Elfin Lakes, Garibaldi Provincial Park, Squamish, BC

dre from Vancouver writes:

We're planning on hiking up with skis Dec 26-27 or 28th. Does anyone know how the snow conditions are right now??




*The hut has a stove, large pots, an outhouse near the cabin, heating, lights...pretty much all you need.

Posted: December 25, 2011 08:58:29 PM PST

M from Vancouver writes:

Anyone been to Elfin lately? Can the parking lot be reached with non-4WD vehicles this time of year? Hoping to go on Dec. 10th.

Posted: December 2, 2011 02:22:19 PM PST

J. Leung from Vancouver writes:

Anyone knows what is the current road condition to the parking lot? Is it covered with snow? Wondering if it is save for me to drive up there at this time.

Posted: November 15, 2011 11:06:04 PM PST

Rikke Petersen from Vancouver writes:

Hi familyman:)
My boyfriend and I are also planning on going on a weekendtrip starting saturday morning. We dont have a car, and havent found any places where it is possible to go by public transport. Elfin lakes look really nice! I was wondering if you might have room in your car for two more people? Of course we would like to pay! If you dont have room I'll hope to see you somehow on the trail:)
-Rikke

Posted: October 13, 2011 07:42:37 PM PST

Family Guy from Vancouver writes:

Heading up to Elfin Lakes hut with the family this weekend. Wondering about trail conditions...any snow up there? Also, I understand the hut has a propane stove, is this correct?

Posted: October 12, 2011 08:43:10 PM PST

Old Hiker from Vancouver writes:

My wife and I went to Elfin Lakes on Sept. 28th. Beautiful sunny weather, no snow. Last hike to this area was in 1993. Sorry to see the old log cabin is gone. Surprised also that there is no camping at Heather Meadows allowed and no mention of this anywhere we looked except at the shelter at HM itself. Surprised to see that the Elfin Lakes shelter is heated, apparently to 20 degrees. Some heating may be necessary, but 20 degrees!!! Plan to come again but now for an overnight stay.

Posted: September 30, 2011 09:58:47 AM PST

Lesley from Surrey writes:

Was up at Elfin Lakes Sept 16-18. Lots of different weather patterns coming through. Too cold and wet to camp - had to use the shelter. It hailed a few times - snow is sure to follow soon although there's very minimal snow on the ground right now. Didn't notice any bugs up top, but lots in the parking lot.

Posted: September 19, 2011 09:47:29 PM PST

N from North Vancouver writes:

Lots of flies! They were especially bad for the first half of the hike up to Red Heather Meadows. You couldn't stop or you would be swarmed. My bug spray seemed to be ineffective.

Amazing mountain views though!

Posted: September 12, 2011 01:08:40 PM PST

tessa from new westminster writes:

the trail was easy but long. there was no bear. a little snow still in the trail but melting, you can use your running shoes. What a beautiful place. I want to go back next year.

Posted: September 11, 2011 11:28:08 PM PST

J from Vancouver writes:

Are there any bears in the area?

Posted: September 6, 2011 12:45:51 PM PST

Marcia from Vancouver writes:

September 4th. Still a little snow along the ridge descending toward the lakes, but mostly clear before that. Melting fast today, the trail should be completely clear by next weekend.

Posted: September 4, 2011 10:50:13 PM PST

milica from vancouver writes:

Hiked on Aug 16th, still lots of snow. The Lakes are under snow as well, but you can see the outer edges where the snow melted. Still very beautiful! The snow begins shortly after the shelter at Red Heather meadows. The snow is difficult to walk on, so I'd recommend boots and trekking poles.

Posted: August 19, 2011 11:15:44 AM PST

docmoja from Vancouver writes:

Just a response to those who wanted to know the current conditions of the trail to Elfin Lake.

