As I said, this is only a small token of my appreciation. If I learned anything throughout this whole ordeal is that we need to be more generous and open to the people around us. After all, that’s all we really have: friends. When we are gone, they are the ones keeping the memory of ourselves alive. We absolutely need to give back while we can. You can be sure of one thing: I will give back. You are all amazing!

I debated whether I should include names in this post, but I decided to try to include people who helped throughout the official searches, the events following the searches, and the volunteer searches! I am sure I will forget some of you, but know that we are forever grateful!

as well as the many, many, many of you who donated to the cause. We couldn’t have done anything without your generous donations. If I forgot a name, please post a comment and share them with us so we never forget those who have helped our cause. Thank you! 

* click an image for larger size, if you are reading from Facebook, you should visit my site directly to get higher quality pictures. (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format – si vous lisez directement de Facebook, vous devriez visiter mon site directement pour voir les photos en meilleur qualité).

Our fourth, and last, expedition took us to the North side of Saxifrage, much closer to the peak, but not quite at the peak. Seeing as this was our last day hike on the mountain, we really wanted to have a chance to take a look at the other side of Saxifrage, the side where we can see the White Lakes. That view gave us another idea of the mountain ranges behind there and gave us a new viewpoint of the uncovered areas in the mountain range. We took a long route (sorry no map), contouring the peak on the west side, through the forest, and then going up a huge bowl behind the peak. In the picture below, you can see the bowl where we walked up, towards the col on the left. The right side is the ridge we walked on our way out towards lake Valentine and camp.

On our way to the bowl, we had the chance to see a few very cool mountain ranges on the horizon, through the trees. Walking through the woods is not always fun, but the views that you get every now and then are magnificent (see below). I loved walking around there , except for the abundance of mosquitoes!

The peaks through the large overgrown forest were superb!

Flowers in an elevated field with the mountains.

The first thing we all noticed when coming in the bowl behind saxifrage was the amount of bird activity above the forest and near the Saxifrage peak. The birds were all turning around a snow cornice (see pictures below). We noted the approximate coordinates for some of the search teams to go check it out on the next day. They ended up checking on the bird activity and didn’t find anything of interest up there (sigh). In any case, we kept walking up towards the col, and this time around we split up so that we could cover a little bit more terrain, seeing as this space was never fully searched in the past searches. My dad walked up closer at the bottom of the cliffs, I went more in the forest, and our guide stayed between us (keeping an eye on us at all time!).

Birds circling around at the top of the mountain (nothing was found there though).

The snow cornice on top of the mountain.

Once we reached the top of the col, we could see very well behind the Saxifrage peak and beyond. It was super cool to see the White lakes, and once again, we took a moment to appreciate the type of hiking Jon and Rachael enjoyed. The scenery was beautiful, calm, and peaceful. I found those moments to be very helpful and wish I could go there more often, to sit and think a little bit. We had the chance of having a satellite phone with us, so we made a call to my wife, pregnant at the time, to tell her where we were and that we were safe. making a call from the top (almost) of the mountain was pretty surreal. Here are a few shots of the things we got to enjoy while up there.

The cliffs on the way to Saxifrage Peak. It look super dangerous, but in fact it’s probably quite safe as the path as quite large on top.

Dad looking at Saxifrage Peak in wonder.

One of the few wildlife signs we got to see from up there.

This fourth and last hike was our longest walk, but also the most rewarding in my opinion. It gave us an opportunity to walk on the mountain, alone, see a new side of Saxifrage, and also spend a lot of energy. Having said that, we were sure glad that our guide found a shortcut for us to get back to camp as fast as possible (thanks Eric!). We got in time to camp to enjoy one last evening of dining, mosquito-free, around the fire, and enjoy the stars above our heads. Again, at night I got to shoot a few more pictures of the camp, Cassioppe Peak (during the blue hour — see gallery below), the stars, the fire, the sunset, etc. Basically, i tried to capture the best the campsite could offer, before we left. I would love to go back and take more shots, as it is a truly unbelievable place to be. I hope the pictures I took helped motivate people to hike up to the Peaks next summer as it is truly worth it. I know I want to be back next summer!

