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Hiking/Snowshoeing to Alpen Mountain · Sunday, December 1st, 2024
Warning: This is an old trip - it already happened
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Start: Sunday, Dec. 1st
End: Sunday, Dec. 1st
Pre-trip meeting: Sunday, Dec. 1st
Pre-trip meeting location: Zoom
Description:
***The road to Cheakamus Lake parking lot is now unaccessible, objective is now Alpen Peak near Squamish! ***
Empetrum Peak might be the least sought after peak in the accessible parts of Garibaldi Park: it is not very prominent, there's no trail going there, it does not offer good scrambling and as such it usually doesn't deserve a nice summer day! However, it sits just North of Black Tusk and offers the most unique view of that local legend: from the top of Empetrum Black Tusk actually look like a tusk! Now that snow is blanketing most of the park, it sounds like a great time to explore that peak and the winter wonderland in which it is located.
Snowshoes will be necessary to reach the peak, I'm sure this is also doable with skis, but considering the general demand for snowshoeing trips, this will be a snowshoers-only trip!
The route:
The idea is to start at the Cheakamus trailhead and hike the Helm Creek trail for about 10-11km. There will be snow at some point on the trail although I doubt snowshoes will be necessary at this point. Then we turn right and tackle the difficult crossing of Helm Creek (not frozen and without snow bridge) and climb Empetrum ridge and then head to the summit. Snowshoes will likely be needed once we leave Helm Creek trail. If time and energy levels allow it, I'd like to climb the Cinder Cone as well. It's not very tall but is not a pleasant hike in the Summer (and due to heavy erosion from hikers it is also not recommended).
Overall, this should be almost 30km with about 1,500m of elevation gain. As such, following experience is required:
-Snowshoeing
-Long day in the cold
-Hiking on less developped trails (i.e. not just on the touristy classics!)
I ask that you've experienced at least one winter season in a mountainous area (BC, Alps etc..) to sign up for this trip, as it will be too brutal of a first time in the BC backcountry in the winter I fear!
Logistics:
This is a day trip and will happen on whichever day is better that weekend. Days are now very short so we will need to start hiking before 8am, ideally 7.30am (meaning leaving Vancouver by 6am). This adventure should take at least 10 hours so we will be hiking in the dark at the end. The goal is to be back on the trail and ideally below treeling before it's pitch dark. This route doesn't really go through avalanche terrain (little bit when gaining the ridge) but if conditions are highly unsafe or if the weather isn't good then the trip will be rescheduled.
NOTES:
-This is a day trip / The exact dates will be weather dependant to ensure both the safety and enjoyment of the group. If the weekend of November 30th offers safe conditions, we will pick the best of those 2 days. If not, it will be rescheduled to the next possible weekend.
-Winter backcountry travel is inherently risky even on the easiest trails and I am not a certified guide. Please be aware of your own skills and capabilities before signing up! (there's nothing wrong with just getting started with hiking, but if this your case, this is not a trip for you)
Posted: 2024-11-04 09:23:41
Last modified: 2024-11-29 06:31:30