I’ve hiked this trail countless times and the view at the end always amazes me. While the first half of the trail is fairly straightforward, the second half is rough and if you aren’t paying attention, you might get off track.

Since I’ve hiked this trail so many times (and it’s in my book, Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia), I can help you plan the best route to St. Mark’s Summit and give some tips on how to find all the viewpoints.

In this guide, I’ve got everything you need to know to hike to St. Mark’s Summit. It includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, best time to go, and more
• Tips for hiking to St. Mark’s Summit including what to pack and how to prep
• Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to St. Mark’s Summit – detailed driving directions
• Step-by-step hiking directions so you know what to expect
• Winter hiking and snowshoeing tips for St. Mark’s Summit

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

St Marks Summit Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the St. Mark’s Summit Trail:

Location: The St Marks Summit Trail is located on the southern part of the Howe Sound Crest Trail in Cypress Provincial Park in West Vancouver. It starts next to the lodge at Cypress Mountain Ski Resort.

Duration: 3.5 to 4.5 hours

Distance: 11.5 km

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation Change: ~600 m of elevation gain

Best Time to Go: Mid-June to early November when the trail is snow-free. Pick a clear day to enjoy the views. The trail has significant avalanche danger in the winter (see the snowshoeing section below.)

Day Passes: As of 2024, you do NOT need a BC Parks day pass to hike to St. Mark’s Summit. A few years ago, you did need a day pass for Cypress Provincial Park, but that hasn’t been the case since 2021. Read my guide to BC Parks day passes for more info.

Toilets: There are toilets in the Black Mountain Lodge and Cypress Creek Lodge next to the parking lot. There are no toilets on the trail.

Dogs: Dogs are allowed on this trail but BC Parks rules require them to be on a leash. Use caution near the viewpoints – a dog nearly died here a few years ago when it slipped out of its harness and went over the edge of the cliff.

Bears: This area has black bears. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray.

Indigenous Context: The St Marks Summit Trail is in the traditional territory of the Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ təməxʷ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

What’s with the name? Sometimes spelled “Saint Mark’s Summit”, the peak got its name because for many years St. Mark’s Anglican Church operated a summer camp in Lions Bay below the mountain.

Tips for the St Marks Hike

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the backcountry. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Saint Mark’s Summit like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check trail conditions online using AllTrails or Instagram. This is especially important in the spring or fall when the trail can be icy or snowy.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder, windier, and rainier in the mountains than in the city.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is very rocky and rooty in places. It can also be muddy. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring water and snacks. It is not safe to drink the water from the creeks without boiling, filtering, or treating it because you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (I use a Katadyn BeFree to filter water.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are no garbage cans here so you must take your garbage home with you. Leaving it on the trails attracts animals.
• Bring a camera – it’s gorgeous and you will want tons of pics! But leave the drone at home. Drones aren’t allowed in BC Parks without a commercial filming permit.
• Be Bear aware: There are black bears in this area. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. Read my bear safety tips for more info.

St Marks Summit Trail Map

While the first half of the trail is easy to follow, the second half is rough and can get confusing. Pay close attention to trail markers, especially on the switchbacks. There have been lots of Search and Rescue call-outs for hikers who accidentally went off-trail. I recommend using a GPS mapping app like All Trails+ Gaia GPS to stay on track.

I made a map of the St Mark’s Summit Trail for you using Gaia GPS. Click through to zoom in (and download the GPX track).

You can also use the Cypress Provincial Park map, but it isn’t very detailed so I don’t find it very helpful.

St Marks Summit Driving Directions

The trailhead is about 45 minutes from Vancouver. There is no public transportation to the trailhead so you will need to drive yourself. You can also take a taxi or an Uber, but it can be expensive and sometimes drivers won’t want to come pick you up afterwards.

Here are step-by-step driving directions to the St Mark’s Summit trailhead:

• From Vancouver, go north over the Lions Gate Bridge.
• Follow signs along Marine Drive and Taylor Way to get onto Highway 1 westbound.
• Take Exit 8 onto Cypress Bowl Road.
• Follow Cypress Bowl Road up the mountain to its end at the Cypress Creek Lodge. There is lots of parking in the huge lot.

Here are Google Maps driving directions.

St. Marks Summit Hiking Directions

The route to Saint Mark’s Summit is mostly on the Howe Sound Crest Trail. However, there are a few different options for starting the hike.

My recommended route below adds about 0.5 km more distance than the most direct route. But it includes a walk through a unique subalpine meadow and a great viewpoint. On the way back, my route takes the most direct way to the parking lot.

To help keep you on track, here is a brief overview of the key distances on the hike to St. Mark’s Summit:

Trailhead to the HSCT Junction Info Kiosk

To start the hike, walk through the parking lot and past the lodge. Depending on when you visit, the restaurant and cafe here may be open. Just past the end of the lodge, go straight onto the Yew Lake Trail leading into the trees. A minute later, follow the trail as it goes around the bottom of the ski lift and continues into the forest.

Ignore a trail heading left a few minutes later. It goes uphill to Black Mountain, Cabin Lake, and Eagle Bluffs. Continue straight. The trail here is part of wheelchair accessible loop so it is wide and flat. The babbling waters of Cypress Creek are to your left.

A few minutes later, arrive on the shores of marshy Yew Lake, which is more of a pond. Stay on the trail as it goes around the lake and then curls right into a swampy meadow with some small ponds. Ignore a trail going right – this is the other half of the Yew Lake Trail.

Instead, to straight onto the Old Growth Trail. Walk back into the forest, which includes some huge Old Growth trees. At a fork, you can go either right or left – they meet up again less than 100 m later. A minute after the two trails meet up, emerge onto an old gravel road. This road is also known as the Howe Sound Crest Trail West (HSCT West).

Turn left and follow the road for a few minutes until the road ends and a trail goes right. Head uphill on switchbacks. This is the first real climb of the hike and it is steep in places. About 0.6 km later after gaining about 90 m, reach another junction.

Turn left and follow the trail gently downhill to Bowen Lookout. There is a great view down to Howe Sound, Bowen Island, and the Sunshine Coast. The trees are growing up a little bit and starting to block the view, but it’s still a great place to take a break.

When you are ready to continue, retrace your steps back to the HSCT West. Turn left and follow it uphill for a few minutes to a junction. There is a large info kiosk sign here with a trail map. The HSCT East heads downhill to the right.

HSCT Junction Info Kiosk to Strachan Meadows

From the info kiosk, turn left onto the main Howe Sound Crest Trail. There is a brief gap in the trees here with a distant view of the Lions.

Follow the trail down a small hill. The trail curls north and stays fairly flat for the next kilometre. Keep an eye out for some huge trees through here.

You’ll cross two creek gullies. In the early season, these will be wet, but they mostly dry up by the end of summer. When you pass through these gullies notice how there are bushes here instead of trees. That’s because avalanches roar through here every winter and spring.

About 3.9 km from the start, reach a bridge in an open area known as Strachan Meadows. If you need water, this is the only reliable place on the hike to get it. But be sure to filter or treat it first as it is not safe to drink.

Strachan Meadows to the Summit

The first few minutes after the bridge continue along on the same wide and well-maintained gravel trail you have been following since the beginning. The trail heads up a few switchbacks and eventually, the smooth gravel disappears and the trail becomes very rough, rooty, rocky, and eroded.

BC Parks has slowly been working on upgrading this trail for over 10 years, but due to chronic underfunding, they are only able to fix a few dozen meters of trail per year. And the remaining trail keeps getting more and more eroded. If you want to help make a change, write to your MLA to ask them to increase the BC Parks budget and focus on trail maintenance projects.

Pay close attention to trail markers as you work your way up the deteriorating trail. Many hikers have gotten lost in this section when they accidentally went off-trail. About 4.8 km from the trailhead, the trail reaches the top of a ridge.

The next few minutes are almost flat as you walk through the forest on a broad ridge top. But about half a kilometre later the trail starts to climb again, sometimes with the help of wooden stairs.

About 6 km from the start the trail starts to flatten out and you go through some mucky areas and past some tiny ponds. There are some sections of boardwalk to keep you out of the mud, but in other places, its unavoidable.

Reach the main viewpoint 6.3 km from the trailhead. You can scramble up onto the rock outcropping to the left of the trail to get a great view of Howe Sound and its islands. You can also look across to a clifftop perch jutting out to the north and slightly lower. That’s the lower viewpoint.

To get to the lower viewpoint, continue on the main trail for a few more minutes, then follow a faint trail to the left. This trail is not officially maintained and in a couple of places is very steep. Be careful as you follow it down to the viewpoint. There are actually several trails here so choose the most travelled and safest options.

You’ll get a panoramic view from the lower viewpoint, but be careful as the drop-offs are deadly. A dog nearly died here a few years ago when it slipped out of its harness. And please make room for others at the viewpoint. It might seem like a great place to chat and have lunch, but you’ll be preventing other people from enjoying the view if you sit down here.

When you are done, make your way back to the main trail. Some trails from the lower viewpoint go north to connect with the HSCT on its way to Unnecessary Mountain and beyond to the Lions and eventually Porteau Cove. Make sure you are going south if you want to get back to the parking lot!

Note: None of the viewpoints are at the true peak of St. Mark’s Summit. It’s about 20 minutes higher in the trees to the east of the trail. There are a few faint boot paths through the trees to get there, but the summit itself is in the forest with no views, so few people bother.

Summit Back to the Trailhead

To get back to the trailhead, retrace your steps past the main viewpoint, down past the mucky ponds, across the ridge, and down the switchbacks. Continue on the smoother trail over the bridge in Strachan Meadows, and then through the gullies in the flat section.

Arrive back at the Info Kiosk Junction 9.9 km into your hike. You can follow your earlier route back to the parking lot, but instead, I recommend a more direct route.

From the kiosk, go straight on the HSCT East (don’t turn right onto the HSCT West towards Bowen Lookout). Follow the trail downhill. Within a few minutes, it turns into a gravel road. A few hundred metres later, look for a sign pointing to a trail going right. You can stay on the gravel road and follow it onto a ski run, but the trail is much nicer.

Turn right onto the trail and take it downhill into a beautiful forest. The trail emerges onto another gravel road next to a huge green water tower a few minutes later. Follow the road (which is actually a ski run) downhill. At an open area on your right about 200 m later, you can choose to stay on the ski or go right onto a forest trail one last time.

The ski run route and the forest trail route meet up in front of the lodge within a few minutes. Follow the path along the side of the lodge to head back to the parking lot and finish the hike.

Winter Hiking and Snowshoeing to St Mark’s Summit

With plowed road access to the trailhead thanks to its location at Cypress Mountain ski area, it can be tempting to think that St Mark’s Summit makes a great snowshoeing destination.

However, it is a much more challenging and potentially dangerous trip in winter. The trail markers are harder to see, so it is easy to get off track. You will need to be comfortable with navigation. I use All Trails+ or Gaia GPS.

Each winter there are several Search and Rescue call-outs for lost skiers and snowshoers in this area. It has lots of steep cliffs and terrain traps. Several people have died when they got lost in the snow and then either succumbed to hypothermia or fell off cliffs looking for a way back to the trail.

The trail also has dangerous avalanche terrain, especially between the junction of the two branches of the HSCT and the bridge in Strachan Meadows. Right after the junction, the trail passes through several avalanche chutes. Each winter, avalanches come roaring down these chutes, right across the trail. One year a friend of mine was crossing one of these chutes in the spring and was knocked down by a small avalanche. Thankfully the outcome wasn’t worse!

The first part of the trail up to Bowen Lookout makes a great snowshoe trip since it isn’t in avalanche terrain (and it’s on my list of the best places to snowshoe near Vancouver).

But you should not attempt the trail to St Mark’s Summit past Bowen Lookout in winter unless you have winter navigation experience and avalanche training. Check the avalanche forecast before your trip.

The trail to Saint Mark’s Summit is one of the most popular trails in Vancouver, which isn’t surprising since it has such an amazing view. If you have questions about the trail, ask them in the comments. I’d love to help.

READ NEXT:

• The 10 Best Hikes in Vancouver – A Local’s Guide
• BC Parks Day Passes 2024 – Everything You Need to Know
• Where to Go Snowshoeing in Vancouver
• Get my book: Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia
• The Best Hikes in Squamish, BC (From a Local)
• The Best Hikes in Whistler: A Guide to All the Trails

The post St. Mark’s Summit Hike in West Vancouver appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

While the scrambling sections make the trail a bit of an adventure, it’s doable for most hikers. And since this is a loop hike, you don’t have to go back down the scary scramble sections. Instead, you’ll walk down a logging road that could be boring but actually has great views most of the way.

High Falls Creek is one of my favourite hikes in Squamish – I try to hike every year or two. In this guide, I’ve got everything you need to know to hike the High Falls Creek Trail. It includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, best time to go, and more
• Tips for hiking to High Falls Creek including what to pack and how to prep
• Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the High Falls Creek Trail – detailed logging road driving directions
• Step-by-step hiking directions so you know what to expect

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

High Falls Creek Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the High Falls Creek Trail in Squamish, BC:

Location: The High Falls Creek Trail is located off the Squamish River Forest Service Road west of Squamish.

Duration: 3-4.5 hours

Distance: 8.3 km loop (although if you track it yourself the canyon walls will cause your GPS signal to bounce around a lot so your GPS track will be about 10 or 11 km)

Difficulty: Moderate/Challenging

Elevation Change: 525 m of elevation gain

Best Time to Go: April to November when the trail is snow-free. Pick a clear day to enjoy the views. Avoid wet weather which will make the trail slippery and dangerous.