Cassioppe Peak at the blue hour.

Stars above Blaire’s tent!

* click an image for larger size, if you are reading from Facebook, you should visit my site directly to get higher quality pictures. (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format – si vous lisez directement de Facebook, vous devriez visiter mon site directement pour voir les photos en meilleur qualité).

Before I continue with the story and pictures of our third expedition, I recommend you read a few of the related articles I’ve posted over the past few weeks, if you haven’t already:

• Pique Magazine’s article on Jon and Rachael
• Tim’s press release before the searches
• Day 1: Bushwhacking near Peq Creek
• Day 2: Cassioppe’s Ridge

View of the clouds in the lake Valentine area from helicopter.

So, our third expedition took us to an even better place than the first two. As the map above and the image below show, we walked all the way up to the col between the two peaks. It’s easy to see the area from the Lake Valentine pictures, which show the two peaks. It doesn’t look very far in the photos, but as we learned during this trip, mountain walks are always longer than they look. It took us about 3.5 hours to get to the col, but it gave us the opportunity to see the huge cliffs that are hiding behind Cassioppe Peak. We also saw the whole valley behind the col, which is one of the possible exits off this mountain ( though a somewhat hard one due to some swampy areas). We also saw (partially) the glaciers behind Saxifrage, which is another potential route people take on this mountain (en route to Cirque Pique).

We chose to go to the col to get an idea of the alpine terrain and also to explore an area we hadn’t had a chance to see already. We did the contour of Lake Valentine on the north side and found a nice campsite at the edge of the lake (see pictures below). This area seemed like an obvious place to camp for a couple, which made us wonder if Jon and Rachael could have camped there. In fact, we found a few items there that will be sent to a DNA lab to find out if they belonged to them. We also found a fire pit and some nail clippers. We’ll hopefully have news regarding these items this winter.

View from the campground on the North side of the lake valentine.

After looking around the north side of the lake, we crossed a stream and basically walked up all the way to the col. There were many snow patches, which we had to cross with care because one slip could take you all the way down to the rocks below. (You may notice that the snow has a funny reddish color; this is because of some fungus).

After taking a few stops for photo opportunities (flowers!) and to listen to a few rock avalanches (sorry no pictures!), we finally reached the col between the two peaks. It gave us a really good understanding of why people love to hike and what Jon and Rachael loved so much to do. Even though the clouds were taking over the peaks, we could still get a very good idea of their majesty (and it added a bit of mystery).

Cassioppe’s hidden cliffs behind

Panorama from the top of the col, Cassioppe, Lake Valentine, and Saxifrage to the right (in clouds).

Startrail over Cassioppe’s col

I had time to shoot another star photo while sitting by the fire that night. The nights were cold but mosquito-free (the bugs were *heinous* during the day) and they gave opportunities to shoot some pretty awesome star pictures. Please take time to check the photo gallery below, as it will show the high quality pictures in a large format.

* click an image for larger size, if you are reading from Facebook, you should visit my site directly to get higher quality pictures. (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format – si vous lisez directement de Facebook, vous devriez visiter mon site directement pour voir les photos en meilleur qualité).

The trekking on that day was pretty easy compared to our previous walk where we went bush-whacking near Peq creek. We started with a short walk to the north side of the ridge, where the terrain got steep pretty quickly. However, we were on top of the ridge in about 30 minutes. The vista on top of the ridge were unreal; we could clearly see the meadows down below, leading to Lake Valentine, and could also see the two smaller lakes. (See the next few pictures).

The meadows coming to Lake Valentine.

Cassioppe Ridge (and peak) with both lakes (Valentine on the left).

