Favourite Hikes in Southwestern BC: Part V

December 4, 2024November 15, 2024 / Maria / 1 Comment

It’s been over 10 years since I moved to British Columbia, so every 2 years I compile a list of my favourite hikes from the past 2 years. You can view my other favourite hikes in Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4. This collection is my favourite trails that I hiked in 2023 and 2024. It’s always a mix of day hikes and backpacking trips!

Two hikers lay on Starvation Lake on floating pads with the mountains and forest in the background on a warm, sunny day in Summer, near Squamish, BC.

#10 Starvation Lake

This hike is super easy and accessible, but chances are, you’ve never heard of it. The alpine snow was pretty slow to melt in the summer of 2024, so one day in July we decided to check out some of the lesser known trails in Squamish. We wanted to stay at a low elevation and take advantage of lake swimming season. We had Brunch at Fergie’s and then continued to the end of Paradise Valley Road to start this hike. The trail follows the Cheakamus River before a gentle hike uphill on the Sea to Sky Trail. We hiked as far as the Starvation Lake Rec Site and spent several hours lounging around and swimming in the warm water. You can continue hiking further to connect with the Sea to Sky highway (if you have two cars), but we enjoyed a round trip from the lake. (6km roundtrip, 130m elevation gain)

A group of snowshoers head downhill in winter on a snowy mountain with snow covered trees and a view of Vancouver city in the background from Brockton Point in Seymour Mountain Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada.

#9 Brockton Point

Brockton Point is well known among the skiing and snowshoeing crowd. It’s a hike I’ve done several times, but I only started to appreciate it in the past few years. I recommend doing it in the winter, just make sure to book a free parking pass for Mount Seymour Backcountry or you’ll be denied access. Recently I’ve been ski touring up to Brockton Point and then skiing back down through the resort trails, but it’s also a really nice snowshoeing trail. The trail starts at the back of the parking lot and hikes parallel to the ski run. Most users continue past Brockton Point to Pump Peak, but this takes you into avalanche terrain, so don’t go further without the proper gear and training. I always stop at Brockton because the view is great there anyways! (6km roundtrip, 270m elevation gain)

A photo of a tent in a meadow just before sunrise, as the sun turns the surrounding mountains orange on a clear sky day overlooking the alpine and forest around Jade Lake in Mount Revelstoke National Park in BC.

#8 Jade Lake

In line with my other posts, I’m not afraid to stretch the boundaries of what is considered “southwestern BC”. Jade Lake is located 6 hours away from Vancouver in Mount Revelstoke National Park, so it’s definitely a bit of a stretch to include it in this list, but it’s a great hike! Eva and Jade Lake can be done as either a backpacking trip, or a long day trip. It’s a little over 20km round trip if you want to do both lakes in a day, so I opted to visit overnight. The hike starts from the top of Mount Revelstoke and meanders through beautiful alpine meadows. After Eva Lake, the hike climbs up the pass for a beautiful view of Jade Lake. Most people stop at the Pass, but it’s definitely worth it to add the extra 2km down to Jade Lake, which is a gorgeous alpine lake that receives limited visitors compared to the rest of the park. (20km roundtrip, 525m elevation gain)

A hiker stands on the edge of a rock next to Widgeon Creek with the forest and mountains in the background on a sunny day

#7 Widgeon Falls

Widgeon Falls is a really unique hike because it’s only accessible by boat! In the summer, you can rent canoes from Pitt Lake and paddle across the Pitt River and up Widgeon Creek to the Widgeon Campsite (~1.5 hour paddle). It’s a pretty safe paddle, but you definitely want to be prepared if you’ve never canoed before. The Pitt River is tidally influenced and can become pretty fast moving, so research the current conditions before visiting. I think the best time to go is early spring or early summer. Avoid freshet, which causes high flows in the river, but also avoid late summer because then the flows in the creek can get too low. From the campsite, you can hike through the forest and along the river to Widgeon Falls. It’s an easy hike, but makes for a great adventure! (9km roundtrip paddle, 6km roundtrip hike)

A photo of Palmers Pond on a summer day, with the green meadows, forest, and mountains in the background, on the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC Trail) near Hope in British Columbia, Canada.