Toilets: There are no toilets on the trail or anywhere nearby. Brush up on your Leave No Trace bathroom skills: Bring a trowel to dig a cat hole well off the trail to bury your waste. Pack out your used toilet paper.

Drinking Water: There is no access to water on the trail: Pack all the drinking water you will need. While you are hiking in a creek canyon, the water is not accessible.

Dogs: Dogs are allowed on this trail but due to the steep terrain, roped sections, and sheer drop-offs, this might not be the best trail to bring dogs. You would likely have to carry them in some areas.

Bears: This area has both black bears and grizzly bears. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray.

Indigenous Context: The High Falls Creek Trail is in the traditional territory of the Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) Nation. To learn more about Skwxwu7mesh history and culture, visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.

Tips for the High Falls Creek Hike

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the backcountry. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for High Falls Creek like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check trail conditions online using AllTrails or Instagram. This is especially important in the spring or fall when the trail can be icy or snowy.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder, windier, and rainier in the mountains than in the city.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is rocky and loose in places. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are no garbage cans here so you must take your garbage home with you. Leaving it on the trails attracts animals.
• Be Bear aware: There are black bears and grizzly bears in this area. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. Read my bear safety tips for more info.
• Be ready for steep terrain: If you have a fear of heights, this trail will challenge you. There are lots of areas with steep drop-offs near the trail. And you have to climb up some fixed ropes and scrambly slopes. Since it is a loop, most people (even those who hate heights) are ok going up the steep parts since they know they don’t have to go back down. The first roped parts are the scariest – if you can get up those, you’ll do fine on the rest of the trail.

High Falls Creek Trail Map

Some sections of this trail don’t have very many trail markers and it is easy to get confused when the trail braids. I recommend using a GPS mapping app like All Trails+ or Gaia GPS to stay on track. The trailhead is also not that obvious, and All Trails+ can help with that too.

I made a map of the High Falls Creek Trail for you using Gaia GPS. Click through to zoom in (and download the GPX track).

High Falls Creek Driving Directions

The trailhead is about 1 hour and 45 minutes from Vancouver and about 45 minutes from Squamish. There is no public transportation to the trailhead so you will need to drive yourself. The last section of the drive is on a gravel road that is bumpy, but suitable for all vehicles. You’ll be fine in any 2WD vehicle.

Here are step-by-step driving directions to the High Falls Creek trailhead:

• From Vancouver go west on Highway 1, then switch to Highway 99 north. Drive through the communities of Lions Bay, Furry Creek, Britannia Beach and Squamish.
• Just after leaving Squamish, go left onto Squamish Valley Road at the flashing light. (The turn-off to Alice Lake Road is on the other side of the highway.)
• Follow Squamish Valley Road for a few minutes to the bridge over the Cheakamus River. On the other side, keep left at the fork to stay on Squamish Valley Road.
• Follow the road through lots of twists and turns. About 19 km after the fork, the road becomes gravel and switches names to become the Squamish River Forest Service Road.
• Continue on the Squamish River FSR. Drive past the Cheakamus Generating Station about 3.5 km from the end of the pavement. The trailhead and parking area about about 1 km further, just after a small bridge over a branch of High Falls Creek. (If you go over a second bridge, you’ve gone too far.)

Here are Google Maps driving directions. However, you will lose cell service a few minutes after leaving the highway. I recommend using All Trails+ or Gaia GPS for navigation.

Parking

The trailhead is on the right side and is marked with a small sign that can be easy to miss. There is room for a few cars to park in a pull-out at the trailhead and a few more at a pull-out on the other side of the road.

There are also several other pull-outs back the way you came. You can also parallel park on the side of the road, but be sure to pull over as far as you can.

High Falls Creek Hiking Directions

There are three main parts to the High Falls Creek Trail: the canyon (1.5 km), the forest (1.1 km), and the road walk (5.7 km).

High Falls Creek is usually hiked as a loop since the canyon section of the trail is so steep that descending it can be scary and even dangerous. While the road walk section is long and a bit tedious, it does have great views. And it’s much more enjoyable and safe than making an out-and-back hike that descends back through the canyon.

Key Distances

Canyon Section

The trail begins as a wide path through the forest. But within the first minute, it narrows and crosses a bridge over High Falls Creek. Soon after the flat section ends.

Follow trail markers steeply up a series of rocky bluffs. There are fixed ropes and chains to help you up. This is the steepest section of the entire trail and can be daunting for those with a fear of heights. However, there is no real exposure. Take your time and climb carefully.

Continue following the steep trail upwards parallel to the canyon. There are a few more scrambly sections with more ropes and chains to assist you. In a few places the trail braids – choose the widest, most trodden path to stay on track.

There are also a few faint spur trails to the right with views of the canyon. Most of the views are obscured by trees or the sheer steepness of the drop, but you can get some views of the waterfall that gives the creek its name. Be careful near the edges as a slip would be fatal.

About 0.75 km from the trailhead, watch for an obvious spur trail to the right. This leads to the main view of the falls. You can look along the length of the canyon to see the falls shooting off a ledge.

Continue along the trail as it stays beside the edge of the canyon and climbs up more cables. You will get more views of the falls through the trees here, but the growth prevents you from getting a clear view.

Be sure to follow a trail to the left to a great viewpoint on a rock slab for great views of the Squamish Valley and the Tantalus Mountains on the other side. You can also see Crooked Falls on the other side of the river.

Keep climbing uphill through the forest and patches of rock slabs. Reach a large rock cairn that marks a junction. Go right for a few minutes to reach the Upper Falls viewpoint. You can look down into the pool at the top of High Falls Creek Falls and upstream to a smaller waterfall just above the main falls.

Retrace your steps back to the cairn and stay on the trail as it continues uphill with the help of another rope. Reach another scenic viewpoint on a rocky outcrop 1.5 km from the trailhead.

Forest Section

Follow the trail up a rock slab and into the forest. You have finished most of the climbing. Stay on the trail (marked with orange squares) as it meanders through old-growth forest. Watch for several gorgeous large Western red cedars and Douglas firs. There are also lots of mushrooms in fall.

Reach a junction 2.4 km from the trailhead and turn left. This is a short-cut up to your return route on the road. The original High Falls Creek Trail continues for another kilometre through the forest, but the scenery is similar and not worth hiking. These days most people take the shortcut so the original route is not very well travelled.

Follow the shortcut trail uphill through the forest for a few minutes until you pop out on a gravel road.

Road Section

The remainder of your hike is on gravel forest roads. While the road walking is fairly boring, there are some great views, so it’s worth it. In places the road is steep and loose, but for the most part, it is easy walking.

From the spot where the shortcut trail meets the road, turn left and follow the road downhill through regenerating forest. You are on Branch 200 FSR which sees a little bit of vehicle traffic from hikers and 4x4ers heading to the Tricouni Peak and Cloudburst Peak areas. Listen for vehicles approaching and get out of the way.

About 4 km from the trailhead the road emerges into a talus field. There are great views in this section as you look north down the Squamish River Valley to the glaciers around Icecap Peak.

Ignore Branch 220 going uphill to the right at 4.6 km and continue downhill on Branch 200 as it goes around a hairpin curve. Reach the junction with the Squamish River FSR about 6.8 km from the trailhead.

Turn left and walk along the alder and big leaf maple-lined Squamish River FSR for about 1.5 km back to the trailhead. This road sees a lot more traffic, so be sure to walk on the left facing traffic and stay well to the side. This part of the road can flood during the spring melt or fall storms and is dusty in summer.

You’ll pass the entrance to the High Falls Recreation Site campground halfway between the end of Branch 200 and the trailhead. If you want to go down to the river, walk through the campground and onto the river bank for another great view. (Psst! This campground is on my list of places to camp in Squamish.)

Arrive back at the trailhead and your vehicle about 8.3 km from your start to finish the High Falls Creek Trail loop.

The High Falls Creek Trail is one of my favourite Squamish hikes for spring or fall days when I want great views and a bit of an adventure. If you’ve got any questions about the trail, ask me in the comments.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Squamish, BC (From a Local)
• Camping in Squamish, BC: 22 Places to Camp Near Squamish
• 70+ Things to do in Squamish (By a Local)
• Hike to Crooked Falls in Squamish

The post High Falls Creek Hike in Squamish (By a Local) appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

You also don’t have to sweat to get there – instead, you can ride the gondola up the mountain from Whistler Village. You can also combine a trip to the hiking trails on Blackcomb with the Peak 2 Peak Gondola (which is one of my picks for the best things to do in Whistler.)

There are so many hikes in Whistler that it can be hard to choose. And honestly, some of the other trails get all the hype. That’s why I think the Blackcomb Alpine Trails are underrated. They have incredible views, easy trails, easy access via the gondola, an otherworldly above-treeline alpine location… and a fraction of the traffic!

I have an annual summer season’s pass for the Whistler Blackcomb Gondola so I’ve hiked this trail quite a few times. This guide includes:

• Blackcomb Hiking Trails Basics including how long it takes, difficulty, cost, best time to go, and more
• Are the Blackcomb hiking trails worth it? My honest opinion on these trails vs. other trails on Whistler Mountain.
• Tips for hiking the Blackcomb Trails including what to pack and how to prep
• Blackcomb Hiking Trails map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the Blackcomb Hiking Trails including parking and which gondola to take
• Step-by-step hiking directions and tips for where to get the best views

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Blackcomb Hiking Trails Basics

There is a great network of alpine trails high on the slopes of Blackcomb Peak. In this guide, I’ve got details for all of the trails up there. To help you make the most of your trip, I’ve also got a step-by-step route that links together the best trails in one killer loop.

Note: There are also three trails lower on the mountain that are collectively called the Blackcomb Burn Ascent Trails. These are workout-style uphill trails like the Grouse Grind. I’m only going to focus on the alpine trails at the top of the mountain in this post since the ascent trails don’t have great views so I only recommend them for a workout.

Duration: 30 min to 4.5 hours

Distance: 1.5 to 9.9 km

Difficulty: Easy to moderate

Elevation Change: 70 to 560 m elevation gain

Cost: $85/adult for an all-day sightseeing lift ticket that also includes the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. (If you plan to go sightseeing for more than one day, it’s worth it to buy a season’s pass. That’s what I do.)

Best Time to Go: Late June/early July to late September. The trail is closed the rest of the year. I highly recommend picking a clear day so you can enjoy the views. It’s not worth your money if it’s cloudy.

Toilets: There are no toilets on the trail, but there are toilets at the Rendezvous Lodge where you start and end the hike.

Drinking Water: You can collect water at Blackcomb Lake and Decker Tarn, but you need to filter or treat it first.

Dogs: Only guide dogs and service dogs are allowed.

Caution: Keep an eye on the gondola hours – you don’t want to miss the last one off the mountain!

Indigenous Context: The Blackcomb Trails are in the traditional territory of the Lil’wat and Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) Nations. Their oral tradition teaches us that before settlers arrived, the two Nations shared the Whistler Valley, using summer camps to harvest plants and animals. To learn more, visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.

Are the Blackcomb Hiking Trails Worth It?

Unfortunately, the Whistler Blackcomb Gondola is pretty expensive. So you might be wondering, “Are the Blackcomb Hiking Trails worth it?” and “If I’m paying for the Whistler Blackcomb sightseeing gondola, which hike should I do?”

I’ve hiked all of the trails on both mountains several times. If you only have time for one trail and you’re a moderately fit hiker, I recommend the High Note Trail because it has by far the best views.

But if you want to see something different, have great opportunities for viewing marmots and pikas, and escape the crowds, I think the Blackcomb Alpine Trails are worth it.

My recommendation is to combine your hike on the Blackcomb trails with the Peak 2 Peak gondola and exploring Whistler Peak. That way you get the best bang for your buck.

My guide to visiting Whistler in summer has more tips for making the most of your trip on the Whistler Blackcomb Gondola and Peak2Peak Gondola.

Tips for Hiking for the Blackcomb Trails

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the mountains. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Blackcomb Peak like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check gondola hours and trail status. Make sure the trail is open and the gondola and chairlifts are running by checking hours of operation and trail status online.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder and rainier in the mountains than in the valley.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is steep, rocky, and loose in places. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring water and snacks. It is not safe to drink the water from the lakes without boiling, filtering, or treating it because you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (I use a Katadyn BeFree to filter water.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Bring a camera – it’s gorgeous and you will want tons of pics! But leave the drone at home. Drones aren’t allowed in Whistler without a commercial filming permit.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are garbage cans at Rendezvous Lodge – please pack out your trash.
• Leave time for the Peak 2 Peak Gondola – it’s a spectacular ride and it’s included with your lift ticket. If you have extra time, it’s also worth taking the Peak Chair up to the top of Whistler Peak after you ride the Peak 2 Peak Gondola.

Blackcomb Hiking Trails Map

The Blackcomb trails are easy to follow with lots of signs and maps at every junction.

But it can be helpful to have a map to understand where you are once you leave the map stations. I made you a custom trail map using Gaia GPS, my favourite mapping app. It shows all the locations I mention in this post. Click through to zoom in and explore (and to download the GPX file).

You can also use Whistler Blackcomb’s Alpine Trails Map – they will give you a paper copy when you buy your lift ticket. It’s a beautiful hand-drawn map, and it gives you a vague idea of the terrain. But I don’t find it nearly as helpful as a proper topographic map… which is why I use All Trails+ or Gaia GPS instead.

How to Get to the Blackcomb Trails

Parking

Getting to Whistler is fairly straightforward: Drive Highway 99 north from Vancouver to Whistler. My Sea to Sky Highway Road Trip guide has lots of driving tips and suggestions for where to stop along the way.

