Steve on Elk Mountain:
“Pros: Wildflowers! Minimal bugs. No snow. Views of the valley.
Cons: Crowds. People with dogs.
Don’t let the crowds and dogs fool you, this trail is challenging and steep in sections, though not nearly as bad as 103 Hikes would lead you to believe. It takes more like 6 hours, not 7. Make no mistake about it, July is the time to do this trail due to wildflowers, though I’ve also heard it is a great Fall destination also. Many fields had 6 or 7 types of flowers (and colours) in one eye-shot.
We really pushed the speed on the way up, but I suggest slowing down, and taking in the views. The trailhead can be accessed very easily with only maybe 0.5 km of the access road being gravel. We were behind a convoy of 7 cars from the Korean hiking club of Vancouver.
Seven of us did this Chilliwack trail on what turned out to be a sunny day and followed up with a trip to some fruit and corn stands in the area. I’m still trying to figure out why we didn’t use the drive-thru at the corn place instead of getting out!”