Hiked the trail with friends for the first time yesterday, it was an exciting one not knowing whats ahead of us, the weather was good and sunny. the first 1 to 2 km was okay no snow at all and after that, the start of a never ending tons of snow. It's all uphills and downhills starting from the Red Heather Shelter and 6km to get to Elfin Lake. We made it all the way to the lake with our runners, kinda stupid somehow but it was fun, we survived with our wet and soggy feet.

The views are amazing and mountains are majestic together with the cloudy-blue sky making the hike not so tiring inspite of all the snow.

So i recommend to wear snow boots and bring an extra pair of socks and sunglasses too.

And oh, make sure there's no valuables left inside your car before leaving the parking lot. A break-in entry happened to us while we are away.

Goodluck and Enjoy

Posted: August 1, 2011 03:01:43 PM PST

kathy from Vancouver writes:

Can anyone tell me what the snow conditions are like at Elfin Lakes? My kids and I are considering spending a night or two up there next weekend (August 5-7) but it sounds like there's still a LOT of snow this year in the alpine.

Posted: August 1, 2011 12:12:58 PM PST

Sadi from Vancouver writes:

Trail conditions as of June 6, 2011.

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/garibaldi/trail_report.pdf

Posted: June 10, 2011 12:40:53 PM PST

Joanna from Whistler, BC writes:

I am looking for current trail condition. Does anyone know where to find them?

Posted: June 7, 2011 10:24:42 AM PST

Sadi from Vancouver writes:

Anyone knows the trail condition for this part of the year?

Posted: June 2, 2011 08:32:11 AM PST

Johnathan Lam from Vancouver writes:

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/garibaldi/trail_report.pdf Here's a trail report done by the park rangers I believe. Can't say for sure how accurate it is. Updated July 23, 2010.

Posted: July 29, 2010 07:02:51 AM PST

Z from Seattle writes:

I'm thinking of hiking to Elfin Lake this coming weekend (8/1).
Anyone can advise about the road/trail condition? How're the bugs these days?

Posted: July 26, 2010 11:44:48 PM PST

james from vancouver writes:

Has anyone camped up there recently? I'm heading up tomorrow (July 08, 2010), but am a little worried about snow and muck. Any thoughts?

Posted: July 7, 2010 05:16:49 PM PST

James from Vancouver writes:

Did this hike on June 19, 2010. The trail was snow covered from about the 20 minute mark onwards, and took us exactly 6 hours return trip. The snow started to get a little sugary as the day wore on, so I'd recommend snowshoes at this point, although we did it without and had no problem. The trail is well marked and is wide open, so bring sunscreen.

Posted: June 21, 2010 04:46:53 PM PST

Kelly from Pennsylvania writes:

This was the first actually hike to camp trip I had ever done. It was absolutely breath taking and wonderful. We camped over night and even though we weren't quite prepared for the cold night we had a great time. I would love to do this hike again sometime.

Posted: May 18, 2010 03:13:26 AM PST

E. Hulshof from Vancouver, B.C. writes:

How bad are the black files and horse flies at this time of year?

If they are bad right now, when would be a better time to go?

Posted: August 11, 2009 12:45:14 PM PST

Jeff from Vancouver writes:

Anyone know about trail conditions up there right now? Just worried about snow or muck. Thinking about going this weekend.

Posted: June 30, 2009 10:46:09 AM PST

Mike from Burnaby writes:

Went up to Elfin this past weekend and it although it was pretty cloudy, it was still a nice hike. Interesting to see the lakes shrouded in clouds as they would rise out of the valleys. Made it look really mysterious.

The facilities at Elfin Lakes are really good and BC Parks does an excellent job maintaining them. We only went for the day but it looks as though there is lots of room for hikers staying overnight and there are some stoves and propane lights that make the build very comfortable.

The hike itself is one of the easier ones in Garibaldi Park. Although it's long at over 20km, the grade is not too steep when compared to some of the other trails in the area.

Posted: August 11, 2008 04:31:37 PM PST