Hiking Mount McNair near Harrison Lake
Contents
Mount McNair Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 9.40Km
Elevation Gain: 1,130m
Highest Elevation: 1,784m
Average Gradient: 24.05%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 6 – 7 Hours
– Moderate: 5 – 6 Hours
– Fast: 4 – 5 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: None
Mount McNair Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 49°27’34.2″N 121°42’30.8″W
Disclaimer: Winter hiking (snowshoeing) involves significantly more risk than summer hiking. Hikers should be prepared with appropriate education, training and equipment for all possibilities, including but not limited to avalanches. A mistake such as going off trail, getting lost or injured can be far more dangerous in winter than summer. You are responsible for your own safety, and while I am happy to give my opinion on this website as to the avalanche risk of a specific hike, do not take this as fact and please do your own research. Everybody has different risk tolerances and mine might be different to yours.
Mount McNair Overview
Mount McNair is an infrequently hiked peak on the eastern shores of Harrison Lake. At 1,784m high, McNair is a prominent mountain, boasting over 700m of prominence and offering unobstructed views from the top, with particularly good views of the Old Settler nearby. There isn’t any trail to the top, so most ascents occur in the winter or spring when a snowpack covers the approach. The majority of climbers tend to be peakbaggers, especially those chasing prominent peaks (P600’s).
While Mount McNair does benefit from a snowpack, despite the lack of trail most of the climb passes through second growth forest, so bushwhacking is minimal. In order to reach the trailhead, hikers must drive up Harrison East FSR before taking the Bear Creek FSR junction, following this road to the start of the trail. Bear Creek FSR has a history of being gated for logging and at times the road has been in poor condition. It would be wise to confirm the road is open and in good shape before going, otherwise you would need to begin hiking from the gate, which would add at least 3km each way. Assuming Bear Creek FSR is open and in reasonable shape, an SUV should be fine to make it.
There are a couple of different routes you could take to Mount McNair as it is largely surrounded by old logging roads. That being said, the most common and likely the most direct route is the one described here
Mount McNair is feasibly a year-round hike, though in the depths of winter access may be tricky if the snowline is below the trailhead. The majority will go in spring, however a summer ascent isn’t unheard of either. Dogs are welcome, though they’d need to be willing to travel in some rugged, off-trail terrain.
Maintaining this website requires a significant investment of both time and money, if you find this website a useful resource, please consider making a donation using this button.
Is Mount McNair worthwhile?
Most of the hike to Mount McNair is spent in the forest without a whole lot to see. It’s only once you crest the summit that the views suddenly open up and the trees fully give way. Fortunately the views are great from the summit, so it’s all worthwhile once you get there. For an off trail hike in the Harrison area this was a surprisingly smooth ascent, largely thanks to a solid snowpack covering any bush. Even so, the bush here isn’t too bad anyway, so a summer ascent will likely be okay as well.
How difficult is the hike to Mount McNair?
At 9.4km, 1,130m and an average gradient of over 24%, this is undoubtedly a short and steep one. The hike gets down to business right away, without much respite throughout. While that means it’s fairly challenging throughout, it also means you can be up and down fairly quickly as there is no faffing around.
Technically speaking it’s a largely straightforward climb, though of course you’ll need to be comfortable self-navigating through steep forest and open cutblocks. The beginning of the hike passes through ~1km of alders before entering a cutblock, then a forest stretch followed by another cutblock. The final climb up to the summit is fairly steep, but it’s always forested so avalanche risk is generally quite low. You shouldn’t need crampons or an ice axe for this one.
Mount McNair Route Information
The trailhead for Mount McNair is several kilometers down the East Harrison FSR, which is usually a spacious, mostly smooth FSR with potholes here and there that should be easy to avoid. Once you reach the Bear Creek Recreation site, you’ll want to join the Bear Creek FSR and continue following it. Assuming you don’t get stopped by a gate, keep following the road to the point where the hike begins, which will not be obvious so you’ll want to refer to your map. At the time of writing Bear Creek FSR was in good shape, however this can change at any time.
Once parked, you’ll immediately begin hiking up an old, alder strewn spur. This was only mildly annoying alder when we went, but it could deteriorate into the heinous variety over time. Thankfully you only follow this spur for 1km and a little under 200m gain before you’ll want to refer to your map as you’re about to enter the first cutblock.
Once in the cutblock, travel will be surprisingly seamless as you gain another 100m before reaching the first stretch of forest. This forest will be nice, open second growth forest that is easy to navigate through without any real bushwhacking. After another almost 100m of gain, you’ll reach an old road that you’ll follow briefly as it bears east, before departing back into the forest.
Travel is much the same here, steep but relatively simple forest travel for another ~200m of gain before you reach the second cutblock. For us, snow started here in earnest, so we strapped on snowshoes and continued on. This cutblock is steeper than the first, but again, travel should be quite seamless as you work up towards the next stretch of forest.
Once out of the 2nd cutblock you’ll find yourself on a relatively flat stretch of open forest, but it won’t last long. After traversing east slightly, you’ll again pick up the steep ascent heading towards the SW ridge of McNair.
At around 1,530m you’ll gain the SW ridge where the remainder of the route to the summit should be largely straightforward. The views will begin to open up to the west now, and the final 100m of gain do get quite steep, however it’s still mostly in the forest so any risk is largely avoidable.
You might be questioning whether you’re actually going to get any views as you near the summit, as the trees seem to persist the whole way. It’s only really in the last 10m that the trees disappear, at which point you’ll crest the top and the partial views become panoramic. The best views by far will be the Old Settler and Mount Urquhart to the north, while the whole Cheam range will be visible to the south. On a clear day you should be able to pick out Mount Judge Howay and Robie Reid, while the Coquihalla and Manning Park peaks should also be visible.
It’s a nice spot to chill out and enjoy a break after a steep climb, and the good news is it’s all downhill from here. Once finished on the top, you simply retrace your steps down. If you’re going in the snow, the steep descent can be a bit slick in the afternoon, so take care not to slip.
When should I hike Mount McNair?
The best time to visit Mount McNair is likely in the spring when the road is accessible but snow covers the ground, allowing for a smooth and simple climb to the top. This would usually be around the end of March to early May depending on the year. That being said, anytime should work for McNair, though accessing the trailhead in the midst of winter may not be feasible.
Top Tip
It would be good to confirm the status of Bear Creek FSR before going if you can. If you can’t, I would probably have a backup hike in mind, or be prepared to hike from the gate on the FSR, which could add several kilometers.
The alders at the beginning of the hike will likely only get worse over time, unless someone takes it upon themselves to trim them back. They are only 1km, so if they are bad, just know it doesn’t last that long.