#6 HBC Heritage Trail

If you know me well, you might be surprised to see this hike on the list. I did not have a great time on this hike. It’s 80km long and me and Carolyn completed the entire trail in 3 days, resulting in a foot injury. I was quite miserable along a lot of the trail, but it was definitely a type 2 kind of fun because I still think about this trail all the time. Like the name suggests, it’s a heritage trail that connects Hope to Tulameen and was used during the fur trade and by First Nations. The trail has a lot of forest walking and is not for the faint of heart after the 2021 flood caused a lot of blowdowns and washouts. Most of the trail has now been repaired by amazing volunteers, but the real reason you do this hike is for the solitude. We encountered a lot of people when we passed through Lodestone Lake Rec Site, but otherwise, we didn’t see a single person on the trail in the entire 3 day weekend we were hiking. Despite the challenges, I think this is a really special trail and you will be rewarded with views at Conglomerate Flats and Palmer’s Pond. It’s a great option if you like a challenge! (80km, 3300m elevation gain, 4-6 days)

A female hiker stands next to a fence, looking out at the fast moving water of Sechelt Inlet near Skookumchuck Narrows, with the mountains in the background on a sunny, summer day, on the Sunshine Coast, BC.

#5 Skookumchuck Narrows

This is a small and easy trail on the Sunshine Coast, but I really enjoyed visiting it. After you take the ferry to Langdale, drive all the way north to Earls Cove and take the turn off to Egmont. It’s a relatively easy hike, so make a day of it and visit the small village of Egmont and go for a swim in Waugh Lake on the way back. There’s a tiny cafe along the trail, so you can reward yourself with a little treat. The trail hikes through the woods to a series of viewpoints at the Sechelt Rapids. The main reason to visit is to see the series of rapids that develop during tide change, which are popular among kayakers and whitewater enthusiasts. The views of Sechelt Inlet are gorgeous, and it’s really fun to watch the thrill seekers playing in the rapids! (9km roundtrip, 150m elevation gain)

A female hiker floats in an alpine lake while swimming at Blanca Lake, with the mountains in the background on a blue sky, sunny day, north of Squamish, BC

#4 Blanca Lake

Blanca Lake is still a relatively little known hike, but it is quickly becoming popular. It’s located really far down the Squamish River FSR, off the Elaho Mainline on E300 line. 4WD is required to get to the trailhead. You could try taking a car partway up the E300, but it’s 10km long and completely exposed. We picked up a few hitchhikers who were getting ready to quit from the heat. If you make it to the trailhead, it’s a short but steep hike up to the alpine. There’s a steep climb in the first 1.5km, but then the incline is more gentle for the remaining 3km up to the lake. You can visit as a day hike or an overnight. We stayed one night and there is a lot of space for tents. If you have the time, stay 2 nights to explore the surrounding alpine area. There’s no trails, but there’s lots of terrain to explore! (9km roundtrip, 500m elevation gain)

A landscape photo of the trees, mountains, and ponds, from the top of Mount Steele in Tetrahedron Provincial Park on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, Canada.

#3 Tetrahedron Park

Tetrahedron Park is located on the lower Sunshine Coast and has an amazing hut system that can be utilized all year round. Drive to Sechelt and take Sechelt Inlet Road out to the Gray Creek FSR. A normal car will get you to the lower parking lot, or with 4WD, you can save 1km extra and drive to the upper lot. You can visit Tetrahedron as a day trip, but I really recommend overnight to take advantage of the huts (great for beginners). There’s ~30km of hiking and 4 huts. Batchelor Cabin is best for families, Edwards Cabin is a good base camp for day hikes, and the cabins at Mount Steele and McNair Lake are great for more adventurous hikers. I highly recommend summiting Mount Steele, but exercise caution in the winter and watch for avalanche terrain.

