little too prepared. I brought 5 liters of water, which had my pack feeling like I was carrying a small child (my bag weighed around 39.5 lbs). I thought I’d rather carry a small ocean than risk dehydration. Turns out, that’s not how hiking works. The group said I should dump some, so I poured out 1/4 of a 1.5 L bottle but held onto most of it anyway. That extra water came back to haunt me later. Rookie mistake.

Gear and beacon check. PC Ekam Juneja

At 10:15 AM, we finally hit the trail. The snow conditions were great, not too icy, with a nice moderate elevation gain to start. Along the way, we passed some mini waterfalls that forced the skiers to remove their skis.

The group started the hike. PC Richard Hermann

PC Richard Hermann

After about three hours, at around 12:55 PM, we stopped at a flat snowfield for a lunch break. It was the perfect spot to rest and wait for the rest of the group to catch up. Little did I know, this was the calm before the storm.

Lunch break! PC Richard Hermann

Post-lunch, things got serious, my backpack decided it hated me. The weight was unbearable, and every step felt like a personal attack. At one point, I stepped onto unstable snow and sank up to my waist. Being 5’8″, that’s a lot of snow to be buried in. Quintus quickly showed me the X-shape trekking pole trick for better surface area, and Richard told me to step on his snowshoes to climb out.

The mountain wanted a hug. PC Richard Hermann

The trail only got steeper from there, and we passed a few sections that were clearly avalanche paths. The snow was slippery, and I had that “If I slip, this is the end” feeling more than once. It was a humbling experience, to say the least. My bag felt like it was trying to drag me back to Vancouver, but Richard, Quintus, and Joseph helped distribute the load (Richard even carried my sleeping pad). With my bag feeling much lighter, I managed to keep up with the middle group—well, sort of. I was technically part of the middle group but was always the last one, watching their backs disappear into the distance.

At around 4.30 PM, as the sun began to set, the wind picked up, and visibility dropped. At one point, I couldn’t see anyone ahead of or behind me. It was just me, the snowshoe tracks, and my increasingly questionable life choices. But I kept going, determined not to be “that person” who needed a rescue.

Lost in the fog

Finally, about 300 meters from the hut, a Swiss skier (I think his name was Logan?) came down to accompany me. Having company made all the difference, especially after my earlier misunderstanding about the hut’s distance. Someone had told me, “200 meters to go,” and I thought, “Oh, easy, just a short stroll!” Turns out, they meant 200 meters of elevation gain. Another rookie mistake.

At 6:10 PM, I stumbled into the hut, exhausted but pretty proud of myself. I cooked dinner, set up my sleeping bag on the second floor, and was out cold by 9:30 PM. That night’s sleep? Absolutely bliss. After running on 1–2 hours of sleep and surviving a grueling 7-hour, 12-km hike, I slept like a baby. This hike somehow fixed my sleeping schedule—which is wild, I’m usually a night owl who thinks 9:30 PM is a ridiculously early bedtime.

Also, it’s worth mentioning the sleeping arrangements. The sleeping conditions inside the hut were… well, let’s call them “cozy.” Good enough, sure, but definitely not spacious enough for all 23 of us to squeeze in comfortably, especially with some hikers not from our group also staying inside. Most of our group managed to find space, a few decided to sleep on the first floor of the hut near the kitchen table because why not roll out a sleeping bag next to breakfast, and others set up winter tents outside, probably for the extra breathing room.

Brew Hut. PC Julia Jancelewicz

When everyone’s a chef but no one’s in charge

Tents outside the hut. PC Julia Jancelewicz

Snow trench sleeping setup. PC Chloe Garzon

Day 2: The Descent

Morning in the hut. PC Richard Hermann

I woke up around 5 or 6 AM, feeling like a new person. With over seven hours of sleep, my trusty camping pillow, and earbuds blocking out all noise, I was ready for day two. After breakfast and melting some snow for water, the group started planning their morning activities. Some decided to summit Brew Mountain, others headed out to ski around the hut. As much as I wanted to join the summit crew, I decided to sit this one out. Honestly, I was intimidated by the idea of climbing more sketchy terrain. Plus, I wanted to save my energy for the hike down.

Instead, I hung out around the hut, snapping photos with Ekam. Ekam took some cool shots of Richard jumping on ski bumps

Richard. PC Ekam Juneja

Summiting Brew Mountain. PC Julia Jancelewicz

Skiers around the hut. PC Joseph Chiao

By 11:15 AM, the snowshoers regrouped, did another beacon check, and began the descent with Laura leading the way. The weather was sunny and a bit windy, and the snow was in decent condition, though the downhill sections were slippery enough to keep things interesting. Anna, Tejas, and I each took a tumble or two, but we were fine. After all, it’s not a proper hike without a few falls, right?

We stopped for a break around 2 PM at the same flat snowfield as the day before, then continued down the mountain. It was a pretty chill hike down, descent felt so much faster, taking only 4.5–5 hours compared to the grueling 7+ hours it took to hike up. By 4:45 PM, we reached the parking spot just as the sun was setting.

After everyone regrouped, the snowboarders and skiers, we drove to Squamish for dinner, looking like a pack of starving hikers attacking our plates.

This trip had a bit of everything. It was tough, tiring, and totally worth it. Big shoutout to everyone who helped me along the way. This was my first big snow hiking trip, but definitely won’t be my last.