Ymir Mountain is renowned for its powder, but it’s also a perfectly hike-able summer excursion. Achieving the summit involves following a difficult trail to traverse the boulders and scree in the Ymir Bowl, but the reward is ridge-line hiking with spectacular views!
Haystack Mountain is a remote peak in the Purcell Mountain Range. The access road is long, but the trail offers hikers the chance to bag a peak or just enjoy the lakes and ridges surrounding the area. Come in the fall for golden larches!
Welcome to one of the newest trail networks in the West Kootenay! This alpine circuit offers ridgelines and summits, just outside of Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park.
For those that like a little more scramble, the Half Dome is a prominent landmark on Ymir Peak’s ridge with big panoramic views. The trail is still in development, so prepare for some route-finding as you pick your way along the ridge, using hands to scramble over the bluffs.
A little bit of bushwhacking will get you over to a new summit on Kootenay Pass. Baldy Rocks offers a new vantage point, looking down over Bridal Lake. This content is available exclusively to members of West Kootenay Hikings Patreon at $10 or more....
A short hike to a quiet subalpine lake, with plenty more exploring on the surrounding ridges. The forest is studded with golden larches in the fall. This content is available exclusively to members of West Kootenay Hikings Patreon at $10 or more....
Mount Beattie and White Queen have individual trails leading to their respective summits… but you can also hike a loop connecting the two! And the best part of the loop is the connection trail leads through a patch of wildflower meadow in the summer and a huge golden larch stand in the fall.
A magical alpine meadow, surrounded by a cirque of peaks on the edge of Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park. With opportunity to either picnic or peak-bag, this trail gets you to the alpine and lets you chose your own adventure from there.
McKean Lakes is a worthwhile alpine destination, tucked away on the edge of Valhalla Provincial Park. The road is long, the trail is steep, but the lakes are cradled beneath impressive peaks.
Sometimes you just need a moderate hike with a moderate view. Mount Beattie is like that. It’s a forested ridge line, tucked away in the Whitewater backcountry. Beattie’s treed summits are uneventful, but sometimes the journey is more important than the destination. And a day out in the mountains is never a day wasted.