HBC Heritage Trail
- Kaitlin
- Sep 7, 2024
- 14 min read
Updated: Oct 20, 2024
Sept 3-7, 2024
Distance: 74km point-to-point
Elevation gain: 3922m according to official records (In reality, about 4100m)
Time required: 5-7 days
The HBC Heritage Trail is a 74km long trail that goes from Hope to Tulameen (or vice versa). It is the old trading route through the Cascade Mountains that the Hudson's Bay Company horse brigades would take to carry goods from Fort Hope to Otter Lake (Tulameen) from 1849-1860. Interest in restoring this trail started in the 1960s and after some tumultuous decades and a massive amount of work by volunteers, it was finally re-opened in 2016.
This blog will not only detail my experience of the trail but also serve as a guide to others who may want to complete it as not much information exists about it online.
Table of Contents
My Journey
Day 1: Peers Creek Trailhead (Hope) -> Colville Camp
13.7km
1380m elevation gain
7hr:10 total
I got dropped off at the trailhead by my boyfriend at 8 am. There is a large sign marking the start of the trail. This is actually a new re-route. The old trail used to go past the gate, cross Peers Creek, and follow the FSR. Make sure to start on the actual trail and not the FSR. The trail climbs steeply through the forest for several kilometers. Be aware that the trail is much further south than the route shown on Gaia (and with much more elevation gain than shown). It eventually lines back up with the map at about 720m elevation.
After hiking up and down through the forest for three hours, I arrived at Manson's Camp. Photos of all of the campsites are shown in the Campgrounds section below. Once past Manson's Camp, I started climbing Manson's Ridge. In the trees you can see axe markings called 'blazes' which were used by the HBC Brigades to mark the route. They are prevalent and visible along the entire trail.
At the top of Manson's Ridge, there is a 400m detour that leads to a beautiful lookout on a small ridge. It is well-worth taking the additional ten minutes to this picturesque spot.
Once cresting Manson's Ridge, l descended down the other side and continued through the forest before shortly reaching Colville Camp. There was one thru-hiker at the camp when I got there which greatly surprised me. He had been there for a full day. At first, I was disappointed as I had really wanted complete solitude along the entire trail but then as we started chatting, I heard a lot of really interesting stories and I ended up being grateful that we ran into each other. We shared a lot of trail stories and tips.
The night was quite warm. I run really hot and ended up having to un-zip my sleeping bag. I slept very well - the best night of sleep on the entire trail. I heard a barred owl hooting for several hours during the night,
Day 2: Colville Camp -> Conglomerate Flats Camp
13.5km
1330m elevation gain
7 hours total
I left Colville Camp fairly early and continued on the trail through the forest, gaining a bit of elevation, for 2.5 hours until reaching Sowaqua Road Camp. Just before Sowaqua Creek FSR (where the camp is), there is a bigger creek crossing that requires fording. Also at that creek is where I saw my first bear of the trip - a big male black bear that scurried off into the bushes as I approached.
From Sowaqua Camp came the hardest part of the whole trail - a 700m elevation gain climb to the top of a ridge. This took awhile and it was very hot out. Once reaching the highest point of the ridge, I stopped there for lunch and to dry my socks, shoes, and gear in the blazing sun. There is a bench at this lookout, though I preferred to sit in the dead grass instead.
The wild berries were out in abundance in the sub-alpine. Huckleberry, blueberry, thimbleberry, bunchberry. I ate tons as I had made my way up the ridge.
Deer Camp is only a couple hundred meters along the ridge past the bench. After that came another 200m gain climb to the top of another beautiful ridge (1850m at the highest point). The most picturesque views of the entire trail are at this spot.
From there, I descended down the ridge for one kilometer until reaching Conglomerate Flats. This was my favourite camp of the whole trail. It sits right below Mount Davis in a gorgeous bowl featuring sub-alpine meadows and a winding creek flowing through.
That evening, I saw and heard a falcon-sized bird with light grey wings and a white body hunting for pika among the talus. It made a distinctive high-pitched whistle call. I couldn't ID the bird despite great efforts but it was really neat to see.
Day 3: Conglomerate Flats Camp -> Horseguard Camp
18km
320m elevation gain
6 hours total
The day once again dawned sunny and hot. After packing up and eating breakfast, I made a quick side trip through the meadows to Grant's Pond, which only took 30 minutes. What a relief it was to not be wearing my big pack. I felt so light and free.
