Trailheads

Lund Trailhead: You must charter a boat from Lund to get to the trailhead. It is about a 30 minute trip. I don"t have details on who might provide charters, see the phone numbers under trail contacts for possible sources of this information. Cost is approximately $50/person (June 2000).

Saltery Bay Trailhead: Ferry terminal at Saltery Bay

Uses

Description

There are 27 segements to the trail, these segments are organized into 5 major sections. Segments and, in many cases, sections can be hiked separately or combined although 4wd access is typically required to many of the trailheads. Ratings vary from easy through challenging and the terrain varies from oceanside trails through trails beside lakes, deep forest trails and alpine sections. Don"t let the name of this trail deceive you, apart from the first section there is little or no coastal hiking.

The trail is marked with small flourescent square orange markers on trees every 100m or so with larger square distance markers with the letters "SCT" every km. There are many trailheads along the route (typically at intervals of between 5 and 24km) allowing for shorter trips and even day trips. Backroad travel is usually required to access these trailheads so the backpacker is not likely to be disturbed by traffic.

Section	Distance
1 - Sarah Point to Malaspina Road	21.3
2 - Malaspina Road to Powel Lake	28.9
3 - Powel Lake to Fiddlehead Farm	30.9
4 - Fiddlehead Farm to Eagle River	54.6
5 - Eagle River to Saltery Bay	42.0

The trail officially starts at Sarah Point (named after one of Captain Vancouver"s daughters), north of Lund. A water taxi is required to access this trailhead. Disembarkation from the water taxi could be a challenge in rough weather or when the tides are not correct. We were dropped off on a rocky ourcrop and needed to pass our packs up a relatively steep section to a rocky platform. Four people made the job easier although it could be done with fewer.

This first section, 21.3km in length, goes from the point to Malaspina Road and has a moderate rating with considerable elevation gain and loss, particularly between the 12 and 18km points. At Sarah Point the trail goes north (away from Lund) before veering east, crossing much of the penninsula and then heading south. This section goes through a forest of Arbutus with lovely viewpoints overlooking the Strait of Georgia to Vancouver Island, Cortes Island and Hernado with the northern vista stretching to Redonda Island in Desolation Sound. Eastward the views are of the Gifford Peninsula and the Malaspina and Okeover inlets. The hiking in this section is through a mixture of old and second growth cedar, Douglas fir, western pine, white pine and alder with some stretches of fern laden understory. The trail is well marked and easy to follow in this section. The only problem we had was with one downed tree at the very start of the trail, this caused us to lose sight of the next marker and had us puzzling for a short time.

Please do not swim in ? Lake, it is the water supply for some people in the area. The same may be true of Wednesday Lake, there is conflicting information on this. "" says this lake also serves as a water supply but the website lists swimming as possible in the lake.

The second section continues from Malaspina Road (paved) to Powell Lake (paved), a moderately difficult 28.9km. It features rainforest, swimming holes, wildlife viewing waterfalls and occasional great views. Near Southview Road the trail enters a small clearcut, from there it enters the scenic Appleton Canyon area with many opportunities for pictures of waterfalls and deep pools. Rieveley"s Pond is a good swimming hole as are Big and Little Slimmon Lakes (and there is a good camping location at Big Slimmon as well). There is another excellent viewpoint at the summit of Scout Mountain where the views encompass Powell Lake and the Strait of Georgia. In this section the road crossings at Wilde Road and ? Road both require some better marking (July 2000). At Wilde Road you come out of Appleton Canyon at the end of a spur road. Walk down the end of the spur and the trail resumes across the road slightly to your right. When we hiked this section (July 2000) there was considerable confusion in this section. There were virtually no trail markers for close to a km but there was flagging on a trail that was not the main trail. It appeared someone had, whether by way of a prank or what, attempted to conceal the true route. There was some slash put across a point where the trail turned and went up (just across a small bridge immediately after entering the trail from Wilde Road). Take the trail up, it is the correct route, ignore the flagging. The section just before Scout Mountain is also very confusing, we never found the correct trail. I would advise contacting the Powell River Parks and Wilderness Society to get information as to the correct route at this junction.

The third section runs from Powell Lake Bridge to Fiddlehead Farm, a distance of 30.9km and features lakeside walks, old growth forests, swimming and vistas in a moderately difficult stretch of the trail with some challenging portions. The Shingle Mill Pub at lake level is a worthwhile stop. After your break here the trail travels along the shore at the southern end of Powell Lake before heading off to Inland and Confederation Lakes the later being surrounded by extensive stands of old growth. Near here you have the option of stopping for a meal of homebaked bread and fresh vegetables at Fiddlehead Farm (an international youth hostel).

There is little signage in the final two sections and it is recommended that they not be hiked without a guide. The fourth section is quite challenging, leading from Fiddlehead Farm for a distance of 54.6km to Herondale B&B. It climbs Tin Hat Mountain and the Smith Range providing spectacular views of Haslam and Powell Lakes. There are some very steep sections in the portion of the trail.

The final section is also a challenging 42 km stretch from Eagle River to Saltery Bay via Mt Troubridge and Rainy Day Lake. It features the best views on the trail and also the highest point, Mt Troubridge - 1263m.

Features

• Coastal Hikes by Philip Stone.
• Lund Water Taxi (transportation to Sarah Point).
• RoughLife.com's information on the Sunshine Coast trail.
• Official Sunshine Coast Trail website.

Trail-conditions

View trail condition reports for this trail.