Tag Archives: Zoa Peak

Zoa Peak, 11 Jun 2015

Day hike, ,

Andy G. on Zoa Peak:
“A lovely mid-week excursion on a fine trail, this hike was nicer than I remembered. Bob and Tec joined me to meander our way up to the summit at a leisurely pace. As we got back to the car we decided to head in to Falls Lake to check it out – pleasant enough though very windy, it added less than half an hour to our trip. We were finished within 5 hours.

The trail was in good condition, though still a little wet at higher elevations where some snow remains. In places the trail is a small running stream, but perfectly manageable with hiking boots. There are a couple of excellent rocks for lunch spots with a great view of Alpaca, Vicuna and Guanaco.

Thankfully there were far fewer bugs than on my last visit a couple of years ago – I got only 3 bites compared with 120 last time! It was quite breezy, which seemed to keep them at bay.

Plenty of flowers out, but I think the best is yet to come. Glacier lilies are probably at peak bloom near the summit (a bit beyond the obvious viewpoint); they’re well past it on the open southerly slopes. Other flowers include (deep breath!): paintbrush, lupine, orange agoseris, valerian, arnica (at least 2 species), columbine, wild strawberry, buttercups, cinquefoil, thistle, marsh marigolds, globeflower, western anemone, rosy twistedstalk, queen’s cup, green bog orchid, phlox, spring beauty, meadowrue, larkspur and a columbia lily or two.

No animal sightings but we did find what we thought was mountain goat wool snagged on the heather, and saw a foot hoof-prints in the mud. The wool was incredibly soft and fine.

Thanks to Bob and Tec for a great day out. Photos from Bob and myself are up on Flickr.”

Zoa Peak, 11 Jun 2015

Zoa Peak, 1 Nov 2014

Day hike, Overnighter, , ,

Eugene on Zoa Peak and at Adams River:
“Four of us traveled to Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park east of Kamloops in order to watch one of the largest Sockeye salmon runs in the world. The official festival has already ended, however, the spawning season was at its peak. The fish count follows a mysterious 4-year pattern and is dramatically higher this year.

As we were walking along the river, we had plenty of opportunities to have a closeup look at sockeye, as they were too busy struggling against the strong current in a desperate effort to reach their life-long goal. Portions of the river bank has accumulated a large amount of dead or dying fish. And yet, as we walked along those graveyards, we could easily spot the beginning of a new life with plenty of fish eggs lying around. Overall, it was a really dramatic experience watching the fish, as the sockeye offered us another perspective on life and death.

Another highlight of the trip was the spectacular Thompson valley and the city of Kamloops with its well-preserved historic downtown. This was a great place to escape from the never-ending Vancouver rain…

On the way to Kamloops, we did a short hike to Zoa Peak. Most of the trail was covered by fresh snow, which started at about the 2 km mark and became over 20 cm deep at the peak. However, there were still a few open rock sections in the middle part.

Route finding to Zoa Peak was a challenge, especially on the upper portion, where there were virtually no visible markers. We were mostly following the footprints of some small animals that appeared to follow roughly the same route.

Unfortunately, the main Zoa Peak was hidden in clouds, so that once we reached the fully forested minor peak, we decided to turn back. Nevertheless, as we were walking along, we had plenty of opportunities to enjoy the gorgeous views on the surrounding peaks and valleys.”

ZoaPk2014_SunRay

Zoa Peak 20/03/10

Snowshoe,

Ben at Zoa Peak:
“A group of six hikers set out for Zoa Peak just minutes after the spring equinox. The stars were thus nicely aligned to provide us with some great conditions for our trip. The location of the trail proper was a bit elusive, but we passed a couple of helpful folks from Chilliwack that pointed us to the most direct route. We spent less than half an hour in the forest before the views started opening up, and we had a whole wide ridge-top loaded with soft snow on which to tromp around and explore. Thanks to everyone for joining to
make this a trip to remember.”

Zoa Peak Mar. 20, 2010

Zoa Peak 24/10/09

Day hike,

Christian on Zoa Peak:
“Crunch, crunch, crunch – a great Coquihalla social.

Five of us started out from Surrey, and arrived at the trail head above the Coquihalla Summit in good order. Everyone was well prepared. As soon as we started hiking from the “Falls Lake” right of way, we encountered a fresh dusting of snow. Mount Thar, beside Falls Lake, all covered in snow, looked awesome! Crunch, crunch, crunch – we could hear almost every step in the inch of snow all the way to the top. It was so quiet, nothing could be heard when we stopped moving. A true winter wonderland! Along the trail, we saw fresh footprints of squirrel, rabbit, grouse, fox and wolf. However, there was no sign of the elusive “snow snug”. 🙂 Shucks! Clouds rolled though as we reached the summit. Views kept coming and going. We were envious of the sun drenched hills right across the valley to the North. The summit wasn’t a true peak. Our views to the West were obscured. We settled in at the summit, and started cooking. Ah, lunch! We began with a sweet egg pasta curry with fresh tomato and carrot, cooked up a spiced brown rice with honey glazed beef, and had a light cous-cous dabbled with mango and pineapple. We finished off the meal with green tea and yogurt covered raisins. Fantastic! We had conversations about careers, travel, and cultural comparisons. The two architects on the trip, had lots to say! Allan cracked jokes all day. Mighty Zoltan took many pictures – a true Flickr aficionado! Our return down was quick, and full of conversation. We drove down the highway to Hope and arrived at the Home Restaurant before dark. We all ate from massive plates of great food. On the plates, the piles were so big, yam fries were falling off onto the table. We learned the new term: “Mountain money.” And we discovered the value of Gore-Tex socks. This product keeps feet dry regardless of how wet footwear becomes. An awesome product for West Coast hiking.”

Zoa Peak, October 24 2009