After my side trip, I continued onwards on the main HBC trail. After 2.5km through Cascade forest, I reached a trail junction. Taking the trail on the left leads to Jacobson Lake Camp (500m from the main trail). Jacobson Lake itself is quite pretty. Though the camp is vehicle accessible, no one was there.
After getting back on the main trail, it was 11km of hiking through endless forest to Horseguard Camp. By this point on the trail, the conditions were quite dry. The Cascade forests are not like the forests we typically have on the coast (dark dank forests as we call them). Here, the canopy is made up of fir, spruce, and pine. There is much more light that comes through, resulting in drier conditions and different understory species. It was a nice change from coastal forests.
I found tons of cool mushrooms that day. I love mushroom hunting. I couldn't take any with me but I would have if I could. I found so many interesting fungi over the length of the whole trail.
I had lunch by the only creek in a 7km stretch of trail. From there, it was just over an hour more to Horseguard Camp situated on the Tulameen River.
I was tired by the time I got to camp. This was probably my most fatigued day. After two previous days of decent climbing, I was starting to feel the cumulative fatigue in my legs. Despite the fatigue, I had no muscle soreness in my legs (only in my shoulders due to the weight of my pack). It felt amazing to soak my legs and feet in the Tulameen River.
That night, I alternated between freezing cold and boiling hot. That was something I did almost every night. I also slept a lot - probably 9.5-10 hours (but I was in bed for 11 hours). This was also a regular feature for me. My body needs a lot of sleep which can sometimes be a burden. But on this backpacking trip where there is nothing to do once the sun sets at 8pm, it makes it easy to sleep a lot.
Day 4: Horseguard Camp -> Lodestone Lake Camp
15.3km
810m elevation gain
5.5 hours total
This day dawned slightly smoky. As I got on the trail, the first thing I did was ford the Tulameen River. The trail then gradually started to climb through the forest. There was one particular patch that I kept hearing falling cones and branches. I thought it might have been due to heat stress but I only saw it in one particular area, stretching maybe 500m, which I thought strange.
After climbing through the forest for about 3km, the trail came into an area known as The Defiles. It is basically a narrow canyon with slopes on either side; one side talus and the other meadow. In the talus, I heard and saw pika. I hear pika all the time but it is rare to actually see them - they dart quickly in and out of their holes. But this one particular guy seemed perfectly okay with me standing right beside him. It was only my second time ever seeing a pika up close.
After going through The Defiles, I made the short climb up to Blackeye's Plateau Camp. The total hiking time from Horseguard Camp had been 2.5 hours.
The plateau is a beautiful meadow full of low lying shrubs, including the delicious Cascade blueberry (also known as bilberry). I stopped for a 20-minute snack break in the meadows. I saw a bear in the distance.
From the plateau, I descended down onto Whipsaw/Wells road which is a jeep road. The trail follows it for 7km as it undulates up and down. It has huge pits in it full of water that you have to navigate around. It is not the most beautiful stretch of terrain.
I stopped somewhere on the road for another 20-minute snack break (in lieu of lunch). Shortly before reaching Lodestone Camp, eight jeeps came roaring up the road behind me. I looked back at them, tripped and fell over in the dirt, then quickly moved out of the way as they passed by.
Three hours after leaving Blackeye's Plateau Camp, I reached Lodestone Lake. This camp is right on the lake and is quite big. Four of the jeeps that had passed me were there when I arrived. It was a group of five men, all very friendly and very fascinated by what I was doing. They were cooking steaks and offered me one but I turned it down. The group only stayed about an hour and a half for which I was very thankful. I had really wanted privacy and I finally got it. They left me a package of six water bottles which I was also thankful for as this meant I didn't have to filter the lake water.
By day four, I had a familiar routine down. I would set up camp, wash myself down and change into my sleeping clothes, then lay out my hiking clothes and boots to dry/sun-sanitize. I would then journal and make dinner, read for awhile (I was reading Essentialism by Greg McKeown on this trip), and go to bed.
Day 5: Lodestone Lake Camp -> Tulameen Trailhead
18.8km
630m elevation gain
6hr:40 total
The south side of Lodestone Lake is home to a population of wild cows. I saw many of them across the lake in the morning. They were mooing aggressively.
