Drive
to Sol Mountain Resort. From Revelstoke, take Highway 23; just before
the ferry, locate the Shelter Bay Forestry Road. Drive this gravel road
to the 30-km marker, then turn right onto the resort's access road,
287835; continue for 1.3 kilometers and turn right again, 281843. At
200885, go left and climb switchbacks; a bit further, go left again at
187886; continue to the parking area, 165887. This is a long, rugged
road in remote wilderness with no cell service; be prepared. Note: when
the resort is open, you may need to park outside of their fenced
parking area.
The approach to Twin Peaks Lakes is straightforward. Walk to the resort, locate the trail,
and follow it to the Bill Fraser Lake junction. Continue on the "Banana
Belt" trail, which ascends to the saddle between Mount Baldur and Sol
Mountain; from there, follow the crude trail due west. Shortly after a
small, seasonal tarn, a buttress bars the way. A cairned trail circumvents the
buttress on its south side until it reaches very steep, treed terrain
which impedes the traverse to lakes; at this point, climb
the south-facing slopes to gain the broad ridge, 122877. Once on the
ridge, you need to lose some height to reach the terrain that delivers
to the lakes; drop down steep grassy slopes among sparse trees
(see pictures) and make your way to the easternmost lake. The traverse
stays above an interesting small lake hung on a shelf.
From Twin Peaks Lakes' outlet, the ascent to the first peak is
straightforward. We ascended the east ridge to the summit block,
avoiding the steep snow slopes by traversing due north, and climbed
onto rocky terrain. The traverse to the second peak is just as easy and
well worth it.
|
|
|
|
Parked and protected from quill pigs.
|
|
|
|
Following the trail to the saddle between Mount Baldur and Sol Mountain.
|
|
|
|
|
On a crude trail to Twin Peaks Lakes.
|
Scramble:
RT 4.25 from camp; 2.75 up both peaks. Twin Peaks and its neighbouring
summits caught our attention when we stood on Sugar Mountain a few
weeks back. Google Earth research of that area revealed wonderful
alpine lakes cradled by hikeable peaks; the treeless terrain was very
inviting. We decided to do a recon. trip with an ascent of Mount Baldur
to get familiar with access to Sol Mountain Resort, the trails, and the
snow conditions. After the successful outing, we started planning an
overnight visit to the lakes right away to take advantage of the
remaining snow. The following weekend, we drove to the resort for the
second time. The drive to the remote parking area was once again
stressful with my old truck; it always feels like a gamble. When we
pulled in to park, the truck started making very loud knocking sounds
coming from the engine compartment. After turning it off, Milan looked
at all the fluids; other than being very hot, everything seemed normal,
just as the gauges on the console suggested. We left the truck to cool
off overnight. Before leaving the next morning, we started the truck to
make sure we didn't have a crisis on our hands; luckily, it started
fine, and the noise was gone, so off we went. The trail was déja vue,
except the snow had melted. From the saddle, we veered towards the
lakes. We reached a buttress with a cairned trail circumventing it; we
followed it until it dead-ended at some steep, forested slopes below
cliffs. At the impasse, we decided to climb the slopes to the ridge
above; that worked well. After a short descent, we reached terrain that
facilitated the traverse toward the lakes; we followed the path of
least resistance, and after 3.5 hours, we found a lovely spot next to
the lake to pitch the tent. The ascent to the first peak of Twin Peaks
appeared really easy. We climbed to the snow slope in good time; then,
we realized that continuing on the steep snow without an axe and
crampons wasn't an option because of a dangerous runout. I investigated
a moat climber's right, but that was also a no-go. Finally, we
traversed due north to easier terrain and circumvented the east face.
We gained the summit shortly thereafter. We stayed at the top of the
higher of the Twin Peaks for a brief moment before continuing towards
the second peak. The short traverse was wonderfully pleasant. Once on
the second peak, we sat to enjoy the view and discuss whether we should
carry on with the other objectives or leave them for the next day
before heading home. We chose the latter option, which gave us time for
some RnR and dinner at camp in the daylight. Coming down the snowy
north slopes from the top was fast and furious. After scoping a place
to cross the creek to Pride Rock for the next day, we returned on the
south side of the lakes. The snow covered all the boulders and made the
trek back to camp much easier. We enjoyed a bug-free evening,
and after a yummy dinner, we retired to the tent before dark.
|
|
|
|
We followed cairns circumventing the minor bluffs, but came down directly from the ridge.
|
|
|
|
The crude trail goes to an impasse.
|
|
|
|
From the impasse, we climbed to gain the ridge.
|
|
|
|
From the broad ridge, we had to descend (arrow) to reach terrain that leads to the lakes.
|
|
|
|
|
The terrain that leads to the lakes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Looking back at the steep grassy slope we came down, from the broad ridge.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nearing the eastmost lake with the east peak of Twin Peaks.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Crossing the lake's outlet to begin the ascent.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The ascent is short and sweet.
|
|
|
|
|
|
With no crampons and axe, we decided to climb the ridge climber's right.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Mount Fosthall from the top of the official Twin Peaks.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The western peak of Twin Peaks and Goat Mountain on the right.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mount Odin on the left and Mount Burnham to the right.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Typical terrain along the easy traverse to the western peak.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Pride Rock is an easy objective; Sitkum Lake is visible at its base on the left.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Last stretch.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
At the top looking at the eastern peak and Mount Baldur.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
The view south towards Mount Severide.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Speedy descent boot-skiing to the westmost Twin Peaks Lake.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Looking back at our descent.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Travelling on the south shore of the lakes; the snow made hiking fast and efficient.
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Sunset at camp.
|
| Back
to home page
|
|
|