Chris N. at Brohm Lake:
“After years of driving by Brohn Lake without stopping in, myself and a group of Wanderungers explored some of the trails in the area. There are two parking areas – a small one south of the lake (but you can’t turn into it if you are coming from the south) and the main one beside the lake. There was too much snow in the main lot so we drove back to the south one. The trails are well marked and there are directional signs and maps at all junctions. We explored all of the trails to the south of the lake. Snow covered most trails and ranged from a couple inches to a foot in depth. The forest is typical of the dry bluffs of the Cheakamus canyon – pleasant, open forest with lots of salal. There are 2 picnic spots overlooking the Cheakamus flats on the Cheakamus Loop Trail. We had lunch near an old gazebo-style fire lookout at a highpoint just off the High Trail. We covered about 10 km in about 4.5 hours. Though we saw footprints on almost all the trails, we only saw 3 other people. This hike would probably be best on a warm early spring day after the snow has melted – perhaps plan a trip in April.”
Yearly Archives: 2017
Windy Joe, 25 Feb 2017
Colleen C. on Windy Joe:
“It was a great group that joined me for a snowshoe up to the Windy Joe fire lookout. It was a pretty uneventful, straightforward drive and hike – which personally was appreciated after a few recent misadventures! Particular thanks to Lisa for driving all the way out from White Rock, Phil for bringing homemade cookies, Haiying for supplying zip ties for makeshift snowshoe repairs, and Gail for good conversation.
The trail was packed all the way and follows an obvious path up, fairly low snow levels overall and few deadfalls. Just a heads up that the start is now along the first couple of km of the Similkameen trail. Seems like this is due to a permanent loss of a bridge, so some of the info online is out-of-date and the km markers higher up are a little out. The Club Tread route info page was accurate.”
Mt Seymour, 8 Jan 2017
Chris N. on Mt Seymour:
“Snow was somewhat wet and heavy almost all the way to the first peak. If you stuck to the trail, snowshoes were probably not needed (but you would posthole off trail). Given the amount of snow lower down, I had expected more higher up but it may have been due to wind scour. Around the peak, there was a stiff wind crust and small pockets of wind-deposited powder. Many trees were bending under a load of crusty, icy snow and snowbombs were frequent (and dangerous as they were large and icy). Surprisingly, trail traffic was relatively light for a snowy weekend. Temperatures were warm with a slight inversion – slightly above freezing at the peak and warmer than the city at the parking lot. Visibility was outstanding but flurries moved in while we were on the peak. This became rain as we descended below Brockton Point.”