Oct 7th, 2023: Frosty Mountain Loop

Type of hike: Loop | Time (approx): 9 hours

Distance: Around 27.2km | Elevation Gain: 1610m

What to expect:

1) If you are here to see the larches, expect lots of people to accompany you on this hike!

2) It's not particularly challenging as incline is not super steep, but you will still feel it.

3) It was very chilly in the morning so bring a few extra layers.

Some important info:

1) The time window for larches is quite short each year, only about 2-3 weeks, and very specific. Usually it begins last week of September to middle of second week of October, though that can change annually, so best do your research prior to going.

2) There is plenty of parking, unless it's larch season. At that time, you will see cars parked all alongside the road.

3) There are a few outhouses at the start of the hike (near Lightning Lake) but when we went, only one of them was open. Hence, we waited for 40 minutes for it before we could start the hike.

4) If you are coming from Vancouver, the drive will take around 2.5 hours each way (not accounting for traffic).

The Hike

The trail begins at Lightning Lake, where there is a campground and usually plenty of parking. Last year when we went at the tail-end of larch season, we were able to find spots easily (which made sense). This year, we had to join the queue of cars that parked along side the road, which added a bit of distance to our hike.

It was a beautiful, sunny albeit chilly day, and I was so excited for the opportunity to see the larches in their fully glory. We were only planning to hike up to the larches and leave as the loop is quite long and I haven't fully recovered from my ankle injury from another hike.

The trail is extremely narrow, with only pockets of wide open spaces. There were also plenty of people on the same journey as us to see these magnificent larches, so every so often, we would hear someone asking to pass us, or us asking to pass others. A couple of trail runners were there as well, which sort of made passing dangerous as there was nothing to prevent people from sliding down should they accidentally loose their footing on the edge. That's how narrow the trail was...

The first half of the hike is to Frosty camp ground, which is around 7km from the lake. The first two kilometers are gradual incline and shaded. It's not technical or particularly hard, though there are tree roots jutting out and rocks here and there. Poles would definitely come in handy but I wouldn't say it's necessary.

About 3km in, the trail opens up a tiny bit and the incline becomes less pronounced. It meanders through some sections with less shade which meant a bit more sunlight and views. The wider trail was nice because we could yield or pass others way more easily. We also spotted a couple of grouse!

Personally, I found the trail all the way to the campground quite boring. There is not much to see and, more often than not, we were in the shade. This also meant we couldn't warm up easily from the chilly mountain air. Sometimes, there are pockets of open air where we got a bird's eye view of Lighting Lake, but aside from that, there wasn't much else to see. However, if you have a hiking buddy with you, this trail is good for having a conversation to pass the time as you are not out of breath majority of the time.

Once you see the "Frosty Creek Camp 1km" sign, expect to see larches about 20minutes after. At first, only a few of them would pop up on the side of the trail. As you continue, you'll begin to see more and more of them. Soon, you will reach a clearing and out of the forest-y area, where this section of the trail opens up fully and you get stunning views of the larches and panoramic views of the mountains all around, including Frosty Mountain.

This year we caught it at the perfect time! They were an absolutely stunning golden yellow. In fact, they were such a vibrant golden yellow they cast almost a surreal alpine glow to the whole area. Everyone was taking photos left right and center, if you want a photo op, it's not hard to find someone who is willing to help out!

Off to the side is Frost Mountain, and you can see more yellow dots going up the sides of the mountain, bathing it in a yellow hue. It is very eye-catching because this beautiful yellow is not something we commonly see in nature.