Once you get to Whistler, head for the day-use parking lots on Backcomb Way. Here are Google Maps driving directions. From there, walk 5 minutes on the Valley Trail to the Blackcomb Gondola in the Upper Village.

Day-use lots 1 and 2 are the closest parking to the Blackcomb Gondola Base. My budget tip: Park in lots 4 or 5. They are an extra 5-10 minute walk and a bit cheaper. Here is info on current parking rates and hours.

Gondola Ride

The Blackcomb Alpine Trails starts at the top of Blackcomb Peak. To get there you, will need to ride the gondola from Upper Whistler Village. You need to pay to take the gondola, but they only check your ticket at the bottom when you get on the first gondola. They don’t check it again for the Peak 2 Peak Gondola or the Whistler Village Gondola.

Buy your lift tickets at Blackcomb Gondola Base in Upper Whistler Village. Then take the Blackcomb Gondola to its end at Rendezvous Lodge. The takes about 15 minutes. The Lodge has a coffee shop, restaurant, and bathrooms. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola to Whistler is next to Rendezvous Lodge.

Adding the Peak 2 Peak Gondola to Your Hike

If you’ve paid for a summer sightseeing lift ticket, you should make the most of it. And that means riding the Peak 2 Peak Gondola along with hiking on Blackcomb – it’s one of my recommendations for the best things to do in Whistler in summer.

If you want to ride the Peak 2 Peak before your hike, walk to Whistler Base and take the Whistler Village Gondola to Roundhouse Lodge. Then ride the Peak 2 Peak Gondola to Rendezvous Lodge on Blackcomb. If you have time, I recommend taking the Peak Chair to the top of Whistler Peak before getting on the Peak 2 Peak. It is a short walk from the Roundhouse and has incredible views. There’s also a cool suspension bridge up there.

To ride the Peak 2 Peak after hiking on Blackcomb, finish your hike at the Rendezvous Lodge, and then go next door and get on the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. Ride it to Roundhouse Lodge on Whistler, then ride the Whistler Village Gondola back down to Whistler Village. (And of course, add on the Peak Chair if you have time.)

Keep an eye on gondola opening hours to plan your hike and decide when to ride the Peak 2 Peak Gondola.

Hiking Up Via the Ascent Trails

If you don’t want to pay full price to take the gondola, you can hike up via the Blackcomb Ascent Trails instead. This option costs $45 instead of $85.

However, these are steep and challenging trails that take most hikers 3-4 hours. Unless you are a strong hiker, I don’t recommend hiking the Ascent Trails to access the Blackcomb Alpine Trails because you won’t have enough energy or time to complete both hikes.

Blackcomb Alpine Trails Hiking Directions (My Recommended Route)

There are several trails on Blackcomb. Below, I’ve got step-by-step directions for my recommended route which includes most of the trails.

The total stats for my route are below. But in each section, I’ll also give you the option to turn around and go back to the gondola, which will make your trip shorter.

Duration: 3.5-4.5 hours

Distance: 9.9 km loop

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation Change: 560 m elevation gain

To help keep you on track, here is a brief overview of the key distances on this hike:

Alpine Loop

To start the hike, follow the path in front of the Rendezvous Lodge. This is often a good place to spot marmots eating grass or sunbathing on rocks. Marmots are one of my favourite animals and I can’t resist slowing down to watch them. These large rodents whistle when they are scared, which is how nearby Whistler Mountain got its name.

From the Rendezvous Lodge, take the path that goes left around the Peak 2 Peak Gondola to the entrance to the alpine trails. You are now on the Alpine Loop Trail. Go left to start the first part of the loop. (Your return route will take you through the other side of the loop.

Soon you leave the ski hill infrastructure behind. The wide path has great views of Whistler Mountain to your right. Keep your eyes peeled for more marmots here as well as pikas, a tiny round-eared member of the rabbit family.

Reach a junction about 0.9 m from the gondola. Go right onto a short loop to a great viewpoint. Back on the main trail, turn right and reach another junction 100 m later.

If you have had enough, go left to head back to the gondola. It is about 1 km away via the other side of the Alpine Loop Trail.

Overlord Trail (Part 1)

If you want to continue onwards, turn right onto the Overlord Trail. The next kilometre of trail is gradually downhill. It starts in more open and rocky terrain and transitions to patches of meadow. If you visit in late July and early August, you might spot some gorgeous alpine wildflowers here.

Just before you pass underneath the 7th Heaven Express chairlift (about 1.9 km from the gondola), reach a junction with the Lakeside Loop. There are some wide ski hill roads here, so pay attention to the signs to stay on the right track.

Lakeside Loop

From the junction, turn left to start the Lakeside Loop. This trail climbs gradually through meadows and patches of trees. It also crosses a wide ski and grassy ski run.

At the top, reach Blackcomb Lake 2.75 km from the gondola. The turquoise waters of this lake sit in a gravelly bowl right under Blackcomb Peak. This is a good place to take a break on some benches. There are also great views of Whistler Mountain across the valley.

You might also notice a large stone cairn with a plaque that commemorates a ski patroller who was responsible for developing the ski terrain in this area.

When you are ready to continue, follow the trail downhill through the meadows and gravel to another junction with the Overlord Trail 3.2 km from the gondola.

If you want to head back to the gondola it is 2.6 km away via the Overlord and Alpine Loop Trails.

Overlord Trail (Part 2)

But if you want to continue on the loop, turn left and follow the Overlord Trail for a few minutes as it heads downhill, first through the trees and then across a meadow. Reach the junction with the Decker Loop Trail 3.6 km from the gondola.

Decker Loop Trail

Turn left and start up the Decker Loop Trail. This is the only steep and challenging climb of the hike. You’ll gain about 200 m in just 1 kilometre. While the trail is steep, the views are great and it doesn’t take that long.

Stay on the trail as it zigzags up the slope at the edge of a ridge. The trail is often dusty and loose. You’ll want to pause often to catch your breath and to enjoy the views.

Reach the top of the climb at the best viewpoint on Blackcomb 4.6 km from the gondola. From this rocky vantage point, you can look south to Overlord Mountain in Garibaldi Provincial Park. The spectacular Overlord and Fitzsimmons Glaciers spill down its slopes. You can also look back north to Blackcomb Lake and the rocky slopes below Blackcomb Peak.

When you are done enjoying the view, follow the trail through small trees and rocks as it starts to head downhill towards Decker Tarn.

Reach the tarn 5.4 km from the gondola. It sits in a pretty little meadow and is surrounded by a jumble of boulders.

This is my favourite spot on the whole trail. Find a boulder to lounge on and enjoy the scenery. You can also explore the shoreline a bit, but tread lightly as this is a fragile ecosystem with a short growing season.

When you are ready to carry on, follow the trail downhill along the creek from the lake outlet – it can be slightly confusing to locate the trail here – look for signs and trail markers.

The trail continues to head gradually downhill as it works its way through patches of meadow and clumps of trees. Arrive back at the junction with the Overlord Trail 6.8 km from the gondola.

Back to the Gondola via the Overlord and Alpine Loop Trails

From here your route back to the gondola is fairly straightforward and mostly uses trails you’ve hiked already. Go straight onto the Overlord Trail and follow it through a meadow and up a small hill to the southern junction with the Lakeside Loop 7.2 km from the gondola.

Continue straight onto a section of the Overlord Trail that you haven’t hiked yet. It climbs gradually and crosses several grassy ski runs as well as a few patches of dense forest.

Arrive at the northern junction with the Lakeside Loop 8.1 km from the gondola. Go straight onto the Overlord Trail. While you have hiked this section of the trail already, now you have to hike it in the uphill direction, which might be a little tiring at the end of the day. Thankfully, it’s fairly short.

Reach the junction with the Alpine Loop Trail 9 km from the gondola. Turn right to hike the other side of the loop. The trail weaves through rocky terrain. It’s a good place to spot pikas and marmots.

Towards the end, it crosses a rocky slope before joining a ski area access road to head downhill to the Peak 2 Peak gondola, the Rendezvous Lodge, and the Blackcomb Gondola.

Finish your hike back at the Rendezvous Lodge. Head out to their patio to have a drink on their patio – I love the views there! Or jump on the Peak 2 Peak gondola and ride over to Whistler to relax at the Umbrella Bar on the patio at the Roundhouse Lodge.

I hope you enjoy your hike on the Blackcomb Alpine Hiking Trails. I love the contrast of the gravel alpine moonscape with the lush wildflower meadows. And don’t forget those cute marmots! If you’ve got questions about the trail, ask them in the comments and I’ll help you out.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Whistler: A Guide to All the Trails
• Visiting Whistler, BC in Summer (By a Local)
• 80+ Things to Do in Whistler (By a Local)
• High Note Trail in Whistler Hiking Guide (By a Season’s Pass Holder)
• Joffre Lakes Hike (By a Local)
• Whistler Train Wreck Hike

The post Blackcomb Hiking Trails in Whistler (By a Season’s Pass Holder) appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

I first hiked to Semaphore Lakes back in 2014. (In fact, an earlier version of this trail guide was the very first post on this blog!) I’ve returned a few more times over the years to enjoy the incredible scenery and easily accessible backcountry camping.

For years the area was in danger of being loved to death since it didn’t have any facilities, but that changed a few years ago. Now the area is an official BC Recreation Area and has outhouses, food caches, designated camping areas, and trail signs to protect the fragile ecosystem.

If you visit Semaphore Lakes, please tread lightly and treat this beautiful place with respect.

In this guide, I’ve got everything you need to know to visit Semaphore Lakes. It includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, best time to go, and more
• Tips for hiking to Semaphore Lakes including what to pack and how to prep
• Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the Semaphore Lakes trail – detailed logging road driving directions
• Step-by-step hiking directions so you know what to expect
• Extending your trip – my picks for hikes you can do from Semaphore Lakes
• Backcountry camping – info on where to camp and what to expect at each campground

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

Semaphore Lakes Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the Semaphore Lakes Trail near Pemberton, BC:

Location: The Semaphore Lakes Trail is located off the Hurley Forest Service Road northwest of Pemberton.

Duration: 2 to 3.5 hours

Distance: 6 km round-trip

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation Change: 385 m of elevation gain

Backcountry Camping: There is free first-come, first-served camping at each of the three lakes. (See the Backcountry Camping section below for more info.)

Best Time to Go: July to late September when the lakes and approach road are snow-free.

Toilets: There are toilets at all three lakes.

Drinking Water: You can fill your bottles at the creek on the hike up, at all three Semaphore Lakes, or at the creek near the third lake. Since people swim in the lakes, and you don’t know if humans or animals have pooped or died upstream, you need to filter or treat all water before you drink it. (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)

Dogs: Allowed on leash.

Fires: Not permitted. Please do not light campfires in this fragile alpine ecosystem.

Bears: This area has both black bears and grizzly bears. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. If you camp, cook well away from your tent and store all food and toiletries in the food caches.

Indigenous Context: The Semaphore Lakes are in the traditional territory of the Lil’wat Nation and the Bridge River Indian Band (Xwísten), both of which are members of the St’át’imc Nation. To learn more about local Indigenous culture and history, visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre in Whistler.

What’s With the Name? The nearby pass is called Railroad Pass because according to local legend, it was once surveyed to see if the railroad between Pemberton and Lillooet should go through this pass. (The route that was built goes through D’Arcy instead.) In the 1970s, mountaineers named several geographic features near the pass using railroad theme: Locomotive, Tender, and Caboose Mountains, and the Train Glacier rise above Semaphore Lake. (If you didn’t know, railway semaphore signals were coloured and patterned metal arms that were raised and lowered along railway lines to give instructions to train drivers.)

Tips for Hiking Semaphore Lakes

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the mountains. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Semaphore Lakes like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check trail conditions online using AllTrails or Instagram. This is especially important in the spring or fall when the trail can be icy or snowy.
• Check road conditions at I Survived the Hurley to make sure the Hurley Forest Service Road is open and in 2WD condition. The road is usually closed due to snow (it is not plowed) between November and late May/early June. It is usually fine for 2WD vehicles unless it has recently washed out in a storm or is being graded.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder, windier, and rainier in the mountains than in the city.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is rocky and loose in places. It can also be quite muddy early in the summer. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Pack bug spray or a head net. The mosquitos and black flies can be bad when the wind dies down, especially in early July.

• Bring water and snacks. It is not safe to drink the water from the lakes or streams without boiling, filtering, or treating it as you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (And people definitely swim in the lakes – I don’t want to drink that unfiltered.) (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are no garbage cans here so you must take your garbage home with you. Leaving it on the trails attracts animals.
• Be Bear aware: There are black bears and grizzly bears in this area, especially in late summer and fall. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. If you camp, cook well away from your tent and store all food and toiletries in the food cache. Read my bear safety tips for more info.
• Learn Leave No Trace skills: This is a fragile alpine ecosystem. While it is protected now, years of irresponsible use have scarred the area. Stick to trails, use the outhouses, and don’t light fires. Try your best to keep this area beautiful.

Semaphore Lakes Trail Map

I made a map of the Semaphore Lakes Trail for you using Gaia GPS, my favourite GPS and mapping app. Click through to zoom in (and download the GPX track).

Semaphore Lakes Driving Directions

The trailhead is about 3.5 hours from Vancouver and about 1 hour from Pemberton. There is no public transportation to the trailhead so you will need to drive yourself.

The last section of the drive is on a gravel road that is steep and bumpy, but usually suitable for all vehicles. I recommend an AWD or 4WD vehicle, but I think 2WD vehicles will be fine most of the time if you go slow. (I once went up in a Toyota Matrix.) Check road conditions on I Survived the Hurley before your trip.