A photo of the hiking trail in South Chilcotin Provincial Park that runs to Lorna Pass. The trail is covered in yellow wildflowers in the middle of the forest, with the mountains peaking out in the background on a cloudy day in British Columbia.

#2 South Chilcotin Provincial Park

South Chilcotin is a huge park with so many options for hiking. It’s definitely not a trip you can do for a day, unless you’re a mountain biker, but it’s great for multi day backpacking trips. I visited the park in mid-summer and did a 90km loop around the core area of the park, from Tyaughton Creek, over Deer Pass, to Spruce Lake. Other trip options include exploring the park via the Castle Creek trail or through adjacent Big Creek Park. For a price, you can take a float plane into the core area of the park and stay at fancy mountain lodges with full catering. What’s really nice about this park is the limited number of people and we had the backcountry sites to ourselves most nights.

A photo of Russet Lake with the grassy meadows and the mountains in the background on a smoky summer day in Garibaldi Provincial Park near Whistler, British Columbia, Canada.

#1 Russet Lake

I decided on Russet Lake as my favourite hike of the last two years. It’s a popular hike in the Garibaldi backcountry, but due to trail length and campsite maximums, it’s hard to do as a day hike and not as busy as other trails in the park. You can access the lake via the Singing Pass Trail (free from Whistler base), or take the gondola and peak chair up to the top of the mountain and hike via the Musical Bumps trail (this is what I did). There’s a lot of up and down along this trail, but you’re in the alpine the entire time and it’s absolutely breathtaking! Once you reach the lake, you can pay more to stay in the very beautiful Kees and Claire Hut, or you can stay in the BC Parks campsite at the lake. Stay an extra day if you want to explore the surrounding area. (24km roundtrip, 550m elevation gain)

South Chilcotin Backpacking Trip – The Lakes

October 9, 2024December 18, 2024 / Maria / 5 Comments

Continuing on from Part I, Part II, and Part III. After arriving at Trigger Lake on Day 4, we were firmly in the second part of our trip. We planned to hit Spruce Lake for the next evening, which was 14km away. The hiking was pretty easy on Day 5, and we left Trigger Lake, hoping the next lake would be better for swimming. After a few kilometres, we arrived at Hummingbird Lake. The edge of the lake is located on a rock slide, so you have to cross several boulder fields as you walk along the length of the lake. The campsite is located on the east end of the lake, which is where we were heading, but I could tell it looked pretty shallow on that end. So we stopped before the campsite, on the edge of the boulder field, to go for a swim.

It was an excellent choice. We found a big rock to hang out on and Brandon had a snack while I went for a swim. It was cold, but refreshing and I had a good bath, it was the first time I actually felt clean on the trip. The rocks were still pretty muddy and every one you touched would knock off an inch of mud into the water, but at least you don’t sink down into it! A product of the remoteness I guess, and lack of visitors.

Most of the hiking for the day was in the forest. There’s not a lot of landmarks, so it was hard to decide where to stop for lunch. Eventually we found a nice meadow and took a break for lunch before climbing up towards Spruce Lake. There’s another small campsite called Cowboy Camp along the way, but it doesn’t have any amenities and seemed a bit buggy.

Spruce Lake is interesting because only the east side of the lake is actually located in the Park. There’s a small cutout on the west side of the lake where people own lakefront properties, and we saw some people out on the water in boats. There’s two BC Parks campsites on the lake, but the south site is currently closed. I think there’s a bunch of dead trees in the area that are a fall hazard, so you can’t stay there.

