Chilcotin Bike-Packing

I don't know when I first heard about the riding in the Chilcotins, but whenever I start dreaming of epic riding trips, bike packing in the Chilcotins comes to mind. This was bucket list item that got tossed around regularly, but we never actually sat down and made it happen. Usually we would try and make use of multi-week holidays by traveling internationally, rather than exploring our own backyard. Closed borders, cancelled weddings and a slow melting snowpack forced us into looking closer to home for our 2 weeks off at the end of June and a plan to explore the South Chilcotin Mountains Provincial Park by mountain bike started to take shape.

Hours of dehydrating went into the final result - 18 meals and a tonne of snacks

We left from Whistler on a beautiful sunny day, one of the first in ages. The rainy forecast had delayed our original departure date by 4 days but we kept busy by visiting my parents and dodging rain showers riding in Whistler and Pemberton. It was a deep snow pack with a cool spring, so the snow was melting slower than usual in the passes and upper elevations. We weren't sure if we were going to be able to do any of the trails we had scoped out, but figured we wouldn't know unless we tried. The Hurley Road from Pemberton to Goldbridge was totally dry and the car handled it with ease. It was a beautiful drive! 

The Corona Wagon's first off-road adventure up the Hurley

A warm welcome in Goldbridge

The BC Hydro Rec Site we had considered camping at was closed due to COVID, but the BC Park sites up the hill were open and empty. We camped at Friburg Rec Site on Tyaughton Lake and had the place to ourselves. A friendly local even stopped by on his quad to let us know about a bear and dropped off a load of chopped firewood for us. There are two companies that operate out of Tyaughton Lake - Tyax Lodge and Tyax Adventures. In my research I had assumed that they were the same thing, but Tyax Adventures is the company that does float plane charters, guided bike trips and owns the lodges in the park, while Tyax Lodge is the lodge on Tyaughton Lake.

A strange summer in BC

The local bear

Friburg Rec Site

Due to our concerns about snow, we spent 2 nights at the rec site so we could do a reconnaissance ride. It was amazing to relax beside the lake in the evening and enjoy the campfire. In the morning, we were able to ride right out of our camp. We climbed up High Trail to Cinnabar Mine Road. It was a steep climb and we gained about 1400m of elevation to top out on the ridge.

Planning the route

First day in the Chilcotins

We are in "bear-itory"

We encounter snow around the treeline and could quickly see that the passes to the west where we were hoping to ride were not passable without significant effort. We also had amazing views in all directions and could really get an idea of our surroundings.

We finally hit the snow

Post-holing is harder with a bike

Checking out the views

Still lots of snow in the passes

Ridge-o-Rama was a sweet trail and despite encountering some deep snow, we had a blast. Lower down, the single track was fast and fun. There were some trees down that we had to crawl over, but it was a wonderful descent and a great intro to the area.

Kyle riding down the ridge

No snow on the sunny aspects

Choose your own adventure down the snow slope

Back on dry dirt

More snow!!

Part 2 of our trip was the bike-packing portion. After realizing that we were not going to be able to ride the big loops we had planned because of the snow in the passes, we opted to ride up to Spruce Lake for two nights. We used 30L backpacks and strapped a few items to our frames for the ride in. It worked great! We followed Gun Creek Trail from Jewel Bridge up to Gun Meadows Trail, climbing out of the forest and into the alpine meadows. It was a bit of a slog with the extra weight on our backs and bikes and we ended up pushing more than we expected, but made good time up to the campsite.

All packed up and ready to ride

Bags on the bars

Pushing up Gun Meadows Trail. These trails were made for horses, not pedaling!

Beautiful views up Gun Creek and of Mt. Sheba

When we arrived at Spruce Lake, we expected to be the only ones there, but it was busy! A big BC Parks work party was chopping wood and burning slash, other riders were camping at the rec site and a float plane was unloading bins of gear and kegs of beer for a group of 10 that was riding in for their 15th year in a row. So much for "middle of nowhere!"

Tyax Adventures dropping gear at the Spruce Lake dock

Kyle and I had packed for a fast and light trip, so didn't hesitate to accept the float plane bikers offer of cold beer from their kegs. We swapped stories around their campfire as they told us about previous Chilcotin trips and the changes the area has seen over the years.

Our minimalist campsite next to the tent city

Bye-bye float plane!

We got up early to hit the trails. Since trails like Deer Pass and High Trail were out of the question, Kyle wanted to pedal up to Warner Lake and ride the IMBA Epic back down. Typically people will get a float plane drop at Warner Lake, then ride down Gun Creek Trail back to the valley bottom, about 50 km of riding, most of which is descending. It was a 21 km pedal up to Warner Lake and we were both tired from our back to back days of big pedals. We rode past Hummingbird Lake and stopped at Trigger Lake for lunch. From there, it was all uphill to Warner Lake.

Riding down from Spruce Lake to Gun Creek Trail

One of many creek crossings

Trigger Lake Campsite - a great place to stop for lunch

Made it to Warner Lake!

The float plane dock at Warner and the start of the IMBA Epic descent

The final push to Warner was a sufferfest, but it could have been much worse. All the blow-down had been cleared by trail crews the day before so it was smooth sailing up the trail. We snacked on shot-blocks and chocolate almonds while we soaked our feet in the icy lake, happy in the knowledge that what goes up must come down. Our spirits soared as we started our descent and found our flow in the swoopy smooth single track, distracted constantly by the incredible views.

Scree crossing

Ripping down Gun Creek Trail trying to outrun the rain

It was hard to focus on riding when the views were so amazing

Summer wildflowers

The 42 km ride took us all day and we rolled into camp tired, sore and happy. A dip in the chilly lake felt amazing and we spent the rest of the evening eating all the snacks.

Home away from home

We packed up early the next morning for the ride back to Jewel Bridge, a long descent back down Gun Meadows and Gun Creek. It was a fun rip and we were back at the car in just over 2 hours. From there, we hit the road back to Whistler, taking a detour through Bralorne just to see what it was all about. The Chilcotins blew my mind and we will definitely be back when there is less snow.

Back down the meadow

Single track descending all day long

So fun!

Lots of water in Gun Creek