Here are step-by-step driving directions to Semaphore Lakes: From Vancouver, take Highway 1 West and then Highway 99 north to Pemberton. Turn left off Highway 99 onto Pemberton Portage Road at the traffic light in Pemberton (at the intersection with the Petrocan and the McDonald’s).

Follow Pemberton Portage Road for a few minutes to a roundabout, then go left across the train tracks. Two blocks later, go right at the T-junction onto Pemberton Meadows Road. Stay on this road for 23.5 km as it winds through farmland.

Turn right onto Lillooet Forest Service Road and reset your odometer. The road quickly turns to gravel and crosses the river. About 9 km later, veer right at the fork (uphill) onto the signed Hurley Forest Service Road and reset your odometer again. Stay on the Hurley FSR for 14.3 km, ignoring all side branches.

Look for a small parking area on your left 14.3 km after you begin the Hurley. This is the trailhead. There is room for 4 or 5 cars here and room for another 2 or 3 a pull-out just to the south. If they are both full, parallel park, being careful to get as far off the road as possible.

Here are Google Maps driving directions. However, you will lose cell service in the farmlands outside Pemberton. I recommend using All Trails+ or Gaia GPS for navigation.

Semaphore Lakes Hiking Directions

The trailhead is near the parking area on Hurley FSR. There is no sign at the start of the trail, but the footbed is wide and obvious. The first minute of the trail is downhill to a bridge over a small creek. From there the path climbs steeply in the forest.

In a few places, you’ll have to scramble up over tree roots and rock slabs. The trail is often muddy and is sometimes slightly overgrown. You can hear the creek downhill to your left, but you are usually far above it.

About 1.2 km from the trailhead the grade eases a bit and the trail comes down beside the creek. The forest starts to thin out here as the vegetation begins to transition to sub-alpine meadows. A few minutes later about 1.7 km from the trailhead, cross the creek on rocks and a log.

On the other side, follow the trail as it climbs up a steep slope and you leave the forest behind. Reach a junction about 200 m after the creek crossing. The trail forks here. Going straight ahead is the most direct route to the second and third lakes, but is a bit steeper since it goes up and over a little knoll.

I prefer to go right to contour around the knoll. This route also takes you to the first lake (2 km from the trailhead). The camping area on the other side of the pond at the end of the lake. Turn left once you reach the first lake and follow the trail along the eastern shore. From the end of the first lake, follow the trail south and slightly uphill to the second lake (2.5 km from the trailhead).

There are tons of small social trails amongst the lakes. Some are roped off to allow the sensitive ecosystem to revegetate. Please stick to official trails and avoid less travelled trails as it just leads to more erosion. If you are in doubt about which trail to take, pick the wider one. Or consult a trail app like All Trails+ or Gaia GPS to see if you are on the official trail.

You will start to get views of the Train Glacier and waterfalls spilling down from the melting ice. Locomotive Mountain, Tender Mountain, Caboose Peak, Faceless Mountain, and Face Mountain dominate the skyline. (More details on those peaks in the Extending Your Trip section below.)

At the far end of the second lake near the camping area there is another junction. The route straight ahead leads to Locomotive Mountain. Instead, go right and slightly downhill. Follow the trail past lots of small ponds, most of which dry up by mid-summer.

Reach the third lake 3 km from the trailhead. There are several routes down to the shoreline and the camping area. This is the official end of the trail. The third lake is fed by the train glacier, so it has the classic turquoise glacial lake colour. Gorgeous!

Find a spot on the shoreline of any of the three lakes to sit and have lunch. You may even want to go for a swim in the chilly water. But please wipe off any sunscreen or bug spray first as these tiny lakes are an important drinking water source for campers!

When you are done admiring the scenery, retrace your steps back to the trailhead. Or see the Extending Your Trip section below for more hiking options.

Extending Your Trip

Since the hike to Semaphore Lakes is so short, many visitors backcountry camp and use it as a base for longer trips. A few trails lead away from the lakes but they all disappear into nothing quite quickly. While they are shown on some maps as trails, they are actually just informal routes – not real trails. Sometimes there are cairns (stacks of rocks) to show you the way, but not always.

You need good off-trail navigation skills to follow any of the routes I mention below. That means that you will need to know both how to use a GPS to follow the route and how to read landmarks to find the best way through micro-terrain.

I met a lot of hikers on the lower slopes of Locomotive Mountain who were unprepared for off-trail navigation. They thought that since the route was shown on All Trails, it would be an easy-to-follow trail. That’s definitely not the case.

Locomotive Mountain

The Scramble to Locomotive Mountain is the most common objective from Semaphore Lakes. It’s about 7 or 8 km round trip from the third lake with about 700 m of elevation gain over very rough terrain.

There are several routes to get there. The route on All Trails starting from the third lake is the most direct, but it is not the easiest or the fastest. Instead, I recommend taking the eastern route starting from the second lake (which is shown as a discontinuous trail on All Trails and Gaia GPS). The first part is a trail through meadows that is easier to walk than the other route, which is very rocky.

The trail disappears and reappears. In between, look for cairns to find the route. It passes several pretty tarns and scrambles over lots of rocks and short cliffs on the way up Locomotive Mountain.

From the shoulder of Locomotive Mountain, you get great views down to the Pemberton Valley below. For some people, this is a worthy objective. You may wish to turn around here.

If you want to continue, it’s another 1.5 km to the summit across rocks and lots of micro-terrain to the 2340 meter-tall summit.

Train Glacier Waterfall

If you want to get a close-up look at the waterfall, there is a rough cairned route across the gravel flats to the waterfall base. It’s about 1 km each way and starts by crossing the creek near the third lake. You can scramble up beside the waterfall for a closer look, but the terrain gets really steep and scrambly fairly quickly.

On your way back from the waterfall you can also explore the Donnelly Creek basin between the waterfall and the third Semaphore Lake. There are lots of beautiful wildflowers in the wet spots. Patches of bright magenta dwarf fireweed, also known as river beauty are the most prominent.

Other Scrambles

Experienced scramblers and mountaineers come to Semaphore Lakes to climb Face Mountain or to complete the Train Glacier Traverse. This route makes a loop from Face Mountain, around to the summits of Faceless, Caboose, and Tender, finishing with Locomotive Mountain and then descending back to the lakes.

These are very challenging routes with lots of navigation, some exposure, and a little bit of glacier travel.

Backcountry Camping at Semaphore Lakes

While it is a short hike from the highway, Semaphore Lakes is a popular backcountry camping location since it has great views and makes a good base camp for scrambles to Locomotive Mountain and other peaks.

Historically, this area had no protection and no facilities. Unfortunately, that meant that people camped and pooped all over the place. Recently, the site became a formal BC Recreation area managed in partnership with Tourism Pemberton.

They created designated camping areas at each of the three lakes. They also installed urine-diversion outhouses and food caches at each camping area. The third lake seems to be the most popular place to camp, mostly because it is at the end of the trail. But the second lake has better views since its a bit more uphill.

All camping is first-come, first-served and there are no fees. It’s free!

The food caches are a little strange – they are homemade using road culverts. Each one has a front and a back compartment. Your stuff will get jumbled with other people’s stuff inside, so I recommend using a lightweight dry bag or stuff sack to keep your food contained and organized.

While the maps on the trail signs make it look like there are individual campsites, in reality, there are no campsites. Perhaps they plan to install tent platforms or clear areas for tents in the future. But right now, you just need to find a flat spot to put your tent. Try to put your tent on gravel or bare dirt – avoid camping on the fragile alpine vegetation.

Please don’t have a campfire here – fires are not allowed. The trees here may look small but they are very old since the growing season is so short. Using them for firewood depletes a rare resource. And the soil here is also fragile since it is a sensitive alpine ecosystem. Fire scars will take decades to revegetate.

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Fingers crossed you get nice weather for your hike to Semaphore Lakes. It’s such a special place! If you have questions about the trail, ask them in the comments. I’d love to help.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Whistler: A Guide to All the Trails
• 32 Best Backpacking Trips in BC
• Joffre Lakes Hike (By a Local)

The post Semaphore Lakes Hike in Pemberton, BC appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

I live in Squamish and have a Sea to Sky Gondola annual pass so I’ve hiked the Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail more times than I can count. I often take visiting friends here since we have a great hike and enjoy the views but still have time to sit on the patio at the Summit Lodge afterward and enjoy the sunshine while eating poutine!

In this post, I’ve got everything you need to know about the Al’s Habrich Trail hike. This guide includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, best time to go, and more
• Tips for the Al’s Habrich Ridge hike including what to pack and how to prep
• Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail – driving directions plus tips for going without a car
• Step-by-step hiking directions so you know what to expect
• Extending your trip – my picks for hikes you can add on
• Snowshoeing and winter hiking – info on the Al’s Habrich hike when it’s snowy

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

Al’s Habrich Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail at the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish:

Location: The trail starts at the top of the Sea to Sky Gondola. You can ride the gondola to get to the trailhead or hike the Sea to Summit Trail first. More details about that in the Getting There section below.

Duration: 3 to 4.5 hours

Distance: 7 km return

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation Change: 545 m

Cost: $65.95 to $72.95 per adult (depending on day of the week)

Best Time to Go: July to early October when the trail is snow-free. I also recommend picking a clear day so you can enjoy the views.

Caution: Check gondola opening hours so you don’t get stuck without a ride down.

Toilets: There are toilets at the top of the Sea to Sky Gondola. There are no toilets on the trail.

Drinking Water: You can fill your bottles at Neverland Lake at the end of the trail. Pack plenty of drinking water. Since you don’t know if humans or animals have pooped or died upstream, you need to filter or treat all water before you drink it.

Dogs: Dogs are not allowed to upload on the Sea to Sky Gondola. However, you can hike the Sea to Summit Trail with your dog, and then hike the Al’s Habrich Trail. Dogs may struggle on both of these trails due to steep sections with fixed ropes. Dogs are allowed to download on the gondola for $20 each.

Indigenous Context: The Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail is in the traditional territory of the Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) Nation. To learn more about Skwxwu7mesh history and culture, visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.

Al’s Habrich Ridge Hiking Tips

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the mountains. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Al’s Habrich Trail like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check trail conditions on the Sea to Sky Gondola Daily Conditions page. This is especially important in the spring or fall when the trail can be icy or snowy.
• Check gondola hours on the Sea to Sky Gondola hours page. You don’t want to miss the last ride down!
• Buy tickets online – you’ll save $4! Local’s tip: If you plan to go up the gondola 3 or more times in a year, it’s worth buying an annual pass.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder and rainier in the mountains than in the city.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is steep and loose in places. And there are sections of travel on slick granite slabs. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring water and snacks. It is not safe to drink the water from the creeks or ponds without boiling, filtering, or treating it as you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are no garbage cans here so you must take your garbage back to the gondola with you. Leaving it in on the trails attracts animals.
• Be Bear aware: It is common to encounter black bears on this trail in late summer and fall especially near Neverland Lake, Neverland Loop, and Yuko’s Ponds. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. Read my bear safety tips for more info.
• Leave some time for the patio: The patio at the Summit Lodge is incredible and you don’t want to miss it. Allow enough time after your hike to sit awhile and have a drink. Or a huge plate of poutine.

Al’s Habrich Trail Map

In most places, the Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail is easy to follow with lots of markers. The trail has coloured markers that are numbered so you can stay on track. But it has a few areas where it gets indistinct.

I made you a custom trail map using Gaia GPS, my favourite mapping app. It shows all the locations I mention in this post. Click through to zoom in and explore (and to download the GPX file).

You can also use the Sea to Sky Gondola Trails Map. It’s available via their app. It’s a beautiful artist-rendered map, and the GPS locating feature on the app tells you where you are. But since it only gives you a vague idea of the terrain and doesn’t show the other unofficial trails (more on those below), I don’t find it nearly as helpful as a proper topographic map… which is why I use All Trails+ or Gaia GPS instead.

How to Get to the Al’s Habrich Trail

Driving Directions

Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail starts at the top of the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish. To get there, drive Highway 1 west from Vancouver, then switch to Highway 99 north. Drive through the communities of Lions Bay, Furry Creek, and Britannia Beach. Just after the traffic light at Shannon Falls, turn right into the signed Sea to Sky Gondola parking lot. Here are Google Maps driving directions.

Getting There By Bus

If you don’t have a car, you can also get to the Sea to Sky Gondola by using the Squamish Connector bus. They offer service from downtown Vancouver to the Sea to Sky Gondola several times a day.

Sea to Sky Gondola

The easiest way to get to the start of Al’s Habrich Trail is to ride the Sea to Sky Gondola. Check opening hours before you go. It’s incredibly scenic and takes about 10 minutes. My tip: Choose the seats that face backwards for the best view.

Gondola tickets are not cheap (About $68 per adult as of 2024) but I think it’s worth it since the views are so good. Once you are at the top you can hike (of course), sit on their gorgeous patio, and walk across the suspension bridge.

Sea to Summit Trail

If you don’t want to pay for the gondola, you can also hike up via the Sea to Summit Trail. This is a steep and challenging trail that takes most hikers 3-4 hours. Unless you are a strong hiker, I don’t recommend hiking the Sea to Summit Trail to access Al’s Habrich Ridge because you won’t have enough energy or time to complete both hikes.

If you hike up the Sea to Summit Trail you can ride the gondola down for just $20.

