Route from Parking 3B

Cascades mountain accessible backcountry terrain

From Squamish: The Mamquam River Forest Service Road (FSR) leaves Highway 99 about 1 km south of Squamish at the Apron parking lot (Stawamus Chief Provincial Park).  Follow for 13.2 KM then turn left on to the Skookum Dam Road.   Continue 6.6 KM to near end of road at the Dam and parking area at a locked yellow gate.  AWD or 4x4 highly recommeneded for this last 6.6 KM

The BCMC Watersprite Lake Cabin is locked and not available to the General Public.  For further information and/or reservations, please contact the BCMC at info@bcmc.caTrailhead is 20 KM east of Squamish at the Skookum Power Project Water Intake Dam.   This is accessed by the Mamquam Main FSR (begins next to the Chief Climbers Parking Lot on Highway 99 just prior to entering Downtown Squamish).  See separate entry for driving instructions from Squamish. *The trail is still under construction so do not expect a fully groomed trail just yet *Time: 4 to 4.5 hours one way in the trail's current condition *Cars will not make it to the parking lot (All wheel drive or 4 wheel drive highly recommended) *Donations to the BCMC for trail maintenance is always appreciated and needed *Outhouses are soon to be constructed, and the cabin will be paid accommodation which can be reserved on the BCMC website. *Camp only in designated camping areas. *Keep in mind at all times that this area is a rugged wilderness, with unforgiving weather that changes quickly. tshirt and sneakers as an example are not recommended, proper outerware is for your comfort and safety, we want you to enjoy the outdoors. *There is a large bear population and other wildlife in the valley which is often encountered on the trail, so dogs are not recommended for the trail or Watersprite Lake. A new bear attack study indicates that 93% of all bear attacks are male bears and 53% of those involve dogs. *Human waste continues to be a major problem in the Skookum Valley and Watersprite Lake, so please do not leave your toilet paper and deeds near the lake or the trail. This will contaminate the lake and the creeks in the area and make other hikers in the future sick (contaminated drinking water from a creek on the trail already infected one hiker with bacteria) *Open campfires at Watersprite Lake are forbidden and highly detrimental to the fragile environment. **Abuse this fragile and special area and everyone loses**

This is technical, steep climber’s trail and should be undertaken by experienced hikers only.  A new hiking trail gives easy access to the alpine below the summits of Yak and Nak Peaks. The trail starts not far from the Zopkios Ridge rest area on the Coquihalla Highway. From Vancouver, take the 2nd exit before the tollbooth; proceed through the underpass to the north side of the highway, then straight ahead into the upper lot where there are picnic tables. To find the trail, walk east up the ramp and start counting lampposts as you continue beside a concrete divider. Near the fifth lamppost a large stone cairn marks the beginning of the trail. At first, the trail leads down the embankment, crosses a creek which flows here in the middle of a swampy perimeter, and then enters the mature forest. The trail climbs in the trees to the tongue of a talus slope that drops from near the start of the popular 'Yak Crack' rock-climbing route. Cairns along the far (west) side of the scree slope mark the easiest ascent option. Climb to the very top of the talus where a short trail through heather gives access to the very base of the magnificent granite face. As you turn the corner and begin to follow the trench between the wall and the slide alder, watch for climbers overhead who may accidentally dislodge small rocks. The trench holds a stream during run-off or after heavy rain. Short detours bypass the wettest and waterfall-type sections. The trail leads eventually away from the wall, cuts up through some patches of alder, and arrives at the base of a separate small granite slab. This slab can be friction climbed directly when the rock is dry, or else, a swath exists through krummholz to the left of the slab. Above this section, the route follows an obvious draw until it emerges near the foot of a hanging basin. Several large cairns and many ribbons on nearby trees mark this spot. The route becomes sketchy from here on up with the terrain wide open. So don't proceed in whiteout conditions unless you are very confident that you can find the locality again on your descent. It is a classic place where, once off-route going down, you can get into a dangerous situation. A few more ribbons continue up through the middle of the slope, touch a corner in the vegetation, then lead toward the broad ridge. From here, it is rambling along the ridge, over a hump, and on to the summit of Nak Peak. There is no trail but the few bushes do not pose much of a problem. To gain the summit of the closer Yak Peak, hikers must be prepared to climb an intervening, permanent snowfield safely. It is only about 40m wide, but steep enough that a short slip can result in serious injury. Scrambling up steep rock on the south side sometimes avoids the snow (This snow field had melted completely during the summer of 2001). A short excursion leads left to the top of the false summit. This is a good place to get a feeling what it is like to climb the face; just don't lean over the edge too far! For the true summit, return to the broad col and ascend near the edge of the trees. Much of the trail is covered by snow well into the summer, making this a spectacular late summer and autumn hike. It is only about two to three hours up from the cars. Member Contact:  Peter Gumplinger