The walk around Spruce Lake to the North campsite is pretty disappointing because you can’t actually see the lake from the trail, so it felt like a long walk. The Spruce Lake campground is by far the largest and most widely used campsite in the park. In was a Thursday, so we were the only ones there when we arrived, but the solo hiker we ran into on our first day told us there had been 11 tents there when she stayed on a Saturday Night.

It’s a large campsite, with lots of space for tents. It has 2 outhouses, a bear cache, and a ton of picnic tables. We claimed the campsite closest to the lake and took over the picnic table. There’s a large wharf, which is used for the float plane operation, and the Tyax lodge is located 10-minute walk away. I went for another swim, but Spruce Lake is also very mucky. I jumped in off the end of the wharf, but it’s not very deep and I could still feel the vegetation tickling my toes. There’s no ladder, so I had to brute strength my way back onto the dock.

Eventually some other mountain bikers passed through and went for a swim on their way to the lodge. A bike packer showed up around sunset and camped for the night, but otherwise no one else arrived. It was a warm evening and the sky was clear, so I decided to do a bit of star photography from the dock. Once it got dark, I lay out to take some photos of the milky way. I was still hoping for a glimpse of the northern lights, but no luck! I had to lie super still so as not to rock the wharf and ruin the photos, but I had fun! I also had a good laugh when I realized I could hear Brandon’s snores from the tent echoing across the water!

We’d planned to stay another full day in the park, but we decided to head out one day early. We were going to do another day hike and then re-locate to WD Camp, but it was a Friday heading into the long weekend and we decided we were ready for a real bed. The float plane was running back and forth all morning with a steady stream of long weekend visitors. One couple stopped at Spruce Lake while we were packing up, dropped a pile of giant Rubbermaid containers at the site, and then took off in the plane again, telling us they had a party of 12 on the way in.

To get ahead of the crowds, we decided to do a big day and hike the full 22km back to the car. I’m not going to lie, it was pretty brutal, but I don’t regret it. The first 6km back to WD Camp were pretty good, but re-doing the Tyaughton Creek Trail sucked. There’s a huge climb through some really exposed meadows, which we hit around noon. It was getting really hot and we crawled up it, before stopping for lunch near a stream. The black flies were also pretty relentless, so it was hard to take any good breaks. We passed several groups of hikers and bikers later in the day, who were entering the park for the weekend, which was probably the most people we’d seen all week!

We were a sweaty mess and covered in dirt by the time we reached the car, but so happy to be done! We took a river bath at Tyaughton Creek Rec Site on the way out, and then drove straight to the lodge for supper. It was a lot busier than when we’d entered the park, but they made room for us on the patio, which was nice. There’s not many things more rewarding than a cold beer after a long hike!

Friburg Rec Site was totally full with all the long weekend visitors, so we drove to Mowson Pond Rec Site instead. We easily found a site and Mowson Pond is so much nicer than Friburg! I definitely recommend it as the preferred option if you ever visit. It’s still really close, but it has actual campsites, rather than just a parking lot. There’s also the Gun Creek Rec Site, which is a bit further, but we checked it out on our way back, and it’s also really nice.

So we exited the trail on Friday night and returned home on Saturday. We took the Hurley Forest Road again and discovered an awesome little famers stall in Pemberton Meadows on the way home. It’s basically a little produce stand with a couple of refrigerators. The local farmers stock it and it’s just run on the honour system. Take what you want and put your cash in the money box. I got carrots and beets, and they were the juiciest vegetables I’ve ever had! So good!

So overall, I would definitely consider this trip a success. I’m thrilled that the trip finally made it off my bucket list, but I’ve now added 3 other trails in the park to my list, so it’s really been a net gain. Either way, I’m happy we did it and I would absolutely return again in the future!