Al’s Habrich Trail Hiking Directions

To start the hike, get off the gondola and head down the stairs from the lodge. Walk left through the plaza, then follow the gravel road downhill to the east. About 2 minutes from the gondola, arrive at a junction. The service road down to the valley goes hard left, the Wonderland Lake Loop trail goes right and your route goes to the left up the hill on the road.

Walk up the hill on the road passing the gondola generator (which you can hear humming behind the fence). Just as the road starts to curve right, look for the trailhead for Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail on the left next to an open area.

Follow the trail into the trees. The path descends slightly and passes below some cliffs as it curls around a bluff. About 10-15 minutes after leaving the gondola, arrive on the banks of Olesen Creek. (The winter route joins from the right here, but it is roped off in the summertime.)

Cross the creek by hopping across on rocks. There is a rope to hang on to for balance if you need it. In the spring or after heavy rains the creek may be deep enough that your feet might get wet, but usually, there is just a trickle of water.

On the other side of the creek follow the trail uphill through the trees and across rock slabs. There are a few places where you will need to use fixed ropes to help you up slopes. But the ropes are short and fairly easy to navigate.

The trail braids a few times in this section, but if you stay on the widest trail and look for the diamond markers, you will go the right way.

About 30-40 minutes from the gondola you will begin to break out of the forest. The route takes you up along the spine of a wide granite ridge. The route is indistinct here so again, follow the markers and keep to the middle of the ridge to stay on course.

A few minutes later, the views really start to open up to your left. You can look down to Howe Sound below you.

Keep hiking along the ridge. As the granite slabs come to an end, look for cairns showing you the way to your right down into the forest. But before you go into the forest, follow a path across the granite to a small knoll with a great view of Mount Garibaldi/Nch’kay to the north.

When you are ready, follow the cairns into the forest and slightly downhill. Stay on the main trail and follow the markers as the path makes a hard left (and older faint trail goes straight).

From here, you have a short but steep climb up through the forest on a very rooty and rocky trail. Watch for diamond trail markers to stay on track.

When the trail begins to level out, you have almost reached the viewpoints. There will be a large granite bluff to your right and a barely marked side trail for Yuko’s Ponds to your right (more on that below). Go straight towards the main viewpoint on the big granite slab.

This is the best view on the whole trail. You can look down to the waters of Howe Sound and the Sea to Sky Highway snaking its way south.

If you want more views, scramble up the granite bluff behind you. The first part of the ascent is very steep, but the granite provides lots of friction on your boots so it’s doable. You can wander around the top of the bluff to get views down to the town of Squamish and the Squamish River Valley. Take care on the descent as it is steep!

You might choose to make the viewpoints your turn around, and honestly, I think that’s not a bad idea since you have already seen the most spectacular part of the trail. But if you want, you can continue for another 0.8 km to the official end of the trail.

To head to the end of the trail, follow the markers to the right across the rock slabs, then down into the meadows. The trail undulates through pockets of forest and blueberry bushes and past two junction with the Neverland Loop Trail before ending at Neverland Lake.

While Neverland Lake may sound like a picturesque destination and maybe even a place to swim, it’s actually a seasonal pond that dries up into a puddle by late summer. Unfortunately, it’s a bit underwhelming. When you are done at the lake, retrace your steps back to the gondola. Or see the Extending Your Trip section below for more options.

Extending Your Trip

If you have extra time and energy, it’s worth adding some extra distance on to your hike. Here are the best options.

Neverland Loop and Neverland Falls

The Neverland Loop and Neverland Falls Trail makes a great add-on to the Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail since it visits a waterfall and some interesting rock slab areas. It adds about 1 km and 150 m of elevation gain to your trip. But it is a much rougher trail so expect it to take 30 min to an hour.

From Neverland Lake, backtrack to the Neverland Loop junction. Head steeply uphill through the forest. A rope helps you climb up a steep section just below a cliff. At the top of the rope, reach a junction. Go right to get to Neverland Falls.

The trail to Neverland Falls goes through thickets of blueberry bushes as it trends slightly uphill. Reach the base of Neverland Falls about 300 m from the junction.

In early summer the falls will have lots of water and a small pool underneath that you can swim in. But for most of the summer, the falls dry up to a trickle and the pool is too small to be inviting.

If you want to explore further, follow a rough unofficial trail uphill to the right of the falls for about 100 m. It scrambles over rocks and is quite steep. At the top, you can check out Upper Neverland Falls.

After you are finished at the falls, retrace your steps back to the junction with the rope, then go straight. The trail rambles through more forest and blueberry bushes with a cliff on your right. At one point, the path takes you under the overhang of a huge boulder.

After the boulder, the path begins to head downhill on some granite slabs. There is a rope to assist you on the steep part. As you approach a creek (which looks like a rock water slide), the trail switchbacks to the left and heads down to meet back up with the Al’s Habrich Trail. A faint trail goes right up the creek to Yuko’s Ponds (see below).

Yuko’s Ponds

This short trail visits a few small ponds and heads through some pretty patches of sub-alpine meadows. Since it is not on the list of official Sea to Sky Gondola trails, it’s a bit quieter up here, which I like.

The Yuko’s Ponds route adds 0.6 km and 50 m of elevation gain to your trip. Allow an extra 20-30 minutes for this add-on. Since this is an unofficial trail, it isn’t marked with big diamond markers. But it isn’t that hard to follow (there are occasional square orange markers). It’s also easy to stay on track if you use All Trails+ or Gaia GPS.

My preferred route is to pick up the Yuko’s Ponds trail from the north end of the Neverland Loop. Where that trail comes close to a creek flowing across a granite slab, turn uphill and follow sporadic markers and flagging tape up the creek.

At the top where it flattens out next to a pond, go left and slightly uphill. (If you continue straight the trail deadends at a marsh.) Stay on the trail past another tiny pond and through more meadows. The trail curls left and heads downhill.

Follow markers carefully as the path drops down a granite bluff, turn makes a hard right. The terrain gets steep and a bit scrambly for a few moves as you work your way downhill to meet up with the main trail in the forest just before the viewpoints.

Further Along the Ridge and Robin’s Connector

The official Al’s Habrich Trail doesn’t go anywhere near the top of Al’s Habrich Ridge. However, several unofficial and poorly marked trails do go higher on the ridge.

A rough trail continues uphill from Neverland Lake through the forest higher on the ridge. Another trail, called Robin’s Connector, branches off from Yuko’s Ponds and the north part of Neverland Loop. It heads east through the forest, then curls back south through some bluffs to head up the ridge.

Both trails join partway along the ridge, then continue southeast to a high point. These trails are poorly marked and unmaintained. In places they seem to disappear. There have been lots of Search and Rescue incidents here due to lost hikers. Please don’t attempt these trails without good fitness and off-trail navigation skills.

It’s also worth noting that there are no trails to the top of Mount Habrich. The summit is a shear rocky cliff that can only be scaled by rock climbers.

Snowshoeing and Winter Hiking the Al’s Habrich Trail

With easy access via the Sea to Sky Gondola, Al’s Habrich Ridge Trail is one of the best places to snowshoe in Squamish. However, it is a much more challenging and potentially dangerous trip in winter. The trail markers are harder to see, so it is easy to get off track. You will need to be comfortable with navigation. I use the Gaia GPS app.

The steep terrain can also make travel very challenging with a mix of both snow and ice. Depending on trail conditions, you will need snowshoes and/or microspikes. I recommend microspikes in May and November and both snowshoes and microspikes between December and April – you may need to switch to microspikes on the steeper stuff because your snowshoes won’t have enough grip. (Read my guide for tips on how to choose snowshoes and my guide to the differences between snowshoes and microspikes).

For the most part, the trail stays out of avalanche terrain since it doesn’t cross or travel below steep slopes. The exception is the steep ascent in the trees just before the main viewpoint and the Neverland Loop Trail, both of which travel on or below avalanche-prone slopes. In any case, you should still have avalanche training and rescue gear. Check the avalanche forecast before your trip.

It’s worth noting that the winter route is slightly different than the summer route. Instead of turning off the access road near the generator, you stay on the road to a fork where you go left. Then you follow that road for another 0.2 km to its end where you join the regular route at the creek crossing. As well, the Sea to Sky Gondola recommends doing only the first half of the trail in winter (the part along the granite ridge) since it is the easiest to follow, isn’t as steep, and avoids all avalanche terrain.

If you do just one hike at the Sea to Sky Gondola, it should definitely be Al’s Habrich Trail. It’s one of my favourite trails that I return to over and over. Do you have questions about this hike? Ask them in the comments.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Squamish, BC (By a Local)
• Where to Go Snowshoeing in Squamish
• 70+ Things to do in Squamish (By a Local)
• High Note Trail in Whistler Hiking Guide (By a Season’s Pass Holder)
• Joffre Lakes Hike (By a Local)

The post Al’s Habrich Trail at the Sea to Sky Gondola (By a Local) appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

I’ve hiked the Elfin Lakes Trail more times than I count, in every season, in boots, in spikes, and in snowshoes. I’ve spent lots of nights in the campground and the shelter and really explored the area. Elfin Lakes is one of the best hikes in Squamish and it is featured in my hiking guidebook, Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia.

In this post, I’ve got everything you need to know to do the Elfin Lakes hike in Squamish. This guide includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, best time to go, and more
• Tips for hiking to Elfin Lakes including what to pack and how to prep
• Day Passes – what you need to know to get a pass
• Camping reservations – how to reserve and when to book
• Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the Elfin Lakes trail – driving directions plus tips for going without a car
• Step-by-step hiking directions so you know what to expect
• Extending your trip – my picks for hikes you can do from Elfin Lakes
• Backcountry camping and the hut – info on where to camp and what to expect at each campground
• Snowshoeing and skiing – info on trekking to Elfin Lakes in winter
• Biking to Elfin Lakes – tips for going by bike instead of hiking

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

Elfin Lakes Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the Elfin Lakes Trail in Squamish:

Location: The trail is located in the southern part of Garibaldi Provincial Park near Squamish, BC.

Duration: 6-7 hours

Distance: 22 km

Difficulty: Moderate/Challenging

Elevation Change: 900 m of elevation gain

Day Passes: Required some days of the week between June and October. (See the Day passes section below for more info.)

Camping and the Hut: Reservations are required for camping and staying at the Elfin Lakes Hut. (See the Camping and Hut section below for more info.)

Best Time to Go: July to early October when the trail is snow-free. I also recommend picking a clear day so you can enjoy the views.

Toilets: There are toilets at the trailhead, Red Heather day-use shelter, Elfin Lakes campground, Elfin Lakes Hut, and Rampart Ponds campground.

Drinking Water: You can fill your water bottles at Brandvold Falls (2.5 km from the trailhead) and at the north Elfin Lake (11 km from the trailhead). Pack plenty of drinking water. Since you don’t know if humans or animals have pooped or died upstream, you need to filter or treat all water before you drink it. (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)

Dogs: Not allowed in Garibaldi Provincial Park to protect wildlife and the fragile ecosystem.

Bikes: Bikes are allowed on the trail as far as the Elfin Lakes shelter. (See the biking section below for more info.)

Bears: This area has a high black bear population. Hike in a group and carry bear spray.

Indigenous Context: The Elfin Lakes Trail is in the traditional territory of the Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) Nation. Historically, the area was an important place to pick berries and harvest mountain goats. To learn more, see the info sign in the Elfin Lakes campground or visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.

Tips for Hiking Elfin Lakes

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the mountains. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Elfin Lakes like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Get a day pass: More info about that below.
• Check trail conditions online using AllTrails or Instagram. This is especially important in the spring or fall when the trail can be icy or snowy.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder and rainier in the mountains than in the city.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is rocky and loose in places. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring water and snacks. It is not safe to drink the water from the lakes without boiling, filtering, or treating it as you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Bring a camera – it’s gorgeous and you will want tons of pics! But leave the drone at home. Drones aren’t allowed in BC Parks without a commercial filming permit.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are no garbage cans here so you must take your garbage home with you. Leaving it in the park attracts animals.
• Be Bear aware: There are lots of black bears on this trail, especially in late summer and fall. Hike in a group, make noise, and carry bear spray. Read my bear safety tips for more info.

Elfin Lakes Day Passes

Since this is such a popular area, you need to get a free day pass if you plan to visit on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, and holidays between mid-June and mid-October. Your pass covers everyone in your vehicle. Passes are available on the BC parks website starting at 7 AM two days before your trip. Act fast: passes run out fast on summer weekends.

Tip: Select the Diamond Head trailhead in Garibaldi Provincial Park to reserve a day pass to hike to Elfin Lakes.

Print out your day pass or save it as a screenshot on your phone. Cell service at the trailhead is really spotty, so you might not be able to pull it up from your email. Parks staff will check for passes on the road just before the trailhead. If you don’t have a pass, you won’t be allowed to hike.

Read my guide to BC Parks day passes for more info including tips for getting a pass.

Elfin Lakes Camping Reservations

The backcountry campgrounds and hut at Elfin Lakes are popular destinations so they all require reservations. You can book online up to 3 months before your trip. See my guide to making backcountry reservations in BC for tips on getting a spot.

Camping costs $25 per person per night plus a $6 reservation fee for each tent. Bunks in the hut cost $30 per person per night plus a $6 reservation fee per group. Note: You don’t need a day pass if you have a backcountry camping reservation.

I’ve got lots of details on what to expect at the Elfin Lakes Campground, Elfin Lakes Shelter, and other nearby campgrounds further down in this post.

Read my guide to making backcountry camping reservations in BC for tips on getting a camping reservation.

Elfin Lakes Trail Map

I made a map of the Elfin Lakes Trail for you using Gaia GPS, my favourite GPS and mapping app. It also includes an elevation profile. Click through to zoom in and download the GPX track.

