Category Archives: Non-Buntzen Lake Hikes

Hoodoos in Kamloops

March 13, 2015Interior, Non-Buntzen Lake Hikesadmin

Mara Canyon at Lac du Bois Grasslands Protected Area (Cinnamon Ridge Trail)

It was another amazing day for a hike in BC ! Starting at 9:30 at the trailhead (350 m) on Tranquille Road in Northwest Kamloops, it was overcast and 10 Deg C with a chilly wind. As I proceeded up the west ridge of Mara Canyon, the terrain got steep fast and finding good footholds was challenging; however, the group of 9 California Big Horn Sheep staring at me had no problem with the terrain. I made it up to the first viewpoint (600 m) in 70 minutes. The trail is not marked well at all and I am thankful for the gpx track emailed to me the night before by local hiker. After the first peak, I continued across a large hoodoo and northwards along the west ridge. There is little green up there, but there are plenty of cacti, Sagebrush and some Ponderosa Pine. Continuing along the ridge, there are many precarious traverses across slopes with small gravel over bedrock – It was very slippery. A large amount of time I was on all fours, just like the sheep ! I made it to the base of Mara bluff (785 m) at 11:30 and from here the descent into the canyon began. Again, there were many loose rock sections to traverse on the way down. I passed a old rusty car and the backbone of possibly one of the California Big Horn Sheep. Once in the dry creekbed, there were more trees – further down, there was some water in the creek. The views looking up from the bottom of the canyon were equally impressive as the views from the ridge. I finally made it back to the trailhead at 1:15 pm, after climbing through two train cars in a very long line of a stationary train. At the end of the hike, skies were blue and the temp was 18 Deg C.

The stats:

Distance: 4.5 km (return)
Low point: 350 m
High point: 757 m
Elevation gain: 407 m
Trailhead: 50° 43’ 6.7” by 120° 28’ 33.4” (Google Map)

Here is the route…

Here’s the route from Google Earth:

Parks sign…

First viewpoint…

Mara Canyon creekbed…

View on way down…

View through Hoodoo…

Hoodoos from Mara Canyon creekbed…

Looking north up Mara Canyon…

Hoodoo…

California Bighorn Sheep…

★★★★★★★★★★★

Before heading out on your hike, make sure you are well prepared. This means, having the TEN ESSENTIALS. It is also important to leave a trip plan (route details and estimated return time) with someone you trust.

Bring your smartphone, fully charged and put it in airplane mode while hiking. I always bring back-up battery packs for extra piece of mind. It is highly recommended that you bring a GPS device; I use my smartphone with a GPS app (Backcountry Navigator). The GPS will work in airplane mode. Learn how to use it before your hike.

For anyone new to hiking, there is a rule to which hikers follow; it is called “Leave No Trace” or LNT. The concept is generally to pack out what you pack in and respect nature, so all future visitors can enjoy what you have enjoyed.
To learn more about LNT, please check out this BLOG by a certified LNT Trainer.

★★★★★★★★★★★

Mt. Seymour

February 28, 2015Non-Buntzen Lake Hikes, North Shoreadmin

What a beautiful late winter day for a hike. On arrival to the parking lot (1,020 m), there were only a handful of cars at 9:00 am and not many other hikers were seen on the way up. Stopped to put on micro spikes at 2 km into the hike at 1,230 m elevation due to increased hard snow and ice. Arrival at the first peak (1,395 m) was made in 1 hour and had a 15 minute break for photos. The snow was about 1 m thick here. Still not too many people seen. There were amazing views of Vancouver, Indian Arm and the Coast Mountains. Onward and upward to Mt. Seymour Peak. It gets technically more difficult here; although, not for seasoned hikers. Due to a few cm of fresh snow, it was apparent that two hikers were ahead. There is some class 3 scrambling here and some cliff walking, but it was all good. Made it to the summit (1,475 m) 30 minutes after leaving the first peak and lo and behold, there were the two other hikers. After having a conversation and taking more photos we all made the descent together starting at 11:00 am. On the descent, the crowds coming up were insane, especially below the first peak. Also, I couldn’t believe the number of people in runners up there ! Anyways, we arrived down at 12:40 pm and was greeted with a very warm car ! All in all, it was an absolute amazing day for a hike and the views were amazing. Will definitely go back !

