Cathedral Lakes - Hiking the Rim

I have wanted to hike the Rim Trail in Cathedral Lakes Provincial Park for quite a number of years but never thought it would be something that would be even possible for me to do but this past weekend, I can strike hiking the Rim Trail off my to-do list.

No hiking trip would be complete without our hiking companions Glenda and Eric (Bugaboos and Heather Trail) and I was very glad that we all did this together. Originally we had a different trip planned which involved carrying heavy packs for long periods of time but with Tim's surgery, that trip wasn't possible.

There are a couple of ways to get up the campgrounds in the core area of the park. You can hike up. There are a few trails that will take you up (16 km, 20 km or 28 km with elevation changes ranging from 1300 metres to 1740 metres) or you can take a shuttle The shuttle is expensive expensive, takes about an hour and is quite the journey up the mountain. It was a good thing we couldn't do a trip involving carrying heaving packs for long periods of time!

The shuttle up was a unimog (picture taken from Cathedral Lakes Lodge website) and we got jostled around pretty good on the way up. (I think Tim's abdomen took a beating!) We got dropped off at the lodge and from there it was a short hike to Lake of the Woods campground. Between the 4 of us we were able to take most of the gear in one trip but Glenda and I did have to make an extra trip back for Tim's pack while the guys set up the tent.

Glenda and I loaded down with gear.

Our campsite and first use of our new MSR Hoop Tent. You will notice that I am looking a little miserable (yes I know, Laurie miserable...) I had developed one wicked headache and had it for most of the weekend and only packed 2 Tylenol with me. Not sure what I was thinking there. I usually have a whole array of pharmaceuticals with me. I noticed in quite a few of our pictures that I look quite grumpy (and I am being kind here) and I sure hope my foul mood didn't spoil Glenda and Eric's pictures (or their weekend either!)

We decided to stretch our legs and go on a nice easy hike to Lady Slipper Lake (3.9 km with a change in elevation of 220m). For some reason, this was not a nice easy hike for me and I found it very hard. I had a hard time catching my breath and it felt like I was wearing cement hiking boots. I was more than a little concerned that I would not be physically able to do the Rim trail the next day.

When we got back to camp Tim had to take his nap and Eric got out his fishing rod. I can't remember how long it took but I'm sure it was no more than 30 minutes and he had 4 nice sized cutthroat trout for dinner. He caught quite a few more but didn't keep them. I got a lesson in how to clean a fish and Eric made it look like a piece of cake but I am sure I would have lost a finger if I had tried doing it. After Tim got up he tried his luck and was able to catch just one. Eric had brought along his fry pan, some butter, salt and pepper and we had ourselves an amazing appetizer. I don't think I have ever tasted fish this good. I'm still thinking about it a week later! Supper of course was boil in a bag Indian dinner (what else do we eat camping?) and we didn't stay up too late because the mosquitoes were out in full force. I think I had my best night sleep in a long time that night. I normally don't sleep well the first night camping. Honestly, I don't sleep well any night no matter where I am but once I got all toasty in my new sleeping bag on my Neo-Air thermarest, I was gone. I cannot remember the last time I went camping where I didn't wake up cold during the night and it was wonderful to get through the night without shivering. However, the warm good sleep did nothing to alleviate my headache.

I was quite anxious to start the next morning for fear I wouldn't be able to keep up on the Rim trail or that I would hold everyone up. The description for the Rim trail from the City of Penticton Community Centre brochure:

"The Cathedral Rim Trail follows a high alpine ridge 8500 feet above sea level. This day hike leads to the unusual geological formations that this area is best known for. The Devil’s Woodpile, Stone City, Smokey the Bear, and The Giant Cleft are all located on the rim. The 360‐degree view from the rim enables hikers to see the North Cascade Mountains, The Coast Range, The Thompson Plateau, and the Kootenays. This is our Saturday hosted trek for very fit hikers." I wore my trusty Garmin and the total distance covered was 13.8 km with an elevation gain of 772m) I uploaded the data to Google Earth and got the following picture of our hike.

We accessed the Rim Trail through Lady Slipper Lake and this time going up wasn't as much as a grind as the day before. It was still a challenge but it was a little easier the second time. However, I'm sure I was still wearing my grumpy face. Lady Slipper Lake was still mostly covered in ice and we had to travel through snow around part of the lake to reach the trail that would take us to the Rim. I was a little nervous about the snow and the possibility of slipping into the cold water of the lake.

We still had quite a climb ahead of us after Lady Slipper Lake but it was at a more gentle grade (except for the very end.) The scenery was spectacular.

The push to the top!

At the top was Stone City, where we huddled behind some rocks to stay out of the wind and eat our well-deserved lunch.

From Stone City we went to see Smokey the Bear and the Giant Cleft. I have seen numerous pictures of Smokey and have always wanted to see the rock formation in real life. And yes I know the hat looks dorky but it was windy.

We hiked to the Giant Cleft at the top and although it was impressive, I think it would have been spectacular to see from a lower vantage point.

What we saw

What we could have seen (next time!)

We headed back to Stone City, past the Devil's Woodpile which is a large outcropping of columnar basalt which looks like a pile of logs. It is hard to see in the picture so I found a picture that showed it better.

We decided to head back to camp through Glacier Lake and looking at the way down got my legs shaking and my heart quivering. First we had to go across the long ridge of snow that got to be quite steep near the end. I could just picture myself slipping and let me tell you, the bottom was a very long way down. After that we had to go down through some large rocks which was very tricky because the rocks were very uneven and not stable.

This picture really shows the ridge of snow we had to travel across. We started from the far left and went across the ridge near the top, getting onto the rocks at the far right where it looks like the snow ends in a point. You can see how steep the hill is as it gets close to the rocks and how far a fall it would be if one of us had slipped. As well, those rocks would not have made for a very soft landing.

One bonus of coming down this way was seeing a momma mountain goat and her kid.

The trail from Glacier Lake back to the campground was longer than I had thought it would be and I was very glad to be able to make it back to the campsite, slip on my booties and start cooking dinner. Notice I am smiling in this picture. I must have just been so darn happy to have made it back in one piece. Seriously, a big thanks to Glenda for all her support and encouragement.

Unfortunately I did not sleep well (although I was toasty warm, at times I felt down right baked!) and morning came far too soon. It also came with thunder, lightening and a downpour. Eric and Tim rigged up some tarps and we moved all our gear underneath and cooked our breakfast. There was a break in the rain for a short time and Tim and Eric broke out the fishing rods and Eric proved once again to be the superior fisherman (sorry Tim.) However Tim did provide one of the 4 fish we for lunch. Again, I can still smell and taste that fish. What a treat that was.

After lunch we packed up, humped all our gear back to the lodge, took the shuttle (this time a Suburban) back down to base camp and headed home. Another successful hiking trip.