The Vitals
Date: August 31 – September 2, 2024
Location: Garibaldi Provincial Park, BC
Distance: ~40 km hiked, ~12 km paddled
Time: 3 days
Partners: Brittany, Will, Alex, Dave
Photos: Brittany
The Summary
The map below is approximate.
This was the first overnight trips with the DIY packrafts and also one of the dream trips that led to taking on that project in the first place. Our flotilla consisted of four people in homemade rafts and one more in a rental boat.
It was Labour Day weekend and the Garibaldi trailhead was unsurprisingly packed. The hike up was the expected grunt with big packs but they weren’t overly heavy. Without a tent but with the raft, my pack was a little under 40 lbs. We got lots of comments on our protruding paddles before reaching the lake a little before noon. The lake levels were really high, with the usual trail into the campground under water. We took the backside entrance and then headed for the shelter at the picnic area.
Inside the shelter, we packed our gear into the boats for the first time. I even put my non-collapsible hiking pole inside the raft with a sock over the tip. The only thing that didn’t go in was the backpack whose stiff frame is a bit big for the zipper opening. A little inflation magic and then the short walk with the laden boats to the shore.
Along the shore many people were swimming and sunbathing in glorious weather. Hardly a breath of wind and bright sunshine had Garibaldi Lake looking its absolute best. We got in our boats and pushed off, giddy that we were finally experiencing the dream of the hike-and-paddle trip and in such fine conditions. After a few minutes of paddling we got some solitude out in the lake and alternated between floating and chatting and paddling to make some progress to Sphinx Bay and the VOC hut situated there.
After about 90 minutes of lazy work, we reached the far shore and found where to land the boats. The sun was pretty intense with the reflection from the lake so we spent much of the afternoon in the shade of the hut and swimming in the refreshing water.
Late in the evening a couple showed up in a canoe, and this completed the hut occupants for the weekend.
The second day’s itinerary was a summit of Castle Towers, so we woke up early and began hiking at 7:00 am. I wasn’t 100% sure how to get to the summit from the hut, but some research from satellite imagery before we left made it seem possible. It turned out to be fairly straightforward route-finding.
We started by walking along the gravelly flats behind the hut, sticking mostly to the north side. Soon after climbing up behind a small mound, we turned more north and found our way steeply through boulders and trees. When it leveled off we began to spy a moraine and rock below the mountain so we headed in that direction, crossing a stream. At this point we decided to climb up to the ridge coming off the west side of Polemonium Ridge. This was steep, loose, and unnecessary but I don’t view it as a mistake. An easier route would be to follow the stream up to the head of the valley and then shoot for the saddle a little left of some cliffs. This is how we descended and it is perfectly fine.
Since we had come up to Polemonium Ridge, we now joined the standard route that others take from Gentian Pass. Descending from this small summit towards Castle Towers has a few choices. It can be done quite safely on solid rock with minor downclimbing if you pay attention to options on the descender’s left.
From this point it was very simple to reach the west summit of Castle Towers via boulder hopping and some small snow fields. There were many, many other groups out on this weekend and we estimated around 30 people on the west summit in our time there.
To reach the true summit of Castle Towers is a much more significant risk that is entirely to do with loose rock. The crux is downclimbing to the notch from just north of the west summit. With multiple people in the area, there is a real danger of others dislodging rocks on those below. There are also many loose holds that might be tempting to use. It is absolutely possible to negotiate this section using solid rock but you should pay attention and test your holds.
Once through the downclimb, reaching the summit is quick and can be kept to 3rd class by finishing around the north side.
Having made the ascent, we now knew the route back to the hut and we retraced our steps to below Polemonium Ridge where we made the shortcut described earlier. Everyone was feeling pretty tired and ready to get out of the sun when we eventually reached the hut about 10 hours after we left.
After a second night in the hut, we had a bit of a lazier morning before heading out on the lake to climb Mt. Price. We crossed to Price Bay over still water where we landed on a beautiful little gravel beach. After putting our rafts in the shade, we attacked the steep heather slopes above until the angle kicked back. Once into the boulders, we climbed up to the ridge on our right where we joined the trail that leads from the campground.
After lunch in the shade of a cliff, we continued on our way and realized we had missed the summit of Clinker Peak (it’s mislabeled in Matt Gunn’s guidebook). It’s not a very interesting summit so we just continued to the top of Price where we surveyed Castle Towers, Mt. Garibaldi, and the many glaciers in the area.
An uncomplicated descent back to the lake led to a wonderful swim at our secluded beach. I sat neck deep in the water on some nice gravel and basked in the views. The water was cold but the late summer air was hot and the sun was still shining bright. Labour day is a harbinger of fall weather and while September is often nice, it’s not a guarantee. It was important to soak up the rays and the views and bank them for a dreary day in January.
Our last bit of rafting was the first we had to do in some wind. A stiff breeze was blowing from a westerly direction so once we rounded the last bit of land, we had a straight crossing to make with the crosswind. We all made good progress and landed a few minutes later back at the picnic area. We packed up our boats into our backpacks and hit the trail in the early evening. There was still quite a bit of foot traffic but the light was turning yellow as it filtered through the trees and it was a pleasant 9 km down to our cars.
A week or two later we camped for a night on Twin Island in Indian Arm with our rafts, but Garibaldi Lake was the last real summery trip of 2024. It was spent in spectacular weather with great company and in a novel style. I am looking to continue the momentum on hiking/rafting trips as a new dimension to spending time outdoors.
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