Hiking Cirque Lake

August 31, 2025August 21, 2025 / Maria / Leave a comment

Hiking Cirque Lake is a really unique experience located in the Callaghan Valley. I’ve never seen anything about this hike anywhere on social media, I literally stumbled across it while scrolling around GaiaGPS (something I do on a regular basis). So I wasn’t expecting it to be very busy, but other people are clearly aware of it because it was much more crowded than I anticipated.

What makes this hike unique is that you need to paddle across Callaghan Lake to access the trailhead. And in order to get to Callaghan Lake, you need some kind of slightly more rugged vehicle. Lots of information online says you should have 4WD and high clearance to access the lake, but that’s definitely overstating it. I have an AWD Hyundai Tucson SUV and I didn’t have any trouble. Callaghan Valley Road is paved, followed by an 8km drive along Callaghan Lake FSR, which is gravel. What makes it challenging is that there are water bars along the first half of the road, which is uphill. After that, it’s relatively flat and very drivable. The water bars aren’t so large that you need 4WD, although I do think AWD was helpful on one challenging water bar, but having slightly higher clearance is an asset. I wouldn’t take a sedan up to the lake (although I know people do), but I think any SUV could drive the FSR.

Once you make it to Callaghan Lake, there’s a FCFS campsite that is very popular. We arrived around 10am on a Sunday and there were lots of people camping, as well as a decent amount of day users. From the campsite, it’s a 2km paddle across Callaghan Lake to the Cirque Lake trailhead on the far side. Most people were using SUPs to access the trailhead, with the exception of me and Seth (we used our 16′ touring kayaks), and 1 or 2 canoers. There’s lots of room to store your boat at the trailhead and I’d guess there were 20 vessels piled up along the waterfront. So it was busier than I expected, but it didn’t feel crowded once you start hiking.

The thing about this hike is that it’s very short, but very steep because you’re hiking up to a hanging lake. It’s just over 1.5km each way, but it has 350m of elevation gain. I don’t think it’s a frequently maintained trail, so be prepared for a more technical hike. The biggest challenge I had was that when I got out of the kayak, I realized that I’d left my hiking socks in the car! I wore my water shoes in the kayak and had packed my hiking boots, but I didn’t remember to take my socks out of the trunk of the car.

If this trail had been any longer, I probably would have quit there rather than risk the blisters, but it was short enough that I decided to try anyways. I rooted around in my bag for something I could fashion into a pair of socks. I debated cutting up a buff, but landed on utilizing my first aid supplies. I made one sock out of a tensor bandage, and the other one out of a gauze roll. The gauze roll sock felt lighter and more comfortable at first, but became more scratchy the longer I was wearing it. The tensor bandage was bulkier, but mimicked sock material better. They held up, but I was definitely glad to take them off at the end of the hike!

The trail starts by hiking through the woods and quickly comes to a little stream that you have to cross. If you’re willing to get your feet wet, I recommend just walking through it, but that was the last thing I wanted while wearing band-aid socks. It’s a bit tricky to get across otherwise, it’s not fast moving, there’s just not a lot of great places to cross. We sized it up for a bit before using our poles to walk across a log.

After that, the trail continues uphill through the forest. It’s not too steep at first, but it quickly becomes technical as you climb up through the trees. There’s a rope section, although I didn’t find the rope particularly helpful and used the tree roots as handholds instead. Eventually, you pop out of the trees and have to climb up a boulder field. This is the most challenging part of the hike and I highly recommend poles. There’s some scree and loose rocks, so put some space between you and your hiking companions. But there are really nice views looking back towards Callaghan Lake and we could see more paddleboarders heading in as we climbed.

Once you get to the top of the boulder field, there’s still more uphill, but it gets a little less technical. You go back into the trees for a bit and then you climb up over the rocky headland. The trail can get confusing in this section as it branches off in a few places. There’s one place especially where the trail looks like it goes down towards the river flowing out of Cirque Lake, but it actually goes further uphill. I think either way will get you to the lake, but we followed the official trail up. This trail takes you to an overlook looking down on Cirque Lake that is really beautiful.