This trail is only for winter use when there is snow on the ground. It is not suitable for hiking when snow free. The marked trail runs straight across swamps, lakes, talus slopes and thick patches of devils club. Only tree limbs and large obstacles that pose problems in winter have been cleared. This route is suitable for use by skiers or snowshoers.  Goes up Beverley Creek from the Whistler Olympic Park Biathlon Range. The trail ends at the fork at the head of Beverley Creek.   Member Contact:  Scott Nelson

From Ashlu Main, stay left at +6.5km. [Ashlu main forks down to cross the river, but stay left] You are now on A600. Continue on A600. In about 2 km you come to a final fork that goes down to the power dam. Stay left. The road now gets steep and rough. At km +3.8, part way up a hill, you come to the turnoff for the Pokosha spur. You can park here at 410m, or drive a high clearance vehicle to a landing on the Pokosha spur at 460m.Unless you have a high clearance 4WD, you'll park on A600, at the start of the Pokosha spur. There is lots of water on this trail from crossing streams, so you don't need to tank up till approaching the pass. Walk up the only drivable part of the Pokosha Spur, and you'll soon be at the 4WD parking spot at 460m. From here the road is very rough, although there are often ATV tracks having gone a bit further. The start of the trail actually goes on the old roadbed of A610, the Pokosha spur. But as you hike up, the road soon turns into a walking only trail, where extensive alder clearing has been done. At 710m you will come to a faint fork in the old roadbed which is the point in winter that people can go down and cross the creek. But the main summer trail stays on the right fork. Eventually at 850m, you come to the end of the old roadbed. Beyond is a waterfall and steep rockface. Here a constructed trail turns right and goes up beside the waterfall creek, then crosses above the bluff. It is well marked, and a beaten path. Next you'll cross several big slide paths where a swath thru the slide alder has been valiantly cut by the trail building team of the BCMC. At 960m, the trail comes down by Pokosha creek, where there is a small campsite and fire ring. Then the trail continues up and finally crosses the braids of the source of Pokosha creek. Here it turns south and swings around the bowl to go diagonally up the steep alder covered headwall to go thru the "back door" hidden pass into the Clowholm drainage. Here the ribbons and markings stop, but you can continue all the way south to Sigurd meadows and eventually the Sigurd trail. To do this, stay at 1200m most of the way, then climb to the 1270m pass at 49.8878,-123.4229, just above the largest lake in the Sigurd drainage. Then go thru meadows and find the upper Sigurd trail. Member Contact:  Paul Kubik

Named for Rose Tatlow. The name Station Rose was first ascribed to Sigurd Peak on a 1964 map of the Tantalus Range by Neal Carter.  From Sigurd Trail near 650 meters at a marked and signed junction. The trail may be difficult to follow under snow.  Originally marked and cleared by BCMC member Sev Heiberg, the trail is now maintained periodically by BC Mountaineering Club and North Shore Hikers volunteers. The trail follows terrain features without benefit of switchbacks. Rose Trail provides access to the east ridge of Sigurd Peak (Station Rose). It climbs steeply through a mix of closed and open timber to near the ridgeline then traverses on the south side of the ridge to a col. From there the marked route pretty much ends. Continue on the east ridge to the summit.Member Contact:  Paul Kubik

From Squamish, drive up the Squamish main, then turn onto Ashlu main and cross the Squamish river bridge and the twin bridges across Ashlu Creek. Immediately after crossing the 2nd bridge is the trailhead. The start of it is on the old A200 spur road which is undriveable, that leads to the trailhead. Hike up the A200 road, then find the trailhead on the south side of the second switchback, at about 160m elevation. There are ample signs.From the parking area on Ashlu Main, walk up the old roadbed A200 on the left hand side. This can be considered the first section of the trail, although people sometimes still try to drive it. At the second switchback, leave the old road and head south on a much older roadbed, overgrown by trees. This roadbed is level and goes south. All too soon, you leave this old roadbed and start climbing. The trail zig zags up the steep slopes and past some huge Douglas Fir trees. Eventually you come to a fork in the trail where the Crooked Falls trail goes south. From here a short distance later is a turnoff which runs out to the Stoltmann Lookout, over the Squamish River. And just beyond that is the major fork with lots of signs, where the Rose Trail to Sigurd Peak branches off. After the Rose Trail junction, the trail levels off and goes through swampy terrain to get closer to the roaring Sigurd Creek. From the trail at about 640m, you can see the confluence of two tributaries, both of them roaring waterfalls in summer. Continuing on, you come to a big hill which ends at 880m when it goes through a very short slide alder patch before resuming through open timber. From here, you start crossing avalanche paths--a total of four--before the trail descends to a footbridge that crosses to the south side of Sigurd Creek. After crossing the creek, the trail ascends up moderately steep forest before ending at the moraine below Ossa Peak. Member Contact:  Paul Kubik

In summer, the first 1.5 km and the final 2 km of the trail are in old growth forest. In between is an intimidating expanse of slide alder, stinging nettle, rock slides, continuous avalanche slopes punctuated by small tree islands and a deadly log crossing of the creek.