How to Get to Elfin Lakes

The trailhead is about 1.5 hours from Vancouver and about 30 minutes from Squamish. You can get there by car or a bus/taxi combo. In this section, I’ve got everything you need to know for driving, parking, and taking the bus and a taxi to Elfin Lakes.

Driving Directions

From Vancouver, head over the Lions Gate Bridge, then go west on Highway 1. Follow the signs to switch to Highway 99 North just before Horseshoe Bay. Stay on Highway 99 North and drive past downtown Squamish.

Turn right onto Mamquam Road just after crossing the bridge over the Mamquam River. A few blocks later turn left onto Highlands Way. At the roundabout, go right onto the Boulevard. Go straight through the next roundabout and follow the Boulevard up the hill and across a bridge where it becomes University Boulevard.

Turn right at the roundabout onto Village Drive. Then turn left onto Mamquam Road. A few blocks later Mamquam Road turns to gravel and becomes Garibaldi Park Road. The road has bumpy and loose sections, but is fine for all vehicles – just go slow.

Stay on this road, ignoring side roads. Watch for mountain bikers. Go left to stay on Garibaldi Park Road amongst a group of houses. Follow the road for another 5 km to the trailhead and the large gravel parking area. Here are Google Maps driving directions.

Parking Passes

Just before you reach the parking lot, you may encounter a park facility operator checking parking passes and camping reservations.

If you visit on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, and holidays between mid-June and mid-October, you must have a day pass for your car (also called a parking pass). See the day pass section above for more info.

If you are camping, you don’t need a parking pass, but you do need a camping reservation for each member of your group. See the camping section above for more info.

Getting to Elfin Lakes Without a Car

You can get to Elfin Lakes without a car, but it isn’t easy. From Vancouver, take the YVR Skylynx or Squamish Connector buses to Squamish.

From there, Howe Sound Taxi can take you 30 minutes to the trailhead. (Call ahead to confirm that they will go up the gravel road to the trailhead – some dispatchers get confused as to where this is.)

You can also take Squamish Shred Shuttle (a mountain bike shuttle service) to their highest stop, which is a few minutes walk from the trailhead.)

Elfin Lakes Hiking Directions

Here are my step-by-step directions for hiking to Elfin Lakes.

Trailhead to Red Heather Day-Use Hut

The trailhead is at the east end of the parking lot next to a large info sign. Walk around the yellow gate and past the outhouse to start your hike up the old road.

The Brandvold family built this road to access their backcountry lodge at Elfin Lakes in the 1940s. The lodge closed in 1972 and these days the only cars allowed on the road are BC Parks maintenance vehicles. The road is steep and rocky, so it doesn’t make for the most pleasant hiking experience.

Follow the old road up and around a switchback. About 1.5 km from the trailhead, look for a small opening in the trees to your left. There is a bit of a view down to the Squamish harbour, but it is getting overgrown.

Reach Brandvold Falls about 2.5 km from the trailhead. This is the only place to get water on the hike – but be sure to treat or filter your water. The falls are quite dry late in the summer, but there is usually at least a trickle.

Past the falls the trail starts to zigzag. In the next few kilometres, the forest opens up a bit as it starts to transition to alpine vegetation.

About 5 km from the start, reach the Red Heather day-use shelter tucked away on your left. This is a good place to take a break. There are tables and benches inside. There is also a wood stove, but it is only unlocked and available for use in the winter.

You’ll find an outhouse a few metres down the trail from Red Heather day-use shelter. It has tall stairs to keep it out of the deep snow that falls here each year.

Red Heather Day-Use Shelter to Elfin Lakes

So far the trail has been entirely uphill. (You have gained about 400 m of elevation up to this point.) But past here, the trail gets a little flatter and the views start.

From Red Heather Shelter, follow the trail past the outhouse to a junction. Go left onto the hiker’s trail and follow it steeply uphill through patches of trees and meadow. (The cyclists’ route stays on the road to the right.)

About 1 km after Red Heather Shelter, the hikers’ trail meets back up with the old road. Turn left and hike along the road.

Follow the trail as it works its way along the crest of Paul Ridge through rolling terrain. In places, the terrain is rocky and barren and in others, there are beautiful meadows. There are great views of Mount Garibaldi (Nch’kay in the Squamish language) to the north.

Occasionally, there are patches of trees, but the entire route is quite exposed to the sun, so wear a hat and sunscreen. About 10 km from the trailhead the path heads downhill and you get your first good view of Elfin Lakes.

Follow the trail to the left of the lakes. Reach the lakeshore about halfway along the southern lake. This is a good place to go swimming on a hot day.

Ignore the spur trail to the ranger station and continue on the main trail as it trends left. Arrive at a junction near the Elfin Lakes Shelter and go right and up a small hill to reach the Elfin Lakes campground.

There are great views of Nch’kay from here as well as of the Garibaldi Neve glaciers. Take a break at the picnic tables in the campground or head down to the shore of the north lake to fill up on water. (Don’t swim in the north lake as this is the drinking water source.)

When you are ready, retrace your steps back to the trailhead. If you want to explore further, I’ve got some options for extending your trip below.

Extending Your Trip

At 22 km round-trip, this hike is fairly long for one day. But if you have lots of time and energy, it’s possible to extend your trip a bit. As well, the Elfin Lakes campground is a great place to base yourself for some day hikes. Here are my picks for the best hikes that leave from the Elfin Lakes campground/Elfin Lakes Shelter area.

Columnar Peak and the Gargoyles

The short (but steep) hike to Columnar Peak and the Gargoyles is doable for hikers tackling the Elfin Lakes hike in a day. It’s also a great hike from the campground. It has incredible views of the campground, Mamquam Mountain, and Nch’Kay.

Here are the key stats for the hike to Columnar Peak and the Gargoyles from Elfin Lakes campground:

• Duration: 2-3 hours
• Distance: Up to 6 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Challenging
• Elevation Change: 500 m elevation gain
• Map: Use my Gaia GPS map of the Columnar Peak and Gargoyles trail

From the junction outside the Elfin Lakes Shelter, go west on the trail towards Opal Cone and Rampart Ponds. The trail heads downhill into a meadow.

About 1 km from the shelter, go left at a junction towards Columnar Peak and the Gargoyles. The trail immediately becomes much rougher and eroded. Try to stay on the trail as much as you can to keep the erosion concentrated, rather than spreading it out.

Follow the trail uphill through clumps of trees and then across the bottom of a scree slope and across a creek. The trail braids in a few places – you should stick to the most well-trodden path. Keep following the trail steeply uphill through rocks and meadows to a saddle.

There are incredible views from here and you may be content to make this your turnaround point. If you want to reach a summit, you can scramble uphill to the Gargoyles (to your right) and Columnar Peak (to your left). Both involve a bit of route finding and some steep slopes, so step carefully and take your time. The Gargoyles is a bit shorter and easier.

Diamond Head Peak

Diamond Head Peak is a triangular subsummit of Mount Garibaldi (Nch’kay). This peak is also called Little Diamond Head and is named after Diamond Head Peak in Hawaii.

This is the only peak on Nch’Kay that you can reach just by hiking. It’s a long trip that involves some route finding, but it is fairly straightforward. It’s best as a day trip from the Elfin Lakes campground, but strong hikers can tackle it from the trailhead in one long day. When I did it, we took about 11 hours car-to-car.

Here are the key stats for the hike to Diamond Head Peak from Elfin Lakes campground:

• Duration: 3.5-5 hours
• Distance: 10 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Very Challenging
• Elevation Change: 730 m elevation gain
• Map: Use my Gaia GPS map of the Diamond Head trail

Follow the directions above to the saddle between the Gargoyles and Columnar Peak. From there, follow a faint trail downhill through the scree to a low point with a great view of the Squamish Valley to the southwest and a small lake to the northeast.

Follow a faint trail uphill through meadows and trees to the base of a huge gravel slope. The trail disappears here and you will need to find your own route. There are a few cairns that show the way, but they peter out eventually. Just keep working your way uphill towards Diamond Head, which you can always see above you.

About half a kilometre before the summit, reach the edge of a ridge that drops away steeply to the west. I was lucky enough to see mountain goats here! Stay back from the edge and follow the ridge uphill to the north. A very steep boot-beaten path through the gravel takes you to the summit of Diamond Head. It’s steep with big drop-offs so be careful.

Opal Cone

Opal Cone is an extinct volcanic cinder cone. It has great views of the glaciers to the north as well as Mamquam Mountain to the east. It’s a great day hike from the Elfin Lakes campground or a detour on the way to Rampart Ponds.

Here are the key stats for the hike to Opal Cone from Elfin Lakes campground:

• Duration: 3.5-5 hours
• Distance: 14 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Challenging
• Elevation Change: 540 m elevation gain
• Map: Use my Gaia GPS map of the Opal Cone trail

From the junction in front of the shelter, follow the trail north through the meadows. After the turn-off for the Gargoyles, it heads into the trees crosses lots of deep gullies as it trends downhill. Reach your low point 3 km from Elfin Lakes and 200 m lower as you cross Ring Creek on a bridge.

On the other side, the trail heads uphill beside the creek through bare gravel that transitions to meadows. The route makes a few switchbacks before heading into a short stretch of trees. Reach a junction and head left to make your ascent of Opal Cone. (The route to the right continues to Rampart Ponds.)

After the junction, the route is very steep and loose. Follow the cairns to stay on track to the summit 1.25 km from the junction. You can retrace your steps, or walk all the way around the rim of the crater.

Rampart Ponds

If you want to explore further into the park, make the trek out of the backcountry campground at Rampart Ponds. It’s a good spot to base yourself for the hike to Mamquam Lake.

Here are the key stats for the hike to Rampart Ponds from Elfin Lakes campground:

• Duration: 5.5-7.5 hours
• Distance: 17.1 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Challenging
• Elevation Change: 950 m elevation gain
• Map: Use my Gaia GPS map of the Rampart Ponds trail

The route to Rampart Ponds involves lots of elevation gain and loss as well as a mandatory ford through a flooded section. To begin, follow the directions to the Opal Cone junction above.

From Opal Cone, the trail descends down to a huge volcanic gravel plain that looks like a moonscape. About 1 km after the Opal Cone junction, reach the flooded section. Each year the melting glaciers change this area, expanding the meltwater ponds. Carefully wade across the flooded area – it may be up to your waist.

On the other side, follow the trail as it heads downhill to cross Zigzag Creek on a small bridge. If the bridge is missing, this creek can be too dangerous to cross. Climb up the hill from the creek. The turn-off to the Rampart Ponds campground is 1 km past the creek. The glacier views through here are amazing.

Mamquam Lake

Mamquam Lake makes a good day hike from the Rampart Ponds campground. It’s also a very tough day hike from Elfin Lakes campground. Note: There used to be a campground at Mamquam Lake, but BC Parks closed it due to archeological concerns and built the Rampart Ponds campground instead.

Here are the key stats for the hike to Mamquam Lake from Rampart Ponds campground and from Elfin Lakes campground:

• Duration: 1-1.5 hours from Rampart Ponds/6.5-9 hours from Elfin Lakes
• Distance: 3.7 km round-trip from Rampart Ponds/20.8 km round-trip from Elfin Lakes
• Difficulty: Easy from Rampart Ponds/Very Challenging from Elfin Lakes
• Elevation Change: 250 m elevation gain from Rampart Ponds/1200 m elevation gain from Elfin Lakes
• Map: Use my Gaia GPS map of the Mamquam Lake trail

Follow the directions above to Rampart Ponds. From there, follow the trail as it switchbacks downhill. The route starts in the gravel glacial plain, then transitions to meadow and then forest. The trail ends at the lakeshore, which is great for swimming.

Backcountry Camping and the Hut at Elfin Lakes

Most people choose to camp at Elfin Lakes campground or stay in the Elfin Lakes Shelter (also called the Elfin Lakes Hut). But there are also a couple other camping options nearby. I have details on all of them below.

Elfin Lakes Campground

Elfin Lakes Campground is spread out at the north end of North Elfin Lake. The campground has 35 wooden tent platforms that can hold up to a 4-person tent. You can also squeeze two 2-person tents on the platforms, but you probably won’t be able to get your rain flies staked out all the way.

All campsites are first-come, first-served for campers with reservations. Just choose a site once you arrive.

There are metal hanging poles with pulleys to store your food. Bring a waterproof bag (I recommend a lightweight dry bag) to protect your food from rain and birds.

The cooking shelter has a metal counter for cooking, picnic tables, and a wash sink with grey water disposal. There are also outdoor picnic tables. Plan to cook and eat in the cooking area to minimize food smells and waste around the tent pads.

There are outhouses at each end of the campground. The outhouse building for the Elfin Lakes Shelter are also very close by.

Collect water from the north Elfin Lake. This is the designated drinking water lake so keep it clean! You must filter or treat all drinking water as you don’t know if people or animals have contaminated it with poop or other pathogens. (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)

Campfires are never allowed in Garibaldi Provincial Park to protect the fragile alpine vegetation. As well, be sure to stay on the paths through the campground. Over the years, campers’ feet have eroded a lot of the beautiful heather meadows.

You can find more info about backpacking to Elfin Lakes in my book, Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia.

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A one-stop resource for backpackers in beautiful British Columbia.

• 40 backpacking trips within a few hours of Vancouver
• Info about permits, reservations, and campground facilities
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• Points of cultural and natural history

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Elfin Lakes Shelter

The Elfin Lakes Shelter is also known as the Elfin Lakes Hut or the Elfin Lakes Cabin. It is located just past the north end of the two lakes. This large A-Frame hut has a kitchen and eating area downstairs and bunkbeds upstairs.