The worst part of this hike was probably the mosquitoes. Once we got a few photos from the viewpoint, we climbed down some more scree to get to the lakefront. There’s no real beach, but you can spread out along the rocks. This is where the flies got pretty bad. Fortunately, we had our thermacell and set it up right away. Then we went for a quick swim to get away from them while the thermacell worked its magic. The water was really cold, but so refreshing! The wind picked up after we went for a swim, and between that and the thermacell, we were able to tolerate the mosquitoes and ended up hanging out for about an hour while we had lunch.

This is a really beautiful area. It’s located at the start of the alpine and you can just see some of the glaciers peaking over the mountain tops. The mountain tumbles down into the lake on the west side and the east side is carpeted in lush green meadows. You could explore further around the lake if you were inclined, but you have to navigate more boulder field and I didn’t want to trample the meadows. I had debated camping at this location, but because it’s still in Callaghan Lake Provincial Park, there were signs indicating that camping is not permitted, so it’s a great day trip option.

Hiking back down to Callaghan Lake definitely had its challenges along the steep terrain of the boulder field. There’s a fair bit of scree here and poles were really helpful. Our big kayaks had looked excessive as we paddled across flat water on the way to the trailhead, but going back in the afternoon wind, we were thrilled to have them. Typically, the wind always picks up on the water in the afternoon (at least, that’s always been my experience as a paddler). There was a headwind on the way back that we were easily able to counteract in the kayaks, but several of the SUPs were struggling. People tend to go straight across the lake since it’s a relatively short paddle, but if it’s windy, always take the longer route and stick to the shoreline.

Just because it’s a short paddle, it doesn’t remove the danger. Callaghan Lake is glacier fed, so it’s very cold – much colder than going overboard in the ocean. You’ll want to be able to get back in your boat relatively quickly if you fall in, so you should never forego a lifejacket. I didn’t see a single person other than me and Seth wearing a lifejacket. We saw two guys paddling a canoe backwards across the lake (they were sitting forwards, but didn’t realize the entire canoe was backwards), so it was obvious a lot of people weren’t avid paddlers and were just using any means necessary to access the trailhead. In my opinion, it’s not worth that risk. It’s not a hard paddle and most beginners will be fine, but at the very least, wear a lifejacket and understand that it may be much windier on the water if you come back in the afternoon.

But overall, I really enjoyed this hike. I was surprised to see it gaining so much popularity, but it’s definitely for good reason. It’s a beautiful place and it’s relatively low effort to access!

Hiking Decker Tarn

August 24, 2025August 18, 2025 / Maria / Leave a comment

There’s lots of great hiking in Whistler, but it’s easy to forget about it sometimes because of the steep price of the gondola. I buy the 5-day edge card every year, which comes with one free summer sightseeing pass, so I’ve been trying to take more advantage of this free day over the past few years. In 2023, I used it to hike the High Note Trail on Whistler when I backpacked to Russet Lake for a night. This year, I returned to check out the hiking trails on Blackcomb.

There’s lots of unmarked scrambling available on Blackcomb, but if you want to stick to the marked trails, you can knock out most of them in one day along the Decker Tarn Loop Trail. You start by taking the Blackcomb gondola up to Rendez-Vous and then heading into the alpine trail zone. We started by taking the Alpine Loop Trail (#12) onto the Overlord Trail (#13). If you want minimal elevation gain, stick to the Overlord Trail for the rest of the hike. It will take you all the way to Decker Tarn, which has a fantastic viewpoint of Overlord Mountain.