The day was very hot and quite smoky. From Lodestone Lake, the trail gradually ascends towards Olivine Mountain. In some places it crosses and/or follows unmarked spur roads. I passed tons and tons of spruce grouse on the trail. They were everywhere. The female spruce grouse is on the ground; the male is in the tree.
Once ascending the Olivine Mountain ridge, there is an optional 400m detour to the summit. There is no official trail to the top despite there showing one on Gaia. It's a choose-your-own-adventure route. The 'mountain' is nothing special. It's just a very dry rock with relatively poor views. The view was even worse due to the smoke. I didn't spend long up there.
Once back to the junction, there is a 300m detour in the opposite direction to a water source. At this point in the late summer, the creek was only a tiny trickle. However, it was still available and that is all that mattered. Right after the junction is Olivine Camp. It had taken me 3.5 hours to get there from Lodestone Lake (including all the detours). The landscape is really dry and arid around there. Very desert-like and hot.
After the camp, the trail starts to descend and passes through many kilometers of cutblocks and across FSRs. It is quite exposed and a bit ugly. It sometimes took a bit of searching to find the trail again after it cut across an FSR.
I took a quick 30 minute lunch break on one of the roads. From there, it was more descending. I crossed paths with another thru-hiker during the cut blocks; a woman going from Tulameen to Hope. I shared trail information and tips with her before we parted ways.
About 20 minutes before finishing, I took the only wrong turn that I made the entire trip. I was walking on a de-activated FSR and didn't realize that the trail suddenly cut off into the trees to my left. I realized my mistake after about seven minutes so thankfully I didn't waste too much time.
In order to reach the end of the Tulameen trailhead, you have to ford the Tulameen River. It's a bit slippery but the water levels were only shin level. My boyfriend was waiting for me at the river when I arrived. We were the only ones at the trailhead. I finished off my journey with a meal at Billy's Restaurant in Princeton and some ice cream at Dairy Queen.
I thoroughly enjoyed the trail and actually wished it had been longer. I loved the solitude I got to experience and the varied landscapes and terrain. It had a little bit of everything. I felt really strong physically throughout the trip too, which made it even more enjoyable. With all my detours, my total distance amounted to 79.3km, with 4470m of elevation gain. This is significantly more than the official stats that I listed in the beginning. The detours are well worth it though.
Navigation
The trail is not on AllTrails. However, it is on Gaia which is what I used. The only caveat is that the first 2km of the trail from the Peers Trailhead (Hope) is incorrect on the map. It does not pose a problem as the trail is easy to follow but it can be good to know. I also printed off the official map as a paper back up, which can be found here. If you would like a more detailed physical map (that includes information such as road access and water sources), you can purchase a topo map from the Hope Mountain Centre here.
The trail is well-marked and well-constructed. There is red (sometimes faded to orange) flagging tape at regular intervals as well as trail markers on trees. The trail is overgrown in some sections but it is almost always visible on the ground. I did not have any difficulties in navigating the trail. There are occasional instances where the trail will cross a logging road and it might be a bit confusing finding it again, but it will not take too long.
Trail conditions
The trail can get quite muddy, especially the closer you are to Hope and the earlier in the season you do the hike. If there are wet conditions at all during your journey, expect to have continuously wet feet until at least past Horseguard Camp.
There is a bit of blowdown along the trail but not too much considering the 74km length. Trail volunteers cut through the trees blocking the trail annually. There are also some overgrown sections which are to be expected.
Difficulty
I would rate this trail as moderate-hard. Hard only because of the significant elevation gain. Other than that, it is quite moderate. There is no technical terrain nor scrambling of any kind required. The trail is well-marked and easy to follow. If broken up over enough days, it is well-doable by almost anyone.
When to hike the trail
The best time to hike the trail is July to September. July through early August will be the best time for water sources but worst for bugs. Later in the season will be best for bugs but worse for water.
A total trip length of 4-5 days is sufficient for an experienced/fit hiker. As an experienced hiker with a relatively fast pace who doesn't take that many breaks, my 5 days amounted to 6-7 hours on the trail each day. If I was to do it again, I would probably do it in 4 days as I prefer to do longer days on the trail.
For hikers not as experienced or for those just wanting to take to their time, 6-7days would be ideal. Keep in mind the biggest amount of elevation gain occurs over the first 25km (if coming from Hope). The biggest amount of elevation gain from the Tulameen direction is in the first 9-10km.
