Hiking Copper Mound and Mount McLeod near Pemberton
Contents
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod Hike Information
Difficulty: Moderate
Distance: 8.20Km
Elevation Gain: 715m
Highest Elevation: 2,157m
Average Gradient: 17.44%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 4 – 5 Hours
– Moderate: 3.5 – 4 Hours
– Fast: 2.5 – 3.5 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: No
Season: ~July to October
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No – But it helps
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod Trail
The linked route includes the hike in from the trailhead, as well as the traverse over from Mount Barbour. If you are only doing Copper Mound and Mount McLeod you can ignore these. Mount McLeod is the first peak east of Copper Mound and is unnamed on the map.
The below coordinates go to the start of Branch 12 on the Hurley River Road. If you have a capable vehicle you can drive Branch 12 to the end, where the parking lot is. If not, park at the start of Branch 12 and hike from there.
Trailhead Coordinates: 50°33’23.7″N 123°01’16.1″W
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod Overview
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod are a duo of peaks situated in the Pemberton Valley, typically hiked by those camping at Tenquille Lake as part of an overnight trip to the region. That being said, these peaks are a perfectly manageable day hike from the Tenquille Lake trailhead.
The stats above assume starting and finishing at the lake, so if you plan to complete this as a day hike from the trailhead, you will need to add on the stats for hiking to Tenquille Lake also.
The route to these summits follows a trail to a pass between the two, known as Fossil Pass. From here, you can self navigate to the top of each peak without the need for any scrambling. There are a few different ways up Copper Mound, but the one described here will traverse around to the north before a steep but easy ascent to the top. Mount McLeod is all just hiking up a ridge, with easy route finding along the way. Some parties don’t bother with Mount McLeod at all as it’s lower than Copper Mound and the views aren’t quite as nice, but it’s not much effort to add it on to an already short hike.
Adventurous parties can combine these peaks with a traverse over “Gingerbread Peak” to Mount Barbour, forming a loop that starts and ends at Tenquille Lake. The usual route for this ascends Barbour first, then traverses back over McLeod and Copper, before descending down Fossil Pass, but the reverse should also work just fine. The linked GPX here includes this entire traverse, but if you are only interested in Copper Mound and Mount McLeod, you should simply follow the route to those peaks. Mount McLeod is not named on most mapping software, but it’s the first prominent bump to the southeast of Copper Mound.
In terms of seasonality, Copper Mound and Mount McLeod are best saved for mid-summer onwards, typically July to October. The mosquitos can be horrific in the Pemberton Valley in early summer (July), so if you want to avoid this I would suggest going between mid-August to the end of September for the best conditions. Snow will likely still be around in June and earlier, but to be honest these peaks might both work reasonably well with snow on them, assuming you bring the necessary gear.
Dogs are not welcome at Tenquille Lake and thus the same goes for Copper Mound and Mount McLeod.
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Are Copper Mound and Mount McLeod worthwhile?
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod are two of the easier peaks that you can climb from Tenquille Lake, and if you want to do a day trip to the area these are also the most accessible, as they are the first peaks that you will reach on the way to Tenquille Lake. While the views from both peaks are nice, Copper Mound is easily the better peak, so if you don’t care for doing both you can stick with that. While these are the easier peaks in the region, they are not the most scenic, with Mount Barbour and Tenquille Mountain both offering more rewarding views. Peakbaggers will generally traverse Barbour, McLeod and Copper in one big day, which is suggested for capable parties.
How difficult is the hike to Copper Mound and Mount McLeod?
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod are a straightforward pair of peaks if you start and end at the lake, with most parties able to complete this in around 4 hours. Even if you start from the trailhead, this is still a perfectly manageable day hike, though it would certainly bump the difficulty up a notch.
Technically speaking there isn’t too much challenge to either of these peaks. Route finding is likely your only possible issue, but with the linked GPX downloaded this should be a no brainer as well. Things do get more involved if you plan to do the full traverse including Barbour though, as the eastern slopes of McLeod (the Barbour side) involve some steep, loose scree and hands on work.
Copper Mound and Mount McLeod Route Information
From Tenquille Lake (or cabin), you’ll want to follow the lake trail around the western shore of the lake. Shortly after passing by the day-use beach, keep an eye out for a faint trail on your right leading up through the brush. This isn’t marked on any maps, but it is there, even if a little overgrown.
Following this trail, it will climb away from the lake, and after ascending for around 100m any overgrowth will give way to open meadows, and a now more distinct trail to follow. Continue following this trail as it winds its way towards the talus leading up to Fossil Pass.
Soon enough you’ll reach the talus slopes, at which point the route is obvious, and typically well marked with cairns. You’ll now climb up to Fossil Pass hopping across talus along the way. Once at the pass you can decide which peak you’re going to summit first. Heading right (west) will lead to Copper, and left (east) will lead to McLeod.
Assuming you head up Copper first, the route is now less obvious so refer to your GPX. After climbing through a tree band with a short rocky step, you’ll ascend a steep scree slope towards a talus ledge below the northeast face of the peak. You can easily follow this ledge around, all the while offering nice views of the lake, to the northern slopes of Copper Mound. These northern slopes are far more manageable, requiring no scrambling and some steep but simple hiking to the summit. The views from the top will be excellent, with the ever present Goat Mountain and Tenquille Mountain in full view. You’ll also see the lake down below, as well as far down into the Pemberton Valley. You should also see all the way to Mount Barbour, including the entire traverse over Mount McLeod.
Once finished you can return to Fossil Pass the same way you came up. Once at the pass the route up to Mount McLeod is mostly just a pick your own path to the top. Following the GPX will simply be hiking. You’ll know you’re on the summit once you locate the large summit cairn. This summit is a lot broader than Copper, and while the views are still nice, they’re not as nice as Copper Mound.
If you are returning to the lake, you will now once again return to Fossil Pass, before heading back down to the lake the same way you came.
Adding the Traverse to Mount Barbour
I’ve included the traverse of Barbour, McLeod and Copper Mound for those interested, but note that this includes the hike from the Tenquille Lake trailhead, which you’ll want to ignore if you’re staying at the lake. If you plan to do this, I would suggest going clockwise, climbing Barbour first and then heading back to the lake via McLeod and Copper.
This traverse is mostly just hiking and route finding through backcountry terrain and offers constant views and zero shade the entire time. You should probably budget an additional 3 – 4 hours to the above times if you want to do this traverse. Climbing Mount Barbour is quite straightforward, with some easy, unexposed Class 2 scrambling.
The most technical part of the traverse is ascending/descending the southeastern slopes of McLeod Peak. The ascent is steep and loose, requiring the use of hands. It’s never really exposed to any significant fall though.
When should I hike Copper Mound and Mount McLeod?
July to October is the peak season for the Tenquille Lake area, however I would suggest avoiding July and early August if you want to avoid mosquitos. As such, mid-August to early October is the best time to visit. Unfortunately this can coincide with forest fire smoke, so do check the smoke forecast if this is an issue.
Top Tip
Tenquille Lake is commonly frequented by grizzly bears, so prepare accordingly and preferably travel in groups.
If you plan to do the traverse including Mount Barbour, prepare for multiple hours with zero shade and limited water sources. There is one tarn before McLeod, but it may need filtering if the snow has fully melted, plus a few tarns below Barbour.