The trail to the viewpoint is ~4.5km, so it doesn’t take too long. If you want to make it a bit more challenging and enjoy some extra viewpoints, you can add in both the Lakeside Loop (#15) and the Decker Loop (#16), which is what I did. The Lakeside Loop hikes up to a little pond, while the Decker Loop has the most elevation gain and hikes up to a viewpoint. The visibility was really poor in the morning on the day I did the hike, so unfortunately, I missed a lot of the views. We enjoyed lunch at the top of the Decker Loop and the clouds started to lift in the afternoon, providing sneak peeks of the backcountry.

I like to do the harder terrain first, so we did the two climbs on the way to Overlord Viewpoint, and fortunately, by the time we made it there, we could see a lot more of the views. We stopped for a second break on some of the big rocks next to Decker Tarn. We debated continuing further and hiking up Decker Mountain (there’s no formal trail, but you can do a scramble to the top), but ultimately decided to head over to Whistler to see the skybridge instead.

The only trails on Blackcomb that we didn’t do were Marmot Trail (#14), mostly because I didn’t see it, and the Blackcomb Burn, which is a series of trails climbing from the base to Rendez-Vous. This is your only option if you don’t want to pay for the gondola. Despite the poor morning views, we still had a great time exploring the trails on Blackcomb because the wildflowers appeared to be approaching peak bloom as we were visiting! I love all the colourful flowers that grow in the backcountry and have been working on my identification skills over the past few summers, so I had fun looking at all the different wildflowers.

After lunch, we took the Peak to Peak gondola over to Whistler, followed by a ride on Peak Chair to the top. There’s now a bridge and lookout on the top of Peak Chair that have incredible views of the surrounding mountains. Even though I get to go up there in the winter, I do enjoy comparing the summer conditions. I don’t find the trails to be too busy on Whistler, it’s mostly locals, but the crowds around the gondola infrastructure and the skybridge are primarily tourists and it can get pretty crowded.

All in all, I had a fun day. We didn’t pick the best day to do the hike since we spent the first 3 hours of the day in the clouds, but we still managed to see all the views and it didn’t cost us anything to ride to the top. Personally, I wouldn’t pay extra for this experience since I ski there every year, but it’s a nice little perk to be able to check out some of the alpine views in the summer. If you’re a local and don’t want to pay for the gondola, there’s so many other hikes to choose from, but for the tourists, I think it’s definitely worth it! Maybe I’ll return sometime in the future for Decker Mountain!

Mount Revelstoke National Park Guide

August 17, 2025July 22, 2025 / Maria / Leave a comment

I visited Mount Revelstoke National Park for the first time in 2024 and had a great time exploring the park. Revelstoke is one of 6 National Park in close proximity in BC and Alberta. It’s one of the smaller National Parks in this area, but it offers some beautiful sights. I’ve also created guides for Yoho, Kootenay, and Banff National Parks, if you want to check out any of those.

Getting There

Mount Revelstoke National Park is located just outside of the town of Revelstoke (very popular for skiing and mountain biking) along Highway 1. If you’ve ever made the drive from Vancouver to the Rockies, you’ve likely driven right past it. If you’re like me, you never made the time to stop in the park along the way. While it’s a large park, it’s not hugely accessible. From the town of Revelstoke, you can take the winding Meadows in the Sky Parkway up to the top of the mountain, exploring trails and viewpoints along the way. It’s the only road in the park, so it’s pretty straight-forward.

Where to Stay

There are 3 main options for where to stay and they really depend on what type of experience you’re looking for. The easiest option is to get a hotel in the town of Revelstoke. There’s lots of cute shops and restaurants in town, so it’s a good option if you don’t want to camp or forget to plan in advance.

The other options are camping, either frontcountry or backcountry, both of which are discussed below. Camping reservations are released by Parks Canada on reservation.pc.gc.ca. These can be somewhat challenging because the entire season releases at once early in the year, often between January and March, depending on the park. It’s easier to get reservations on weekdays, but if you want to camp on a weekend, be prepared to book when the sites release.