There are 33 double bunks (bottom bunks) and 11 single bunks (top bunks) and all bunks are first-come, first-served amongst people with reservations – choose an available bunk when you arrive.

The kitchen area downstairs has a propane stove that is free to use but you will need to bring your own pots. There are also metal counters for cooking and picnic tables for eating. You can wash dishes in the sink – it also has a grey water disposal drain. Hang your food on hooks on the wall and ceiling to protect it from mice.

The propane heater in the centre of the hut is only turned on in winter. The hut also has solar lighting, but it doesn’t always work. There is an outhouse building to the east of the hut with four separate stalls.

Collect water from the north Elfin Lake by walking past the cooking area for the campground. This is the designated drinking water lake so keep it clean. You must filter or treat all drinking water.

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Rampart Ponds Campground

The Rampart Ponds Campground is located 8.5 kilometres from Elfin Lakes and 19.5 kilometres from the trailhead. Keep in mind that it will take about 7-8 hours to hike there from the trailhead.

The Rampart Ponds are shallow glacial ponds in the middle of a rocky glacial plain. There are no trees for shelter so it can be a miserable place to camp in bad weather… but it also has gorgeous glacier views in good weather.

The campground has 12 gravel campsites, an outhouse, and food lockers. Collect water from Rampart Ponds.

Red Heather Campground

The Red Heather Campground is open during the winter months only. (It is prime bear habitat the rest of the year so camping is only allowed in the winter.) There are no tent pads or designated tenting area – just pitch your tent on the snow. You can use the Red Heather hut for cooking, eating, and storing your food. There is an outhouse nearby.

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Snowshoeing and Skiing at Elfin Lakes in Winter

The Garibaldi Park Road is plowed in winter, making Elfin Lakes a very popular winter hiking, snowshoeing and backcountry skiing destination. I’ve got more details in my guide to snowshoeing in Squamish.

However, it is a much more challenging and potentially dangerous trip in winter. The trail is marked in winter with reflective wands, but when the fog rolls it can be difficult to see them. You will need to be comfortable with navigation. I use the Gaia GPS app.

The trail will also be very snowy and icy. Depending on trail conditions, you will need snowshoes or microspikes. I recommend microspikes in May and November and snowshoes between December and April. (Read my guide for tips on how to choose snowshoes and my guide to the differences between snowshoes and microspikes).

The winter route (marked by wands) deviates from the summer route in a few places (most notably around the east side of Round Mountain.) Thanks to this, it stays out of most of the serious avalanche terrain. However, the backcountry ski runs below the trail are in avalanche terrain. In any case, you should still have avalanche training and rescue gear. Check the avalanche forecast before your trip.

While the road is plowed in winter, it is still usually snow and ice-covered. You must have tire chains to drive this road. BC Parks has a checkpoint partway up the road in winter. If you don’t have chains, they won’t let you continue. Even if the road doesn’t seem that slippery, the final switchback before the parking area can be very icy – lots of cars have slipped off the road here and required a tow truck to get them out. Just put your chains on!

Biking to Elfin Lakes

Bikes are allowed on the trail as the Elfin Lakes Shelter. Since the entire route is on an old road, biking makes the trip to Elfin Lakes much faster. I’ve ridden up to Elfin on my mountain bike and while it is faster than hiking, it’s still pretty tough thanks to the elevation gain and the technical terrain.

The biking directions are the same as the hiking directions above, with one key exception. Just after Red Heather day-use shelter, the hikers’ route leaves the road and heads directly uphill. If you are on a bike you must stay on the old road as it makes a long switchback before meeting back up with the hikers route about 1 km later.

The trail is steep in a few places and is often very rocky. You will need a mountain bike with suspension or at least a gravel bike. Unless you are great at technical riding uphill, you’ll definitely have to push your bike in a few places – it’s really chunky. Class 1 e-bikes (pedal assist only) are allowed. You will also need a bit of stamina for the first six kilometres since they are entirely uphill.

Final Thoughts

That’s everything you need to know to plan a trip to Elfin Lakes. I recommend going in clear weather to really enjoy the views. Do you have questions about the trail? Ask them in the comments – I’m happy to help.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Squamish, BC (From a Local)
• Where to Go Snowshoeing in Squamish
• 70+ Things to do in Squamish (By a Local)
• Camping in Squamish, BC: 22 Places to Camp Near Squamish
• 31 Best Backpacking Trips in BC

The post Elfin Lakes Hike in Squamish (By a Local) appeared first on Dawn Outdoors.

I live in nearby Squamish, so I’ve hiked the High Note tons of times. Honestly, I like this trail so much that I hike it a few times each summer. But if you’re not a local, you might be wondering if the High Note Trail is worth it. (Spoiler: I think it’s worth the money on a clear day and it’s one my picks for things to do in Whistler in the summer.)

Since I’ve hiked this trail so many times (and I literally wrote a book about hiking in Southwestern BC) I’ve got everything you need to know about the High Note Trail. This guide includes:

• Trail stats including how long it takes, difficulty, cost, best time to go, and more
• High Note Trail map that shows all the key locations I mention in this post
• How to get to the High Note Trail including parking and which gondola to take
• Step-by-step hiking directions and tips for where to get the best views
• How to make your hike shorter or longer including info on the Half Note Trail
• How to hike the High Note Trail without taking the gondola (although I don’t recommend it)
• Tips for hiking the High Note Trail including what to pack and how to prep

This is a sensitive wilderness area. Learn how to Leave No Trace to keep the wilderness wild. Make sure you are prepared by bringing the 10 Essentials. Get ready for adventure with this checklist of things to do before every hike.

Hey there: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support. -Taryn

High Note Trail Stats

Here are the basic stats that you need to know about hiking the High Note Trail in Whistler:

Duration: 3 to 4.5 hours

Distance: 9.6 km loop

Difficulty: Moderate (Whistler Blackcomb rates it as difficult, but that is in comparison to their other trails. Compared to hiking trails in the entire Whistler area, I would say it is moderate.)

Elevation Change: 430 m elevation gain, 825 m elevation loss

Cost: $105/adult for an all-day sightseeing lift ticket that also includes the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. (If you plan to go sightseeing for more than one day, it’s worth it to buy a season’s pass. That’s what I do.)

Best Time to Go: Late June/early July to late September. The trail is closed the rest of the year. I highly recommend picking a clear day so you can enjoy the views. It’s not worth your money if it’s cloudy.

What’s With the Name? The peaks on the nearby ridge are named Piccolo, Flute, and Oboe Summits and are known as the Musical Bumps. Since these are high-pitched instruments, they named it the High Note.

Toilets: There are no toilets on the trail, but there are toilets at the Roundhouse Lodge where you start and end the hike.

Drinking Water: There are no water sources on the first half of the trail so pack drinking water. You can collect water at Symphony and Harmony Lakes on the second half of the trail, but you need to filter or treat it first. (I use a Katadyn BeFree.)

Dogs: Only guide dogs and service dogs are allowed.

Bikes: While there are tons of mountain bike trails on Whistler Mountain, bikes aren’t allowed on the High Note.

Caution: Keep an eye on the gondola hours – you don’t want to miss the last one off the mountain!

Indigenous Context: The High Note Trail is in the traditional territory of the Lil’wat and Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) Nations. Their oral tradition teaches us that before settlers arrived, the two Nations shared the Whistler Valley, using summer camps to harvest plants and animals. To learn more, visit the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.

High Note Trail Map

The High Note Trail is easy to follow with lots of signs. But it can be helpful to have a map to understand where you are. I made you a custom trail map using Gaia GPS, my favourite mapping app. It shows all the locations I mention in this post. Click through to zoom in and explore (and to download the GPX file).

You can also use Whistler Blackcomb’s Alpine Trails Map – they will give you a paper copy when you buy your lift ticket. It’s a beautiful hand-drawn map, and it gives you a vague idea of the terrain. But I don’t find it nearly as helpful as a proper topographic map… which is why I use All Trails+ or Gaia GPS instead.

How to Get to the High Note Trail

Parking

Getting to Whistler is fairly straightforward: Drive Highway 99 north from Vancouver to Whistler. My Sea to Sky Highway Road Trip guide has lots of driving tips and suggestions for where to stop along the way.

Once you get to Whistler, head for the day-use parking lots on Backcomb Way. Here are Google Maps driving directions. From there, walk 5 minutes to the Whistler Village Gondola.

Day-use lot 1 is the closest parking to the Whistler Gondola Base. My budget tip: Park in lots 4 or 5. They are an extra 5-10 minute walk and a bit cheaper. Here is info on current parking rates and hours.

Gondola Ride

The High Note Trail starts at the top of Whistler Peak. To get there you, will need to ride a combination of gondolas and lifts from Whistler Village. You need to pay to take the gondola and lifts, but they only check your ticket at the bottom when you get on the first gondola.

Buy your lift tickets at Whistler Gondola Base at the south end of Whistler Village. Then take the Whistler Village Gondola to its end at Roundhouse Lodge. The takes about 20 minutes. The Roundhouse has a coffee shop, cafeteria, and bathrooms. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola to Blackcomb is next to the Roundhouse.

Peak Chair

From the Roundhouse, turn right and follow the Peak Express Traverse Trail downhill for 0.6 km to the Peak Chair. Keep in mind that the Peak Chair opens an hour later than the Whistler Village Gondola, so you may have to wait if you arrive early in the morning. Check current opening hours before your trip.

Ride the Peak Chair to the top of Whistler Peak. This is an open four-seat chairlift and passes some very steep cliffs, so it can be a bit daunting for those who are afraid of heights. However, it only takes about 4 minutes, so it’s over quickly.

Note: The Peak Chair is not always open. It is usually closed in early and late season, especially on weekdays. If that is the case, you can walk up Pika’s Traverse and Matthews’s Traverse to Whistler Peak to start the High Note. This adds 3.3 km and 370 m of elevation gain to your hike.

Adding the Peak 2 Peak Gondola to Your Hike

If you’ve paid for summer sightseeing lift ticket, you should make the most of it. And that means riding the Peak 2 Peak Gondola along with hiking the High Note Trail. (My guide to Whistler in the summer has details on everything you can see with your lift ticket.)

If you want to ride the Peak 2 Peak before your hike, walk to Blackcomb Base and take the Blackcomb Gondola to Rendevous Lodge. Then ride the Peak 2 Peak Gondola to the Roundhouse. From there, you can walk to the Peak Chair and ride it up to start your hike.

To ride the Peak 2 Peak after the High Note, finish your hike at the Roundhouse, but go next door and get on the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. Ride it to Rendevous Lodge on Blackcomb, then ride the Blackcomb Gondola to Blackcomb Base. Walk 10 minutes back to Whistler Village from there. Or if you have extra time, explore the Blackcomb Trails.

Keep an eye on gondola opening hours to plan your hike and decide when to ride the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. If you get an early start and are on the gondola when it opens, I recommend riding the Peak 2 Peak first. You will still arrive at the Peak Chair before it opens, even with the extra time spent on the Peak 2 Peak. That lets you maximize your hiking time.

High Note Trail Hiking Directions

I recommend hiking the High Note Trail counter clockwise, starting at Whistler Peak. This means that most of the hike will be downhill. As well, you will be facing the views down to Cheakamus Lake, rather than having them behind you. Here are my step-by-step hiking directions for the High Note.

Starting the High Note Trail

Get off the Peak Chair and turn right to walk over the Cloudraker Skybridge and admire the view from the Raven’s Eye viewpoint. Walk down the stairs from the viewpoint and follow the wide path downhill. Look for the High Note Trail branching to the right.

Note: If you’re afraid of heights, you can skip the Cloudraker Skybridge and Raven’s Eye viewpoint. When you get off the gondola, go straight instead of right to the bridge. Ignore right-hand path to the inukshuk, and take your next right. This is the return route from the Skybridge and will take you to the start of the High Note.

Whistler Peak to Half Note Junction

The first section of the High Note Trail goes steeply downhill through lots of rocky sections. Watch for trail markers carefully to make sure you stay on track through the twists and turns. After a few minutes, reach a junction with a sign. Keep right. (The route to the left goes back to Whistler Peak Chair.) Keep hiking downhill through the rocks. I love the great views of the Whistler Valley here.

About 20 minutes after starting the hike, cross a gravel service road. On the other side, the trail turns to the left and begins to follow the side of the hill. The path trends slightly downhill through patches of gravel and grass. If you time it right, the grassy meadows on either side of the trail will be full of beautiful wildflowers.

As you walk through the wildflower meadows you will also get great views of the mountains in Garibaldi Park on the other side of the valley. The pointy top of Black Tusk is particularly spectacular.

About 2.5 km from the chair lift, the trail starts to go gradually uphill again. Reach the junction with the Half Note Trail about 3 km from the Peak Chair. It is marked with a metal signpost. If you are tired or low on time, you may wish to cut your hike short here. But if you can manage it, I recommend continuing since the best views are yet to come. (See the Half Note Trail section below for more details.)

Half Note Junction to Flute Summit Junction

This is my favourite part of the High Note. It has the best views and the best wildflower meadows. If you do the shorter Half Note Trail instead, you miss this section, which is a shame.

From the Half Note Junction, the High Note heads gradually back downhill through more meadows. Be sure to stop at the Cheakamus Lake Lookout, about 0.8 km past the junction. It is marked with a post with a carved raven on top. (But the raven is getting kind of weathered.)

This is the best place for photos on the whole High Note Trail since you can look down on Cheakamus Lake and across to Black Tusk.