Campgrounds
The trail has 10 campgrounds. All of them have pit toilets, bear caches, fire pits, and wooden benches. Some have tent pads and picnic tables. There are wooden sign boards at each camp detailing the history of the trail and area. There is also a log book at or near each camp (make sure to sign them!).
All of the campgrounds are free to use and are FCFS. Two of the ten are vehicle accessible via FSRs (an additional one is accessible by jeep/ATV only).
This is the order of campgrounds from Hope to Tulameen:
1.Manson’s Camp
This camp sits just below Manson's Ridge. It's very small and has views of the surrounding ridges on a clear day. There is a creek at the camp for water.
2. Colville Camp
This is a forested camp with a big creek running through it for water. It has tent pads and beautifully constructed benches and tables. The actual map is about 100m past where it shows on Gaia.
3. Sowaqua Road Camp
This is a vehicle accessible camp via an FSR. It has tent pads and there is a creek nearby for water. It is not as scenic as the other camps considering its location right along the road.
4. Deer Camp
This is a fully exposed camp with tent pads and a creek flowing through for water. It is in a beautiful location at the top of a ridge.
5. Conglomerate Flats Camp
This is another fully exposed camp in a beautiful location right below Mount Davis. It was my favourite camp out of them all. There are tent pads and a creek beside camp.
6. Jacobson Lake Camp
This camp is 500m off the main trail. It is vehicle accessible via an FSR. The main water source is Jacobson Lake. If you stay here and don't want to filter the lake water, there are many streams before and after the camp that you can use.
7. Horseguard Camp
This camp sits along the Tulameen River. It is a beautiful, very peaceful spot. The river is the main water source.
8. Blackeye's Plateau Camp
This camp sits on a high plateau (it is the highest camp at 1850m elevation). It sits among beautiful sub-alpine meadows. It has tent pads. The water situation is a bit complicated. There is a creek 100m west of camp but that was completely dry. There are also shallow ponds 1km east of camp following the main trail but those were also dry. The only option in the late summer for water seems to be the Squakin Creek, which is the creek that the trail follows right before ascending to the plateau (800m before camp).
9. Lodestone Lake Camp
This camp sits beside one of the many jeep roads that exist in this area. It is therefore vehicle accessible only by jeep or ATV. The water source is the lake. Unfortunately, there are no nearby streams in either direction so filtering the lake water is your only option if you are staying here overnight.
10. Olivine Camp
This camp sits at the base of Olivine Mountain in a very dry, arid area. There is a creek 400m downhill from camp that is the only water source for a long stretch. It was only a tiny trickle when I hiked the trail.
Water
For the most part, water is very abundant on this trail, especially the earlier in the season that you go. In general, there is more water towards the Hope side and less on the Tulameen side. There are many creek crossings throughout the whole trail for fresh, clean water.
That being said, there are a few notable sections that require water carries (at least in the late summer):
There are no water sources for a 7km stretch between the Jacobson Lake Camp junction to where the trail crosses a spur road. There is a creek (Chisholm Creek) just past that road.
There are no water sources from about 800m before Blackeye's Plateau Camp to Lodestone Lake Camp (about 11km). Keep this in mind if you are planning on camping at Blackeye's Plateau Camp. You will need to get all your water before ascending to the plateau.
There is a creek 400m downhill from Olivine Camp and then no water until Olivine Creek which crosses one of the FSRs (a 5km stretch).
There are 3 creeks that you will have to ford. The first is Sowaqua Creek just before Sowaqua Road Camp. The second is the Tulameen River just past Horseguard Camp. The third is the Tulameen River just before the Tulameen trailhead. In the late summer, none of the crossings had water levels higher than mid-shin.
Trailheads and Parking
Peers Creek trailhead (Hope):
The trailhead is just off Highway 1, accessible by any vehicle. There is overnight camping allowed at the trailhead and there is also patchy cell service.
Tulameen trailhead:
The trailhead is in Tulameen right beside a road. There is no overnight camping allowed (but you are allowed to leave your vehicle there) and there is also no cell service.
Wildlife
There are abundant wildlife in the Cascade mountains. Expect to see bears, grouse, many different kinds of birds, pika, and possibly wild cows. Always carry bear spray and keep aware at all times. Wildlife are not to be feared but they are to be respected.