Frontcountry Camping

There’s only one frontcountry campground in the National Park: Snowforest Campground. Frontcountry camping is essentially drive-in camping, so you can take everything that you can fit in your car and the sites are easily accessible. Snowforest Campground is located at the base of Revelstoke Mountain, so it’s very close to Revelstoke town. There’s 62 campsites available for booking, so it is a pretty small campground in comparison to Banff and Jasper National Parks. There are flush toilets and hot showers available.

Backcountry Camping

Backcountry camping is my favourite way to visit a park, but it’s very different than frontcountry. It requires hiking and carrying a backpack with everything you need for your trip. If you decide to backpack in Mount Revelstoke National Park, you will be in remote wilderness terrain and must be prepared to be self-sufficient. If that sounds like your cup of tea, there are 2 beautiful backcountry campsites to explore and both can be visited on the same trip.

Eva Lake – Eva Lake is the first of two campsites connecting trails along the top of Mount Revelstoke. It’s an 8km hike each way from the Balsam Lake parking lot to the campsite at Eva Lake. There are 4 tent pads and a 100 year old ranger cabin that can provide shelter for eating.

Jade Lake – Jade Lake is the second of two campsites connecting trails along the top of Mount Revelstoke. It’s a 10km hike each way from the Balsam Lake parking lot to the campsite at Jade Lake. Alternatively, if you’re hiking from Eva Lake, it’s a 5.5km trail. There are 4 tent pads. This campsite is located on the other side of a mountain pass, so it is the more challenging trail.

Backcountry Huts

In researching for this guide, I discovered that there is one backcountry cabin available for camping at Mount Revelstoke. It’s called Caribou Cabin and is only in use in the winter, from December to April. It’s a 9km hike up the mountain along the summit trail, or a 20km hike along the Meadows in the Sky Parkway, which is closed in the winter. It’s definitely a bit of work to access this one, but potentially an incredible experience!

Hiking

Compared to the larger National Parks, hiking is more limited in Mount Revelstoke, but there are still lots of good trail options around the park. Parks Canada has produced a comprehensive guide to the trails around the mountain, which you can view here. I’ve shared some of the highlights below.

Short Summit Trails – If you have limited time in the park, my recommendation is to drive to the Balsam Lake parking lot at the top of Meadows in the Sky Parkway and explore some of the shorter trails. There are two short hikes from the parking lot around Balsam Lake and to Eagle lake. But the best trails are 1km further at the top of Upper Summit Road. You can either hike 1km to the top, or you can take the summit shuttle. From there, you can access the Fire Lookout, Koo Koo Sint, Heather Lake, and First Footsteps trails. These are great for viewing alpine wildflowers in late July/early August.

Short Lower Mountain Trails – If you don’t want to drive to the top of the mountain, there are lots of hiking trails along the lower part of the mountain that can be accessed from Snowforest Campground. This includes Inspiration Woods, Sorenson, and Nels Nelson, among other trails.

Eva/Jade Lakes – If you’re looking for more of a challenge and to really experience the alpine environment, you can day hike or backpack to Eva, Miller, and Jade Lakes. They are all located along the same trail, totaling ~24km if you want to do all three. If you are visiting for a day, I recommend hiking to Eva Lake and Miller Lake, but just hike to the top of the pass, saving ~5km of hiking to and from Jade Lake.

Mountain Trails – Another option for a challenging hike is to hike up the mountain from bottom to top along the Lindmark or Summit Trails.

Boardwalks – If you’re just passing through or are looking for an accessible trail, there are two boardwalk trails located along the highway: Giant Cedars and Skunk Cabbage boardwalks.

National Park Pass

Before visiting, make sure you get your National Park Pass. If you’re visiting in Summer 2025, these passes are free as part of the Canada Strong Pass. Traditionally, they are $10 per person, per day, or you can get the family pass for the whole year for $145, which is applicable to all National Parks. Park passes are needed to park your car and can be picked up from the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre, or from the Parks Canada Administration Office in Revelstoke (which has an automated machine for after-hours).