The Alcoholic Traverse has been on my list for a long time, but it always seems to get put aside for another trip. So when my friend Sophie asked what I wanted to do for 3 days in Whistler, a bunch of other trips came to mind first. Then I remembered I could finally do the Alcoholic Traverse. Luckily Sophie was game, we planned to meet up in Whistler and hitch to the trailhead. We floated the idea of bring a beer or two, but since I barely drink these days and Sophie was worried about weight, we settled on a non-Alcoholic Alcoholic Traverse.
The track we used for navigation was from this blog post by a fellow VOCer (found here: https://www.bcbackcountryfamily.com/blog/alcoholic-traverse-tribulations-and-triumphs). I wanted to post a new trip report to highlight this traverse for beginners, its an awesome route option if you are learning to navigate off trail that is challenging and stratifying without including much technical terrain. For anyone who is not familiar with the route we did it over 2.5 days but two days is feasible for most groups. Around Mount fee there are two possible route options, below mount fee via the glacier on the west side of the peak, or lower down through meadows – we chose the lower option.
Day 1
Brandywine Meadows to unnamed lake below Mount Fee
Since me and Sophie are both car-less, I met her in Whistler via the convenient Vancouver to Whistler bus and we hitched a ride to the snowmobile staging area at the base of Brandywine FSR in short order. We had three days to complete the traverse, and it was already after 11am. So naturally, the first thing we did when we got here was snack. After eating and lamenting a bit about the excessive heat we started to hike up the logging road. Luckily for us a couple girls headed up to Brandywine meadows drove and we were able to hitch another ride up to the trail head.
Brandywine meadows was just emerging from the snow and above the meadows the route was mostly snow covered. Luckily the snow was solid, there was minimal post holing and it was easy to kick steps in. We gained the summit of Brandywine and had a quick snack then headed for the unnamed lake below Mount Fee.
After the well-trodden route up to Brandwine Peak the traverse route follows a ridge for a short time before dropping in a steep gully on the corner of Brandywine. Despite the snow, this was the first place where we saw running water after leaving the meadows. As we filled up a ptarmigan wandered by, the first Sophie had ever seen. It was oblivious to us, as are most ptarmigan.
As we continue on, we traverse over to Mount Fee, dropping down below the peak to the lake to camp just before sunset. From this vantage point we had our first view of Mount Cayley and Pyroclastic Peak. In the hot sun even at 7pm, steam was rising off the meadow below Mount Cayley.
At camp that night Sophie, fresh off completing the PCT last summer, introduced me to her favorite hiking meal, the Tuna Ramen Bomb. Here its a recipe if you want some truly authentic hiking food:
Tuna Ramen Bomb:
1 Tuna pack
1 Pack instant mash potatoes
1 Pack ramen
Step 1
Boil water and add ramen, mashed potato pack and seasoning. Allow 2-3 to soak.
Step 2
Stir in tuna pack
Step 3
Pretend this calorie dense meal is somehow enjoyable.
Day 2 Unnamed lake to Brew Hut
On of first day the snow had made for easy travel, and our late start meant we were high up on Brandywine during the hottest part of the day, with a cool breeze that kept the bugs at bay. Our second day started with the choice to go high or low. Around the corner from the unnamed lake the Fee Glacier sits below the ridge that you need to gain to take the high route. Until now the late snowpack had helped us but the glacier was still covered in snow that was melting quickly and with minimal glacier travel gear and experience, it was definitely not worth traversing. We decided to take the lower and longer route dropping into the bug filled meadows below the glacier.
We made it to end of the ridge between Cypress and Fee just before lunch. This was the only place on the traverse where I struggled with navigation, after ascending the ridge you traverse east over the ridge that leads to cypress, before descending into the valley where Roe creek runs, and ascending the series of ridges that take you pass Keg, and eventually to view.
Maybe it was the heat or maybe it was my subconscious desire to do the Semi-Alcoholic, but after ascending the ridge we spent a while hiking in exactly the wrong direction.
The route offered little shade, but water was abundant early in the season. After reaching descending we found a small patch of trees and enjoyed some time out of the sun before making the final push to Brew Hut. This last section had fewer spectacular views, but more fun terrain. If you are a hiker like me who enjoys narrow ridges and scrambling over bushy peaks you will enjoy it. We reached Brew Hut just in time for dinner after bagging Keg Peak. At sunset Sophie and I finally wandered up Mount Brew and admired the views of Brandywine and Fee in the final golden light.
Day 3
On the hike down we stopped for a quick dip in Brew Lake. I told Sophie Brew is one of my favourite alpine swimming lakes in the Sea to Sky – it’s shallow, but this means it warms up early after the snow melts. It was beautiful and warm but our swim was short lived. As we enjoyed the water Sophie started to point out the little tadpoles and worms floating in the lake. Then she decided to tell me about the parasitic worm in the Amazon that climbs up men’s stream of pee to enter their penis. I was suddenly put off by the innocent looking worms, which took on a menacing new appearance. Sophie helpfully continued that most lakes have lots of parasites, as I existed the lake, deciding I would need a bit of time to forget this conversation before going for another swim. I cursed her for destroying Brew Lake for me.
The rest of our hike out was uneventful, the meadows below Brew Lake were full of wildflowers and the sun was beating down. We reached the logging road after about an hour then spent another hour and a half hiking down before a couple in a blue Tacoma pickup pulled over and offered us a ride in the bed (it had a queen sized mattress in the back so it was literally a bed, and a very comfy ride). There is something about sitting in the back of a pick-up truck while it hurls down the logging road that feels final. The dust picked up behind us catching the sunlight, making god rays as it slit through the trees. Maybe it was just the satisfaction of getting out of walking down the hot logging road but it felt magical. When we hopped out at the bottom I convinced Sophie we should go for a swim in Lucille Lake before hitchhiking back to Whistler. After a blissful dip we caught one more ride. Our driver told us he was on the way to the hospital and could drop us on the way. For an alarming moment we wondered why he’d pulled over, until he clarified it was an imaging appointment. We headed back to Whistler, making it back to town for well before dinner, and plotted our next adventure.
Nice story! It makes me want to do the traverse now, although I’ll try to forget about the discussion at Brew Lake before planning to go for a swim
Sounds great! Important outdoor knowledge: warm pools :D, warm lakes :/