The Needles

August 12, 2022

Distance: 17km round-trip

Elevation gain: 1800m

Time required: 9-10 hours total

The Needles are a group of three small peaks in Lynn Headwaters Regional Park. They are accessed from the Lynn Peak trail.

From the (paid) parking lot at Lynn Headwaters Regional Park, I started out heading south on the wide, flat Lynn Loop trail. Shortly after curving around a bend, there is a junction for the Lynn Peak trail. I took this and began a rocky forested climb up to the South Lynn Peak bluff. This is what most people call 'Lynn Peak' but in reality, it is just a false summit. However, it has great views of the Lynn valley and Seymour valley. It took me 1.5 hours to reach it.

Large red belt fungus I found on a Douglas-fir

Smoky view at South Leak Peak

From the South Lynn Peak viewpoint, I continued my northward journey through typical coastal forest for about 2 hours before reaching the 'real' Lynn Peak. Lynn Peak is entirely shaded by trees and offers no views, hence why it is not a popular destination.

From there, the trail follows a pattern. Descend to a saddle and ascend to a summit. Repeat several times for each Needle. By the time I reached the North Needle, it had been almost 5 hours.

Seymour River valley from the South Needle

Looking back on the South Needle (closest rocky hump) and Lynn Peak (forested hump in the back) from the Middle Needle

Lynn Creek valley from the Middle Needle

Looking east towards Crown Mtn and other peaks from the North Needle

Looking north towards Coliseum Mtn

You can actually continue all the way to Coliseum Mountain from the North Needle. The descent and ascent are quite steep.

While at the North Needle, I had the unfortunate luck to drop my full water bottle off the cliff. This meant I was very very thirsty for my whole return journey (which amounted to 4.5 hours due to some other exploring I was doing). I had never been so thirsty in my life. I managed to hydrate myself a little bit with huckleberries and blueberries that I picked along the way but it still didn't come close to satiating my insatiable thirst.

I ended up finishing the trail in the dark. I ran the last couple of kilometres so I could a) drink gloriously from Lynn Creek and b) make it to the gate before it shut on me for the night. Thankfully, I ended up making it out of the park in time.