A Squamish man climbed the Stawamus Chief hike for the 500th time on Saturday, and to make things even more extreme, he’s done one everyday for the last 500 days in a row.
Squamish’s Mike Roberts has been hiking, climbing and running up the iconic 500 metre hike, for his own mental health.
He’s going public with his adventures, to help raise awareness on how physical activity can help those living with mental health issues.
“I was having a lot of mental health issues related to some head trauma injuries,” Roberts said.
Roberts is recovering from substance abuse issues that stemmed from his traumatic brain injury prior to his running renaissance.
“Once I found the right doctor, my life became a lot more manageable and I decided to do this elaborate stunt to see if I could raise awareness for mental health. I decided to do the hardest thing I can imagine, (hike the chief) every day and for 1,111 days in total, in a row.”
Robert’s goal is to climb the Squamish Stawamus Chief more than 1,000 times, every day in a row, in hopes of shedding light on mental health and its impact on the running community.
Other community members in Squamish have taken notice and are participating in some of the climbs with him.
Solana Green said she met Roberts on the popular Squamish trail.
“There are so many inspiring people in Squamish and Mike is one of them,” Green said.
“We can all relate to Mike’s story. We’ve all been in a situation where we haven’t had the best moments and someone has been there to help us and be by our side.”
Green organized a community group hike that accompanied Roberts up the Chief Saturday.