We reached the other side of Cassioppe Ridge (south side) in no time and found another beautiful meadow with two smaller lakes. Compared to Lake Valentine, it is a much more arid environment (because it’s closer to the alpine), but it is also a very beautiful place to camp. We found a bunch of old things near the lake, like the old oil barrels, but nothing that seemed important for our searches. It took us about 6 hours to do the whole tour and we got back to camp just in time to prepare dinner. At the end of the day, I indulged in an hour or two of night photography. The stars were unbelievable up there.

The MSAT communication tent under the stars (with Cassioppe Peak).

In a few days, I will share some pictures from our third day walking, which was up the ridge between Cassioppe and Saxifrage. An incredible view awaited us up there. Stay tuned.

* click an image for larger size, if you are reading from Facebook, you should visit my site directly to get higher quality pictures. (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format – si vous lisez directement de Facebook, vous devriez visiter mon site directement pour voir les photos en meilleur qualité).

Before I write about our trip, though, I wanted to point out that Alison Taylor of the Whistler Pique magazine wrote an amazing article, entitled Missing in the backcountry, which gives an excellent overview of the events around Jon and Rachael’s disappearance and explains (in more detail than most media coverage) the efforts made to find them (this year and last). I highly recommend you read it if you want to better understand the intensity of the searches.

The two impressive peaks: Saxifrage and Cassioppe.

For the August 2011 searches, as well as the volunteer searches planned by Tim (previous post), we, the family, had planned a bunch of walks around the Lake Valentine area, which we spread over the 4 days we stayed on the mountain. We did this to get a better understanding of the terrain, cover ground that hadn’t been covered before (by SAR nor the volunteers), but also to make peace with the area. It is truly an amazing mountain to walk around; with all the work that went into clearing the trail this year, I highly recommend going to check it out if you can. I know I will go back up next year.

For the first day, our walk would take us from Lake Valentine (our base camp) towards the Peq Creek area, bushwhacking. Looking back, it wasn’t the best place to start as there were no “cool views” (like on day 2) and it was rather difficult terrain. But, it truly was educational for us to understand better what the forest looked like in that area. In fact, I barely got my camera out. I took one or two pictures of the actual walking in the forest and, otherwise, I kept it hidden from all the branches.

On the way there, we did find a few clearings – like the ones above – but it was pretty much bushwhacking the whole way. As you can see in the slideshow below, the forest basically destroyed my pants. The branches were so vicious!

Later on that night, I was able to play around with my camera and take a few pictures of the many stars out that night. You can clearly see the Milky Way and a ton of other star systems. It was pretty cool to spend time shooting the stars. (I did revisit the stars on other days and I think I even took better shots of the Milky Way, but I really liked this one).

* click an image for larger size, if you are reading from Facebook, you should visit my site directly to get higher quality pictures. (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format – si vous lisez directement de Facebook, vous devriez visiter mon site directement pour voir les photos en meilleur qualité).

Those of you who visit my site know that I very rarely post anything unrelated to photography. In fact, it’s been quite a while since I last posted anything at all on the site, but now is the time.

Please share the following media release, from Timothy Lee in BC. Read it and contribute however you can. This is very important to me, my family, and Rachael’s family. Click “like”, send it by e-mail, share it on facebook, do whatever it takes!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!!
much love – bonuel.

[PRESS RELEASE]

What happened to Vancouver residents Rachael Bagnall, 25, and Jonathan Jette, 34?

This question remains an unanswered mystery. Through search efforts last year, interviews and an ongoing RCMP investigation the following facts have been established:

• The couple were both enthusiastic hikers with varying levels of experience.
• They had left for a two to three day hike in the area of Saxifrage and Cassiope peaks, near Pemberton B.C. on Saturday Sept. 4, 2010.
• They each had a large backpack with typical gear suitable for the terrain. In addition, they had at least one ice axe and climbing helmets; however, they had no rope or other climbing gear.
• The couple had used the book written by Matt Gunn “Scrambles in South Western British Columbia” to plan thier trip.
• They did not have a map, compass or GPS.
• They were reported missing on Wednesday, September 8th, 2010.
• Their vehicle was found on the Spetch Creek Forest Service Road, Thursday September 9th, 2010 about 14 kms north of Mount Currie.