South Chilcotin Backpacking Trip – Deer Pass

October 2, 2024December 18, 2024 / Maria / 5 Comments

Continuing on from Part I and Part II, on Day 4, we had a big hike up and over Deer Pass to access the southern part of the park. It has been relatively cool in previous days, but the weather was starting to get hotter. We got up early to say goodbye to Siwash Meadows. Fortunately, we didn’t see any bears while we were staying in the meadow, but I did see 2 deer. On the first morning, I saw a doe staring at me while I made breakfast, and on the second morning, I saw a buck prancing through the meadow! Brandon wasn’t lucky enough to see either, but being at the base of Deer Pass did live up to its name.

The day started with a river crossing. Once you cross over from the meadow, you start a pretty steep climb up through the trees. We ran into our mountain biker friends again when they passed us on the trail (the first rider got spooked by Brandon and thought he was a bear), otherwise, we didn’t see anyone on the trail again that day.

I didn’t mind the hike up through the woods. There’s shade and I didn’t find it too painful. Eventually you pop out in the sub-alpine and continuing climbing until you get into the real alpine. We stopped for a break to take advantage of the shade, since the rest of the pass is extremely exposed. Deer Pass is much more rugged than Lorna Pass. Lorna Pass was a gentle uphill over established trail, while Deer Pass had a lot more switchbacks and exposure to steep run-out zones. There was one part of the trail that was a little confusing because there seems to be have been a small slide that covered the trail and we had to navigate across it.

We were much slower hiking up Deer Pass. In some ways, it’s more scenic. The summit is much more rugged and there’s a gorgeous meadow down in the valley, but you also feel much more exposed. We had to layer up because it started to get really windy and we crawled up some of the steeper sections. But I still really enjoyed it! I think I liked Lorna Pass a little better than Deer Pass, but both are really striking sections of the trail. I love being in the alpine and it felt really rewarding after a lot of forest walking!

Eventually we reached the top of the pass and it’s an incredible feeling crossing over to the other side. The Chilcotin mountains are quite barren and eroded, but when you summit the pass, you can see a whole new mountain range in the distance. They are more characteristic of the rest of the mountains in southwest BC, in that they are less eroded and have glaciers and snow-capped peaks year round.

There’s a little tarn at the top of the summit, which supposedly can be used as a campsite, but it’s extremely windy and exposed up there, so I wouldn’t recommend it. We sheltered behind some bushes to eat lunch, but it was pretty chilly and we put extra layers on for the descent. The descent is a lot more like Lorna Pass, it’s a gradual downhill through the meadows, with a gorgeous creek flowing through it. I’m sure the mountain bikers bombed down a lot faster than we did, but we definitely enjoyed the scenery more!

You stay in the alpine for a few kilometres before returning to the trees. The hike gets really steep again and we climbed down through the trees for what felt like forever, but was in reality, only a few kilometres. Once you reach return to the valley, it’s a short walk to the first of several lakes. All of the lakes have established campsites, and we planned to stop at the first one, Trigger Lake, for the evening. In total, we only hiked 12km, but it took us most of the day.

Trigger Lake is really beautiful and a deep blue colour. Unfortunately, it’s located right in the middle of a river delta. We were the only people at the campsite again, but at least this one had an outhouse, bear cache, and picnic table. We decided to take turns bathing in the lake. There’s no beach and the ground looked pretty muddy, but I found a small rocky section that I thought looked okay.

I knew it would be cold, so I decided to enter the lake at a run, which was a mistake. It turns out, the rocks almost immediately transitions to mud and before I could stop, I was knee deep in it! I more or less collapsed into the water to get my feet out of the mud, but it was hard to bathe while treading water. I eventually went back to shore and almost got stuck in the mud again while walking in. It was so gross; I can still feel the phantom plant life clinging to my toes!

So I would NOT recommend Trigger Lake for swimming. I got an inreach message from Seth, letting me know that the Northern Lights might be visible over the next two nights. I had a look for them when I got up to pee overnight, but I was so exhausted, I didn’t really look too hard. Like with my last post, I have so many photos from this section of the trail, so here’s a few more of my favourites! Continue on for Part IV.