A few minutes after the lookout there is a short mini-scramble section with some ladder rungs and a ramp to get up and over a rock outcropping. You are never more than a few feet off the ground, there is a rope to hang on to, and it is very non-technical so it’s nothing to worry about.

Past the scramble, the trail continues rambling through gorgeous alpine meadows and patches of forest. Keep an eye out for marmots, large members of the ground squirrel family. You can often spot them munching on flowers or sunning themselves on rocks. They whistle when they are alarmed, which is how Whistler Peak got its name.

About 4.5 km after leaving Peak Chair, arrive at the junction with the Flute Summit Trail and the Musical Bumps Route into Garibaldi Park. If you have more energy, there is a great view from Flute Summit. More info on that trail is below in the Making Your Trip Longer section.

Flute Summit Junction to the Roundhouse

The short section after the Flute Summit Junction is quite flat as it works its way through a gravelly area. There are good views towards the red and brown rocks of Flute and Oboe Summits. You can also look east across the Fitzsimmons Creek Valley to the Blackcomb Peak.

A few minutes after the junction, reach another junction with Burnt Stew Trail on the left. Go straight to stay on the High Note. From there, head down a steep and loose slope as you cross underneath the Symphony Express Chairlift.

The trail heads into a pretty little bowl around Symphony Lake, which is more of a pond. This is the first place to get water on the trail. Keep in mind that you must filter or treat the water. I carry a Katadyn BeFree since it is lightweight and easy to use – just squeeze it.

A minute later, cross Symphony Creek about 5.7 km from Whistler Peak. You may have to hop across on rocks to avoid getting your feet wet.

From here you have one of the toughest climbs of the hike. The route heads uphill across a rock slide and then through the forest to crest the ridge. In a few places it’s really steep! Thankfully, it’s short. Be sure to stop to enjoy the view as you catch your breath!

At the top, your trail briefly joins with a road-like gravel ski run as it heads downhill. Eventually, the road-like surface turns back into a trail as you continue working your way downhill through rocks and patches of trees.

Arrive at a junction with the Harmony Meadows Trail on your left just before you pass under the Harmony Chairlift. This is an alternative route back to the Roundhouse, but it is steeper, so I don’t recommend it. Instead, go straight on the High Note.

A few minutes later, arrive at Harmony Lake 7.8 km from Whistler Peak. The trail turns into an easy boardwalk around the lake. This area is a popular destination for short walks from the Roundhouse, so you will likely run into lots of other hikers. The trail past here is also much wider and better maintained.

As you reach the northeast corner of the lake, arrive at a signboard and junction with the Harmony Lake Loop on your right. This trail descends into some meadows, but the terrain you have already walked through is more spectacular, so stay left to continue back to the Roundhouse.

Follow the trail as it curves left around the lake, and then heads uphill on a winding path through the trees. You’ll gain about 100 m in the next kilometre, which will feel tough after a long hike. But it’s not too bad and the trees provide some shade.

At the top of the climb, follow the wide path left around the edge of the snow making reservoir, and then up short hill. Walk past the top of the Emerald Express Chairlift and the Peak 2 Peak Gondola. Continue through the plaza to finish the High Note Trail back at the Roundhouse.

Making Your Hike Shorter or Longer

I think that the High Note Trail definitely has the best views, but you have a few options for making your hike shorter or longer:

Half Note Trail

The Half Note Trail is the High Note’s little sister. It’s a little bit shorter since it splits off from the High Note Trail partway way along. It’s a good option if you are short on time, but unfortunately, it’s not nearly as scenic. I don’t recommend the Half Note since it misses the best parts of the High Note.

Here are the key stats for the Half Note Trail:

• Duration: 2.5-3.5 hours (Note: Whistler Blackcomb says it takes 75 minutes, but that’s just for the portion after you leave the High Note.)
• Distance: 6.8 km loop (Note: Whistler Blackcomb lists the distance as 3.2 km but that doesn’t include the part that is shared with the High Note.)
• Difficulty: Moderate (Whistler Blackcomb rates it as difficult, but that is in comparison to their other trails. Compared to hiking trails in the entire Whistler area, I would say it is moderate.)
• Elevation Change: 298 m elevation gain, 635 m elevation loss

The first 3-kilometre-long section of the Half Note Trail from the top of the Peak Chair to the Half Note/High Note Junction follows the High Note Trail description above.

From the spot where it splits from the High Note, the Half Note Trail climbs uphill out of the meadows into rock alpine terrain. About 400 m after the junction, cross the Burnt Stew service road and pick up the trail on the other side. Continue climbing uphill through intermittent trees and meadows as the trail swings around to head northwest.

Reach the top of the Harmony Chairlift and the junction with Matthews Traverse service road about 4 km from the start. This is your highpoint – it’s all downhill from here. Turn right to head downhill on Pika’s Traverse service road. A few minutes later there is a great viewpoint at the end of a hairpin bend.

The remaining 1.6 km back to the Roundhouse is on Pika’s Traverse. It’s a gravel road that has some loose and steep sections, so watch your step. In general, it isn’t very scenic since it travels through the heart of the ski resort. But it is an efficient way to get back to the Roundhouse.

Flute Summit

If you want to add another gorgeous viewpoint to your High Note Trail hike, I highly recommend Flute Summit since it’s not that far and the pay off-is great.

Here are the key stats for the add-on trip to Flute Summit from the High Note:

• Duration: 45 min to 1 hour (Note: Whistler Blackcomb says 3 hours but I have no idea how they came up with this number.)
• Distance: 1.5 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Moderate (Whistler Blackcomb rates it as difficult, but that is in comparison to their other trails. Compared to hiking trails in the entire Whistler area, I would say it is moderate.)
• Elevation Change: 120 m elevation gain, 120 m elevation loss

To get there, hike the High Note as described above as far as Flute Summit Junction. From there, turn right and climb up the steep and rocky slope. In a few places, the trail is eroded and indistinct, but if you stay on the most obvious path, you’ll find your way.

At the top there is a sign marking the summit, which has an elevation of 2012 metres. There is also a big sign welcoming you to Garibaldi Provincial Park. Both of these are very tall so they stick out of the snow in the winter.

Be sure to wander around the broad summit. There are great views of Cheakamus Lake below you and the Cheakamus Glacier on the other side. You can also look east to Oboe Summit, Fissile Peak, and the Overlord Glacier.

When you are finished enjoying the view, retrace your steps back to the junction with the High Note, then turn right to follow the High Note Trail back to the Roundhouse.

Musical Bumps to Russet Lake

Russet Lake is gorgeous and the trip along the Musical Bumps goes through beautiful meadows along a ridge crest. But this is a tough trip to execute in a day since you will need to make sure you hike fast enough to be back before the gondola stops running.

I think it is better as an overnight trip since you can camp at the lake – It’s one of my picks for the best backpacking trips in BC. I’ve been there so many times that I have a separate guide to hiking and backpacking at Russet Lake.

Here are the key stats for hiking to Russet Lake and back along the Musical Bumps from the High Note Trail: (Keep in mind you’ll need to add these stats to the High Note stats above.)

• Duration: 4.5-6.5 hours
• Distance: 14.2 km round-trip
• Difficulty: Challenging
• Elevation Change: 905 m elevation gain, 905 m elevation loss

Follow the directions to Flute Summit (above). Continue along the trail through the alpine and drop down into the saddle between Flute and Oboe Summits. Climb back up and over rocky Oboe Summit 2.5 km from Flute Junction, they stay on the trail as it gradually descends through meadows and patches of trees.

Reach your low point, Singing Pass, 4.5 km from Flute Junction. From here, follow the Russet Lake trail as it switchbacks up the slope of Cowboy Ridge. The first part of the climb is in meadows with a few trees, but you break out into rocky alpine partway up.

Reach the high point about 6.5 km from Flute Junction near the Kees and Claire backcountry hut. You can see the lake below you to your left. If you are worried about time, this makes a good turnaround point.

Otherwise, follow the trail for another 0.5 km to the shoreline at the north end of the lake. There is a backcountry campsite and toilet here. You can also go for a very chilly swim. (For info on camping here, check out my guide to hiking and backpacking at Russet Lake or my book, Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia.)

When you are ready to return, retrace your steps back over Oboe and Flute Summits to the Flute junction. Keep in mind that your route is all uphill from Singing Pass! Turn right at the junction and stay on the Half Note Trail to get back to the Round House.

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Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia

A one-stop resource for backpackers in beautiful British Columbia.

• 40 backpacking trips within a few hours of Vancouver
• Info about permits, reservations, and campground facilities
• Detailed maps and photos
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• Points of cultural and natural history

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Musical Bumps to Singing Pass to Whistler Village

If you want to extend your trip even further, you can hike into Garibaldi Park along the Musical Bumps Trail, then follow the Singing Pass Trail downhill all the way to Whistler Village. (This route skips the gondola ride on the way down.)

Here are the key stats for the route linking the High Note, Musical Bumps, and Singing Pass Trails:

• Duration: 7-9 hours
• Distance: 20.2 km loop
• Difficulty: Challenging
• Elevation Change: 486 m elevation gain, 1969 m elevation loss
• Note: Hiking this route in reverse is detailed in the section below about hiking the High Note Trail without taking the gondola.

This is a long and tough hike, but it is mostly downhill. However, the Singing Pass Trail is poorly maintained and has some washouts so use caution.

To hike this route, start by hiking the High Note as described above. Then go right at the Flute Summit junction and hike up and over Flute Summit. Follow the trail past Flute Summit up and over rocky Oboe Summit, and then down through the meadows to Singing Pass.

From there, turn left and follow the Singing Pass Trail for 11.7 km to Whistler Village. It hugs the side of a steep valley, so there isn’t much to see. The first part of the hike is a trail, but it eventually turns into an old gravel road. Be careful and pay attention to signs in the bottom section, which goes through the Whistler bike park.

Blackcomb Trails

Another option is to take the Peak 2 Peak Gondola over to Blackcomb and hike Blackcomb Alpine Trail network. The trails are pretty easy and have great views of Whistler Mountain and the surrounding glaciers.

Here are the key stats for the Blackcomb Trails:

• Duration: 30 min to 4.5 hours
• Distance: 1.5 to 9.9 km
• Difficulty: Easy to moderate
• Elevation Change: 70 to 560 m elevation gain

My recommended Blackcomb hiking route uses four trails to make a loop hike. It visits two lakes and some great viewpoints.

How to Hike the High Note Trail Without Taking the Gondola

I get it – the Whistler gondola is expensive. It’s possible to hike the High Note Trail without taking the gondola, but it’s a very long and challenging hike. As well, parts of it aren’t very scenic, so I don’t recommend it. (I think you should hike other free trails in Whistler instead.)

But if you really want to hike the High Note trail without taking the gondola, I’ll help you do it. Here are the key stats:

• Duration: 12-14 hours (You will have to leave very early in the morning to ensure you can take the last gondola down from the peak.)
• Distance: 20.5 km one-way
• Difficulty: Very Challenging
• Elevation Change: 2173 m elevation gain, 551 m elevation loss
• Map: See the map in the Singing Pass section above – it’s the same route but in reverse.

You can’t hike up through the ski area since it is part of the mountain bike park. Instead, you will start by hiking up the boring and poorly maintained Singing Pass Trail. From there, you have to hike the Musical Bumps trail over Oboe and Flute Summit to link up with the High Note Trail.

You will intersect the High Note halfway through, so you will only be able to do half of it unless you want to backtrack. I recommend turning left and hiking the High Note to Whistler Peak, since that is the most scenic section.

From Whistler Peak, you can get on the Peak Chair and take it down to the Roundhouse, then take the Whistler Gondola back to the village. They don’t check tickets once you are on the mountain, so you should be able to ride the gondola down for free.

Tips for Hiking for the High Note Trail

• Check the weather before you go. City weather forecasts are useless in the mountains. Use an algorithmic spot forecast for Whistler Peak like Spotwx. (Read my guide to weather apps for hikers for more tips.)
• Check gondola hours and trail status. Make sure the trail is open and the gondola and chairlifts are running by checking hours of operation and trail status online.
• Bring a rain jacket and warm clothing just in case. It can be much colder and rainier in the mountains than in the valley.
• Wear trail running shoes or hiking boots. The trail is steep, rocky, and loose in places. Regular running shoes don’t have enough grip or ankle support.
• Bring water and snacks. There is no drinking water along the trail. It is not safe to drink the water from the lakes without boiling, filtering, or treating it because you never know if people or animals have pooped or died upstream. Gross! (I use a Katadyn BeFree to filter water.)
• Bring the 10 Essentials. These are key safety items you should have on every hike.
• Bring a camera – it’s gorgeous and you will want tons of pics! But leave the drone at home. Drones aren’t allowed in Whistler without a commercial filming permit.
• Pack out all your garbage. There are garbage cans at the Roundhouse – please pack out your trash.

Fingers crossed that you get good weather when you hike the High Note Trail in Whistler. It’s by far my favourite Whistler hike since the scenery is so spectacular. If you’ve got questions about the trail, ask them in the comments.

READ NEXT:

• The Best Hikes in Whistler: A Guide to All the Trails
• Visiting Whistler, BC in Summer (By a Local)
• 80+ Things to Do in Whistler (By a Local)
• Russet Lake Hiking and Backpacking Trail Guide
• Blackcomb Hiking Trails in Whistler (By a Season’s Pass Holder)
• Joffre Lakes Hike (By a Local)
• Whistler Train Wreck Hike
• Al’s Habrich Trail at the Sea to Sky Gondola (By a Local)
• 31 Best Backpacking Trips in BC

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