Sept 5th, 2020: Panorama Ridge

Type of hike: Can be both loop or out and back

Hours (approx): 8 hours 30 mins

Distance: Around 31.6km

Hello, and welcome to another popular Garibaldi trail!

The Hike

Yesterday morning while on route to Black Tusk, I made the decision to do Panorama Ridge the following day, if I was lucky enough to snag a pass. Indeed, I managed to get the pass right at 6am and off I went on another long but rewarding adventure.

This trail is exactly the same as Black Tusk. At around 13km, there is a fork in the trail and this is where you can choose between that and Panorama Ridge. I noticed the difference immediately - with Black Tusk, the incline begins right away and the trail gets progressively challenging. The first few kilometers into Panorama Ridge was rather easy. It meandered through beautiful hills and alpine meadows teaming with wildflowers still in their peak.

Passed by Mimulus Lake, where I later saw some people use for an afternoon dip (it was an unbearably hot day). There were actually two of them, although only one was labelled on the AllTrails map.

After passing by the lakes, there was a brief section where the trail became very flat and easy. There were a bunch of paths leading to various other places such as Helms Creek so I got confused for a bit, but luckily I had my trail map downloaded. This was the calm before the storm:

The incline up to the ridge started immediately after, and the pictures below are in chronological order of how the trail changed:

This was the last picture I had energy to take, because the final push to the top was way too rocky and steep for me to even take my phone out. Definitely not Black Tusk chimney level of scramble, but harder than Wedgemount Lake. There was even a section with snow and I saw many people slipping and landing on their butt.

The view was so unreal I felt like I was in a dream:

Garibaldi Lake looked different up here than when I was right next to it. It was stunning. Just like Black Tusk, you get a bit of everything, from glaciers to mountains to meadows.

Had a quick lunch and then started to head back down. Seeing how I just did three of Garibaldi's hardest hikes back to back, I was not surprised to feel my knee caps popping and my ankles sore by the time I reached flat ground.

On the way down, I was treated to the most beautiful view of Black Tusk in the distance. Every time I see it now, I always think fondly back to that chimney scramble and the incredible views at the top.

Just like yesterday, I took Taylor Meadows back to the parking lot. It was the easiest and fastest way back.

What I brought:

1. Bug spray. This trail has extra horseflies and mosquitoes due to the abundance of wildflowers. It's real bad.

2. Bear spray. All hikers should have this handy hiking in Canada.

3. Bear bell. Not very necessary as this trail is pretty popular but if you start as early as I did, then it would be helpful as there are very few people at 7am.

4. Hydration pack. 2.5L of water was unsurprisingly not enough. Out of desperation, I took refilled my pack from a nearby stream.

5. Lots of snacks.

6. Wet wipes. Very handy since it was very dusty and I was using my hands for the scramble.

7. Band-aids. I never leave on hikes without these anymore.

8. Portable charger.

9. Lip balm and eye drops. Super dry with the hot temperatures and high elevations.

10. Ziploc bag to pack garbage out.

11. TP. There are outhouses on this trail, but they are quite far from each other. Always good to be prepared.

Overall thought:

My second favourite trail of all time. It had everything I could possibly want, and the trail itself was incredibly well-maintained (until the scramble. Then it's anything goes). I love hikes that are both challenging and visually stimulating, and Garibaldi has it all. I am always grateful for having the opportunity to see all the wonders of Mother Nature. Spending so much time outdoors and alone really gives me time to find myself and I am beginning to see the world differently.

The only thing is I wish there were less bugs. Seriously, no amount of bug spray seems to be able to deter them.