Hiking Alouette Mountain in Golden Ears Park
Contents
Alouette Mountain Hike Information
Difficulty: Moderate
Distance: 24.10Km
Elevation Gain: 1,231m
Highest Elevation: 1,361m
Average Gradient: 10.22%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Moderate / Moderate
Time Needed:
– Slow: 8 – 10 Hours
– Moderate: 7 – 8 Hours
– Fast: 6 – 7 Hours
Dog Friendly?: Yes
Season: Year-Round (Summer Preferred)
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Alouette Mountain Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 49°16’21.7″N 122°32’06.0″W
Alouette Mountain Overview
Alouette Mountain is a summit located in Golden Ears Provincial Park and is a relatively well trafficked hike depending on the time of year. There are two traditional routes up the mountain, one beginning at Mike Lake and the other in the West Canyon parking lot, heading up via Evans Peak. This article will discuss the Mike Lake route, which is much longer, far less steep and less technical when compared to the Evans Peak route.
The majority of the hike to Alouette Mountain is in the forest on largely well maintained paths, with multiple trails sprawling off in all sorts of directions along the way, so I strongly encourage taking an offline map (there is little reception in Golden Ears). That being said, the trail is fairly well signposted should you pay attention.
While this route to Alouette Mountain is by far the easier choice due to the more gradual elevation, it’s also less interesting. The entire hike is in the forest until the very end, with very little to see along the way, making the ~8 hour hike drag on for quite a while with little reward, especially on the return leg. That being said, while Alouette Mountain is one of the lower peaks in Golden Ears, the views from the top are mightily impressive nonetheless. Sometimes (often) the views from lower peaks, looking at the nearby higher peaks, are far better than the views at the top of the highest peak, and I suspect that may hold true here as the views of the nearby, higher Blanshard Peak are spectacular.
Alouette Mountain tends to be a summer hike, with some people heading up in spring with the right equipment. In the winter this would be a very long day with a lot of snow travel that most simply aren’t prepared for, especially with the reduced winter gate hours at the park.
Parking for the Mike Lake route begins just before Mike Lake and consists of a small pullout on the side of the road. Ideally you’ll get there early as there are not a lot of parking spots, though there are multiple trailheads you could use so I’m sure you can find one with parking that works. Be careful to make sure you finish this hike with enough time to exit the park as Golden Ears has park gates that open/close at certain times.
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Is Alouette Mountain worthwhile?
Hiking up Alouette Mountain is a long and fairly turgid plod through the forest with little to keep your attention. There really are no views for the entire hike until the top, except for a couple of ponds and the sarcastically named “Beautiful Lake”. That being said, the summit of Alouette Mountain is a vast area and offers spectacular lookout points to the north, east and west. The enigmatic shaft of Blanshard Peak to the north has to be the most stunning sight, but the views to the west of Evans Peak, Mount Crickmer and Alouette Lake are exceptional as well. To the east you can see for miles looking over the Pitt River / Fraser River. There is also all sorts of flora/fauna at the summit, as well as cool little ponds speckled around. Overall, while this hike wasn’t the most exciting, it was totally worth it once you eventually made it to the top.
How difficult is the hike to Alouette Mountain?
In a nutshell, not particularly difficult. While the average gradient puts this hike in the lower end of the difficult range, I’m ranking this as a moderate hike. The distance is quite significant but the elevation gain is so spread out over the whole hike it is never steep and never technical. Going at a moderate pace (we took 8 hours) I don’t recall ever being very out of breath. If you were to take the Evans Peak route, however, this would be a difficult and much steeper hike involving scrambling up a boulder field. You get none of that starting from Mike Lake.
In terms of technicality this hike is simple and is mostly on well marked forest floor. There are rocky parts where you have to be careful with footing, it’s slippery at times and there is a minor scramble at the end that is barely worth mentioning, but other than that it’s literally a walk in the (provincial) park.
Alouette Mountain Route Information
After parking at Mike Lake you’ll immediately head up the Incline Trail, which is a rocky mess so be careful not to roll your ankle. This trail lives up to its name, starting off the hike in a fairly steep manner, but it’s not very long. You’ll pass several offshoot trails but keep heading up until you hit a fire access road. This road is largely flat and continues for around 1.5km with nothing to see so just enjoy the casual stroll.
You’ll cut right, leaving the fire access road for around 1km, and you’ll keep climbing gradually, before rejoining the fire access road. Essentially you’ll keep joining, leaving, rejoining this fire access road the whole way up!
Jokes aside, after around 5km you’ll reach a fork where the Alouette Mountain trail begins and you’ll stay on this trail for the remainder of the ascent. The only really notable sight on this part of the trail is the humorously named Beautiful Lake. This is a small 50m detour from the trail, but trust me it is anything but beautiful so don’t bother going down to see it.
Continuing on the Alouette Mountain trail it really is a non-event for the majority. The incline is consistently gradual, the footing is fine (avoid using the wooden walkways/bridges, they’re incredibly slippery and don’t help whatsoever) and there’s little to see. Eventually you will break out from the dense forest and there will be a few interesting ponds. When we hiked they had frozen over and actually made for a pretty cool photo. Other than those ponds, nothing to see so keep plodding along.
Finally, after around 10km, you will reach a point in the trail that requires some concentration. There will be a small rockface you need to ascend that might require the use of hands but again, it’s a simple ascent with no exposure. You can even avoid the rock by going to the side of it and opting for the grassy route if you like. Once you’re at the top of this rock face the views finally open up.
The trail continues to the north, but you can see some amazing views to the west overlooking the Pitt River / Fraser River, with the impressive Blanshard Peak peeking out north. Heading back to the trail you’ll pass some nice flora/fauna as well some summit ponds that might be worth a photo. The trail isn’t obvious once you’re on the summit but it should be marked with tape/cairns, basically just head north towards Blanshard Peak. You will know you’re at the summit as you will reach a large survey cairn.
The views now are outstanding, with the imperious Blanshard Peak in full view. You might be amazed to know you can climb up this, but that should be left to mountaineers. Aside from Blanshard Peak you’ll have extensive views of Evans Peak, Alouette Lake and endless mountain ranges to the east. Take in the views for as long as possible as this is one of those hikes where the payoff is brief.
After finishing up it’s time to head back. You’ll just head back the way you came but there is an option to descend via Evans Peak if you want to continue the adventure.
When should I hike Alouette Mountain ?
Due to the vast majority of this hike being in the forest I would save this for a shoulder season hike. It’s also a fairly low elevation summit compared to many other hikes so snow doesn’t stay on this summit for as long as some others, meaning this is a viable hike earlier/later in the hiking season. You could feasibly do this hike all year if you have the right winter gear and start early enough.
You do want clear skies because this would be a hell of a long and dull hike to get to the summit with no views, but I wouldn’t dedicate a blue bird summer day to this one if you are looking for an epic adventure. I hiked it in October, which I thought was perfect
Top Tip
If I were to do this hike again I would combine it with Evans Peak, creating a loop hike, to get two peaks with one trip. When we went it was quite icy and the route to Evans Peak is steep and slippery, so we opted not to do them both.
