Cwem Cwem Lake Hike

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Cwem Cwem Lake is an alpine tarn in a rocky plateau area right below Trophy Mountain.     Whereas most hikers go up the Trophy Mountain Trail through the alpine meadows to Plateau of the Tarns in a cirque below Long Hill and the West Trophy Peak, Cwem Cwem requires scrambling down a creek gully and climbing back up to the east.   There is no trail, but there may be a few cairns along the route.    

The best route is to go to the last tarn below Trophy Two (West Trophy), then descend the creek gully down to the Silvertip Creek Valley.    Go upstream, following the creek to Cwem Cwem Lake.   The lake seems like an idyllic spot for a backcountry basecamp.     There are 7 or more peaks to hike and scramble, and there will be no one around.    

We have also included Cwem Cwem Lake in a route we call the Trophy Mountain Circuit.    Hike to the summit of Trophy Two, continue east by following the narrow “airy” ridge down to the col and then scramble up Trophy One in rocky gullies and ridges.    From the summit, descend the south ridge all the way to the lake, and then return by the route noted above.     We have also done this circuit in the other direction.    It is a long route which will take all day, and it will require scrambling and route-finding.     On this outing, we went around the lake and climbed to a col on the east side, then we traversed over to Silvertip Ridge on the south side of Cwem Cwem, hiked to the top and then continued around the lake and hiked the long and rugged route back.

Cwem Cwem is a special spot, one of our favorites.    Some photos of the route are shared here in a Google Photos album.  

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Mt. Bowman Hike

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Mt. Bowman is located in the Marble Range, northwest of Clinton.    To get to the trailhead, we drive north on Highway 97 to Clinton, then turn down the Kelly Lake (Pavilion – Clinton) Road to the junction of the Jesmond Road, a good gravel road which goes north along the western flank of Marble Range Provincial Park.   The trailhead is accessed by one of two high clearance, bumpy gravel side roads (23 and 24 km north) which go to the powerline.     There is a small parking area near the creek.    A good trail follows the creek upstream with a gradual climb.   At 3.1 km a small rough camp is reached.     The trail which continues east goes … Continue reading →

Raft Peak Traverse

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Raft Peak is an 8000 foot rocky mountain north of Clearwater, just outside Well Gray Park.    It is accessed by a long (22 km) rough (high clearance and the last part requires 4WD) mountain road.     There are 5 peaks in the range.     From the trailhead to the top of the west summit is a steep 3 km scramble.   From there it is an airy scramble across to the second peak.     The north slopes descend with snowfields in the cols leading down to Cirque of Tarns.  The traverse to the third and fourth peaks is much easier.   The final peak requires a bit of light scrambling up, then down the other side. The traverse is an all-day … Continue reading →

Fifty Years on Trophy Mountain

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On a sunny and warm day in early July, an early start was important, so the hike started at the trailhead by 8:30 in the morning.     The first 2 km was through forest, winding uphill, crossing streams, working toward subalpine glades up to the meadows.    Snow was still present at the higher elevations so the slopes were mostly wet, with wildflowers, flowering shrubs, and emerging perennials all the way from the forest to the heathlands in the alpine zone.   This was the fiftieth consecutive year in a row of hiking in the Trophy Mountains.    Over the years, all of the 9 summits were hiked, some from different trailheads, some involving day-long traverses.    In later years, the … Continue reading →

Stoyama Mountain

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The summit of Stoyama Mountain is an elusive hike.    It stands as the most northern (significant) peak in the North Cascades, located in a backcountry area between the Coquihalla and Highway 1 (the Fraser Canyon).    There are a number of backroads to the area, but the main access is from Highway 8 (Merritt to Spences Bridge), then a turn south onto the Petit/Spius Creek Forest Service Road.    After a long, bumpy drive past a number of junctions, take the turn onto the Cabin Lake Road.    The road is reasonable for a while, but soon turns into a very rough (4WD) access road.   Driving all the way to Cabin Lake can be traumatic so hikers may wish … Continue reading →

Mount Thynne

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Mt. Thynne is located south of Brookmere on the east side of the Coquihalla Highway, across from July Mountain.   It is accessed by turning off the Coquihalla Highway at the bridge across the Coldwater River and turning onto the Brookmere Road.  Drive through Brookmere and turn right onto the Mount Thynne Forest Service Road. The gravel road has a number of junctions, some signs, and a number of MSC (Merritt Snowmobile Club) signs (the route to the trailhead).   From Bookmere to the trailhead is about 16 km.   The road continues past that, but it is too rough for most vehicles.   The trailhead is at the Tin Shed Shelter. The “trail” is really a rough double track used to service communications … Continue reading →

Red Plateau Ramble

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On a warm mid-June day we drove up the Red Lake Road, then turned up onto the Red Plateau Forest Service Road.     Near the 4.5 km marker, we parked, then started a hike on tracks and trails across Red Plateau.  Our route connected us with the Dewdrop Trail/Castle Butte/Red Plateau Traverse Trail.    The trail passes above the scramble route to Castle Butte, then we continued on to one of the best viewpoints on the Red Plateau Escarpment.    Rugged lava cliffs rise 700 vertical meters (2300 feet) from the Dewdrop Range below.   After exploring an arch, we had lunch, then returned by the same route. Navigating on Red Plateau requires either past experience or a good app and … Continue reading →

Stony Lake Hills

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On a sunny and breezy June day, the route was up the Stony Lake track.     This originally was a cart track that connected homesteads located near the ponds and lakes on the northeast side of Lac du Bois to the main road.   We can access the track from a spot before Lac du Bois near a fenceline or from a point near McQueen Lake.    All of this land is now part of the Lac du Bois Nature Conservation Area so motorized vehicles are not allowed and there are barriers installed.     Walkers, hikers, and naturalists are welcome to go on foot on the old track.  For this day, the plan was to hike to an area above Stony … Continue reading →

Mara Mountain NE Route

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In early June we drove the bumpy Pruden Pass Road, then hiked up to the top of Mara Mountain from the northeast side.   We have been doing this hike in spring every year for decades.    There are several routes up the mountain, but this route starts at a higher elevation and is less arduous.    There is no established trail, and the first section is mostly just winding up the open grassland and forest slopes.    After passing a small dry pond, we picked up a known trail over the shoulder of the mountain, then down through a gully, and up and out to the top of the south face of the mountain. Some of the route is up … Continue reading →

Greenstone Trails

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At the end of May I went up the Greenstone Mountain Road to hike a series of single-track trails.   I parked at the 5 km mark on the Forest Service Road then followed trails to the west, then up through the rocky hills in a counter-clockwise loop.    Although there are some old double tracks in the area, most of the single tracks were built by the mountain biking community.    There are some hand-made signs here and there, but for the most part, hikers need to navigate on their own, making choices at each junction.   I have hiked the trails a number of times and I use a mapping/GPS app (Maps.me) if I come to an unknown junction.    … Continue reading →