Despite the hundreds of hours that were volunteered by dedicated BC Search and Rescue volunteers from across the Province and by concerned private citizens, neither the couple or any of thier gear has been found to date. The data from the previous search effort has been useful in that it has revealed the areas that the couple are not located in. Various hypothesis on where Jonathon and Rachael may have gone missing have been analyzed and refined to identify several higher probability search areas which are being mapped out and will be the focus of the upcoming search.

While it is unfortunate that the missing couple could not be found alive, both families would benefit from the closure of finding the remains of thier loved ones. Jonathan’s mom Lise Grenier says, “I miss my son every minute and I cry every night.”

Several private citizens that volunteered in last years search had pledged to the families that they would return to the area once snow levels subsided in late August for one last major search effort. The dates for the recommencement of the planned private search effort are August 18th until August 27th. If this interests you – PLEASE JOIN US! The search team is looking for a few good volunteers. There is no pay, the work is demanding and you are not covered by WCB is you twist an ankle or break something. On the flip side it is a beautiful area of BC and you will be hiking with a purpose greater than summitting a peak or experienceing the outdoors. You will gain a sense of satisfaction from making your contribution to finding the loved ones of others and you will be sure to make some new friends along the way.

You need to know that the terrain will be rugged and there are areas of dense vegetation where you could easily become lost. In addition to the usual bugs, there are likely to be both Grizzly and Black bears in the area and a Cougar was sighted in the area last year. With the potential of finding human remains, you need to be mentally and emotionally prepared as well. You need to be in good physical condition as well as an experienced and well equipped back country hiker. In addition to the ten essentials, your personal kit must contain : a GPS unit with spare batteries, bear deterents, enough food and other supplies for the duration of your participation and if possible a programmable VHF radio. For the safety of all involved, search teams consisting of a minimum of three persons will be using search assignments that include GPS coordinates, maps and other assets. These will be provided to those choosing to participate at a later date. All searches will be conducted on non-technical terrain only that does not require aid of climbing equipment.

The family has hired three professional ACMG mountain guides to complete a separate task involving searches of the technical terrain including bergschrund, mouats, crevasses and steep drainages. We will be camping together with these guides and some of the family members at Valentine Lake. The guides are in no way coordinating the private search efforts or will they be responsible for the safety of any private citizens choosing to get involved. All those choosing to participate will be doing so at thier own risk.

Anyone that is willing to VOLUNTEER is requested to call Tim Lee at 604-866-0688 or post your interest on the following Facebook Group Page and you will be contacted privately:

http://www.facebook.com/Jonathan-Jette-and-Rachel-Bagnall/145670922141704#!/pages/Jonathan-Jette-and-Rachel-Bagnall/145670922141704

For those unable to join in the physical search, there are other ways to help. We could use help with camp set up and cooking, travel logistics, communications, mapping and GPS data management. Financial donations towards the search effort costs can also be made at any Bank of Montreal, account # 0215-001-3997-736 (Gaston Grenier in trust Jonathan Jette) or with paypall at ggrenier@misatours.ca. It’s not always easy to find and motivate volunteers that are willing to contribute to an effort like this unless they are personally connected in some way to those involved. Please consider that this could have happened to the loved ones of someone close to you. Finally, what would you hope for if it was you that were lost, or your family members? If you want to get involved, you can do so by calling right now.

Here are some photos from the last time we were there. I will post some more when i come back from this summer’s trip.
* click an image for larger size (cliqué sur une image pour la voir en grand format).

Australian Fern, 2006.

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