Today was a gorgeous early Autumn day for a hike.  Elfin Lakes is in Garibaldi Provincial Park, located just north of the town of Squamish.  The first 6 km of the hike are uphill, 4.5 km of which are on a forest service road.  There is a small section where the trail is more rugged and muddy, but then it starts again as a wide established trail. As you continue, the views get spectacular; you see Mount Garibaldi and the surrounding peaks.  At the Elfin Lakes campsite (also known as the Diamond Head Area), there are two lakes, one for drinking water and one for swimming; there is also a ranger’s hut, a camper’s hut, a small dining building, tent pads and picnic tables. We made it to the lakes in 2 hours 20 mins, but didn’t have any prior plans for additional exploration, so we headed towards Opal Cone, which is about 6.5 km from the lakes. After crossing the new bridge over Ring Creek, the valley to Opal Cone is mostly a rugged rock landscape and today it was quite warm with the sun beating down. We ended up about 1.5 km and 300 m elevation short of Opal Cone – we had to turn back due to the early sunset – So close !!! Will have to plan this next year !

Here are the stats for just Elfin Lakes…

Distance: 20 km (return)
Time: 5 hours
Low point: 979 m
High point: 1592 m
Elevation gain: 613 m
Cumulative Elevation gain: 750 m
Trailhead: 49° 45’ 0.6” by  123° 03’ 12.64” (Google Map)

Stats for our trip today…

Distance: 29.4 km (return)
Time: 8 hours
Low point: 979 m
High point: 1592 m
Elevation gain: 613 m
Cumulative Elevation gain: 1500 m

The route (only to Elfin Lakes)…

Elfin Lakes…

Elfin Lakes…

Elfin Lakes Hut…

View from near the high point on the trail…

New bridge over glacial stream…

Trail up to Opal Cone…

Small glacier in the distance…

Random trail pic…

Amanita Mushroom…

A rabbit we saw…

View coming up forest service road…

★★★★★★★★★★★

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.

★★★★★★★★★★★

Back to the Pemberton area again today for another hike in the mountains. Semaphore Lakes is known for its great camping, as it’s a relatively short hike and there are many many spots to pitch a tent. But today, we did a day trip, leaving North Vancouver at 7:30 and making it to the trailhead at 10:45. The worst part of the drive is the last 17 km on the Lillooet Forest Service Road (FSR) and the Hurley River FSR, which are gravel and full of bumps, potholes and rocks; many drivers were driving way too fast on this road today. But anyways, we made it to the trailhead in my 2WD Mazda 3. It was a bit nippy today, but the jacket was stripped off about 20 mins into the hike. The trail was very muddy, probably due to a recent rain. It took us about one hour to make it to the start of the campsite area, 3 km from the start. We headed towards Locomotive Mountain, where 2 members of our group went on to the summit and 2 members explored the valley.

Here are the stats including exploring around the valley…

Distance: 9 km (return)
Time: 7 hours (minimal breaks for summit group; several breaks for exploring group)
Low point: 1356 m
High point: 1853 m
Elevation gain: 497 m
Cumulative Elevation gain: 785 m
Trailhead/Parking: 50° 35’ 26.3” by  123° 01’ 4.2” (Google Map and Navigation)

Here is the route with downloadable gpx…

Valley view…

Camping at Semaphore…

Glacial Stream…

Group…

Heading down into valley…

Late season Indian Paintbrush…

Locomotive and Face Mountains…

Small river…

Traversing the moraine…

Valley and lake view…

Back at the car…

★★★★★★★★★★★

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.

★★★★★★★★★★★

Joffre Lakes Provincial Park is just north of Pemberton, BC and about 200 km north of Vancouver. This hike features 3 stunningly beautiful glacier-fed turquoise-coloured alpine lakes. If you’re not into hiking, you can see the first lake with a short easy walk. I was in awe of this place – it is so stunning and it should be on everyone’s list. We went on a sunny and hot Tuesday in August. We arrived at the parking lot around 12:00 and it was almost full. There is a pit toilet at the trailhead, so that’s nice ! When our group reached the last lake, we had a quick lunch and then went exploring up the lateral moraine and then down towards the creek. The stats below are to the end of the 3rd lake and back…

Distance: 8.7 km (return)
Time: 6 hours (with plenty of breaks and exploring)
Low point: 1217 m
High point: 1570 m
Elevation gain: 350 m
Cumulative Elevation gain: 575 m
Trailhead: 50° 22’ 10” by  122° 29’ 55” (Google Map)

Here is the route (including some exploring at end)…

Here are four photos of the upper lake…

Someone standing on a log in the middle lake…

On the way up, there is a nice waterfall…

Up close of the glacier…

Strong meltwater flow in the creek…

Great camping spot…

Another nice waterfall near the glacier…

Wildflowers on slope…

★★★★★★★★★★★

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.

★★★★★★★★★★★

Garibaldi Lake is a very popular hike and for good reason. The hike is great and the scenery is amazing. It’s a gradual uphill climb all the way, with really no intense steep sections. The trail is well defined and easy to find. Dogs are not allowed on this trail.

Distance: 18 km (return)
Low point: 583 m
High point: 1505 m
Elevation gain: 922 m
Trailhead: 49° 57’ 28.1” by  123° 7’ 13.1” (Google Map)

Here is the route…

Here is Garibaldi Lake…

Mount Garibaldi…

Sphinx Glacier at Garibaldi Lake…

Lesser Garibaldi Lake…

Another Garibaldi Lake…

Rock Slide on Garibaldi Lake…

Me by a waterfall…

Some mushrooms I found on the way down…

★★★★★★★★★★★

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.

★★★★★★★★★★★

This is another very popular hike. You can access the trailhead from the Sea to Sky Gondola area or from Shannon Falls Provincial Park. The trail starts out steep, kind of Grouse Grindish. There are 3 peaks to choose from and many people do them all, or just 2.

Distance: 4.6 km (return)
Low point: 64 m
High point: 686 m
Elevation gain: 622 m
Trailhead: 49° 40’ 45.5” by  123° 9’ 16.3” (Google Map)

Here’s the route…

A view of the Chief from Shannon Falls Provincial Park…

Here’s a view from the top…

Another view…

Me at the top…

★★★★★★★★★★★

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.

★★★★★★★★★★★