The stats:

Distance: 8.1 km (return)
Minimum elevation: 1017 m
Maximum elevation: 1439 m
Elevation gain: 422 m
Total elevation gain: 715 m
Time: 3 hours 35 mins (inc. 30 mins of stops)
Trailhead: 49° 22’ 2” by 122° 56’ 56” (Google Map)

Here is the route:

Here is the view from the first peak…

From the summit looking south…

From summit looking north…

Snow along the trail…

Many people at the first pump…

Here’s me admiring the view…

There’s the peak…

Continuing up the trail…

Narrow section here…

Loads of cars in the parking lot…

★★★★★★★★★★★

Burke Mountain on New Year’s Eve

December 31, 2014Non-Buntzen Lake Hikes, Other Metro Vancouveradmin

Decided to go up the Coquitlam Lakeview trail on Burke Mountain today. It was a beautiful sunny day, but pretty cool. We put on our micro spikes due to icy trail conditions and we encountered fresh snow about half way up.

Today’s stats were:

Distance: 11.4 km (return)
Low point: 330 m
High point: 908 m
Elevation gain: 578 m
Total Elevation gain: 695 m
Trailhead: 49° 18’ 49” by 122° 44’ 57.3” (Google Map)

Here’s the route…

Here is the viewpoint…

Me and my friend’s dog…

Snowy Trail pic…

★★★★★★★★★★★

Burke Mountain – Coquitlam Lake Viewpoint

August 10, 2014Non-Buntzen Lake Hikes, Other Metro Vancouveradmin

We parked alongside Harper Road, just south of the Port Coquitlam Gun Club. Apparently you’ll get towed if you park at the Gun Club.

The day was great – we started at 8am and starting trail temps were 17C and got as low as 14C. On the way down in the open areas, the temperature got up to 27C.

The stats:

Distance return: 11.7 km
Starting elevation: 324 m
Max altitude: 905 m
Elevation Gain: 581 m
Cumulative elevation gain: 725 m
Time: 4 hours
Trailhead: 49° 18’ 49” by 122° 44’ 57.3” (Google Map)

Here is the route…

I will start with the feature photo…

Not too bad of a view, but I’m sure as the years go on, the trees will be more obstructive. That’s Eagle Mountain on the other side of Coquitlam Lake.

Here is the route we took today ala Google Earth (click for large size)…

Here’s another view we had at the top – it shows some of the quarries just south of the Coquitlam River.

We saw a nice little waterfall on the way up…

The next two photos are dogwood berries and wild blueberries (which were sour)…

Here is a large tree that was cut down, but left in the forest…

The next two photos are evidence of the logging activities here in the early 1900s…

Steel wire…

Make shift logging road…

As we come down the mountain, we could hear the sounds of the gun club.

Overall, it was a good hike with some good exercise. The signage was good I found. I still recommend having a GPS for this hike. Not many people at all. We some mountain bikers on the way down – that’s about it.

★★★★★★★★★★★

Brothers Creek Trail

March 9, 2014Non-Buntzen Lake Hikes, North Shoreadmin

Brother’s Creek trail starts in British Properties of West Vancouver. There are variants of this route – I will be showing my route. It was a nice day today – a little cold, but fine. We encountered snow a short time after starting and were soon punching through. The trail starts at the east end of Millstream Road. Beware of snow conditions even into early summer.

The stats:

Time: 2 hours
Distance: 7.8 km (return)
Low point: 375 m
High point: 828 m
Elevation gain: 453 m
Trailhead: 49° 21’ 27.3” by 123° 8’ 30” (Google Map)

Here is the route taken…

Start of trail…