Hiking Mount Price in Garibaldi Provincial Park
Contents
Mount Price Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 32km
Elevation Gain: 1,725m
Highest Elevation: 2,052m
Average Gradient: 10.78%
Effort/Reward Ratio: Very High / Very High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 12+ Hours
– Moderate: 10 – 12 Hours
– Fast: 8 – 10 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: No
Season: Mid-July to Mid-October
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: Some simple bush scrambling with no exposure.
Mount Price Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 49°57’26.3″N 123°07’13.4″W
Mount Price Overview
Mount Price is a stratovolcano located in Garibaldi Provincial Park. Visible from the ever popular and iconic Garibaldi Lake, Mount Price is a prominent peak dating back 1.2 million years, and is a significantly lesser traveled summit than the incredibly well trafficked Panorama Ridge and Black Tusk.
The trail to Mount Price is unofficial and won’t be found on any BC Parks maps, so route finding skills are a necessity in order to successfully summit this peak. The hike begins on the well groomed trail to Garibaldi Lake, before leaving the lake and commencing through some challenging terrain, notably passing through a lava field with many boulders to navigate. There are sporadic markers along the way, but they are easy to lose and finding them again can be tricky. At 32km this is a very long day hike, so an early start is a requirement, or alternatively this can be completed as an overnight hike by camping at Garibaldi Lake and commencing the next day.
With all that said, the views from the summit are absolutely astounding and well worth the effort, with incredible views of Garibaldi Lake, the Black Tusk, Mount Garibaldi, the Table, Clinker Peak, the Tantalus Range, Guard Mountain, Castle Towers and much, much more. The views from Mount Price are arguably as good, if not better than Panorama Ridge, yet the amount of traffic on this trail is a mere fraction of that. If you like an adventure, are confident at route finding and want to avoid the crowds, Mount Price is an excellent option.
Due to the difficult terrain after leaving the shores of Garibaldi Lake, I would recommend sticking to prime summertime for this hike, think mid-July to mid-October or so. After going in mid-June and struggling on the lava field with a thin layer of snow covering enormous boulder traps, this is best saved for when the snowline is well above the lake.
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Is Mount Price worthwhile?
Mount Price is a real slog with an extremely long approach from the boring Rubble Creek trailhead. It’s a similar distance and elevation to Panorama Ridge, but the terrain is significantly more challenging and will no doubt slow you down considerably. Route finding is a challenge so a map is a requirement. With all that said, it’s well worth it. The views are frankly stunning on a clear day from the summit, and far more varied than that of Panorama Ridge. It’s also a very quiet hike with minimal traffic, so if you like solitude on your hikes, this is a good one.
How difficult is the hike to Mount Price?
Physically speaking this is obviously a difficult hike. At 32km it’s a very long day, and with the awkward terrain beyond the lake it’s a slow one as well. Still, it’s no more physically challenging than other major hikes in the park, it’s just slower and more tedious at times. The average gradient is actually somewhat moderate at slightly over 10%, and there aren’t that many parts of the hike that are exceedingly steep. The final push to the summit does get steep, but it’s not that long.
Technically the hike has some challenges. As noted the terrain beyond Garibaldi Lake is tricky, with some boulder hopping and scrambling through the bush along a ridge. The scrambling is never exposed, it’s just slow and tedious. Once you’re at the final climb it’s a steep slog up loose rock (or snow), but it’s not a scramble, there’s no exposure and you shouldn’t have to use your hands.
Mount Price Route Information
The hike begins at the ever boring Rubble Creek trailhead, which is the biggest drawback of this hike. As always there is nothing of note to see or do for the first 6.5km of this hike, it’s just mindless switchbacks climbing through the forest. The only benefit of this is it’s quick and steady progress, gaining over 750m in just an hour and half or so.
You’ll know you’re past this trudge once you reach an information board, a washroom and a junction, with one trail leading to Taylor Meadows, and another to Garibaldi Lake. You’ll want to take the Garibaldi Lake trail. In no time you’ll reach an optional viewpoint of the barrier, which is a mere 100m detour from the trail and a worthy stop. The barrier was formed 9,000 years ago from a lava flow from the nearby Clinker Peak, and is a lava dam that retains Garibaldi Lake. The view is pretty nice on a clear day.
Back on the trail, it now becomes a mellow stroll. In a few hundred meters you’ll reach the shores of Barrier Lake, and in a few hundred meters more you’ll cross a bridge over a creek leading into Lesser Garibaldi Lake. After another 2km of following the trail, you’ll reach a junction with the trail dropping down towards the stunning Garibaldi Lake. You’ll want to follow the usual trail around the lake, where you’ll pass some washrooms, a ranger station, the picturesque Battleship Islands and eventually reach a wooden dock at the end of the lake trail. You will have an excellent view of Mount Price once you reach the shores of Garibaldi Lake, it’s the highest of the peaks on the south side of the lake, with a wide, flat summit. This is a great place to take a break before the challenging part of the day begins.
Just beyond the wooden dock you will see a faint trail leading into the trees, likely with a marker or two guiding the way. The trail will continue in the trees, hugging the shore of the lake, before departing from the shore. Keeping an eye on your map, and following any markers you’re able to see, the trail will eventually come to a boulder field formed from a lava flow from the nearby Clinker Peak. This part of the trail is challenging, especially if there is snow around.
After working your way through the boulder field you’ll need to climb up to a long ridgeline that you’ll now be following closely essentially to the final ascent. There will be some tricky route finding as you scramble through the bushes along the ridge, with sporadic markers that are often hard to spot. Progress here will be slow and a map is essential as it’s easy to lose the trail.
Eventually you will drop out of the ridgeline into an obvious opening just beneath the ridge. Once you’re in this opening the rest of the trail is much simpler until you reach the base of the mountain. You simply continue along this wide open trail, which ascends gradually towards the base of Mount Price and Clinker Peak.
Once you reach around 1,750m elevation you’ll be just below the final climb up to the saddle between Mount Price and Clinker Peak. This is another good place for a break before pushing onto the summit. The trail here is now pretty evident, but continue to look at your map to ensure you’re healing in the right direction.
Depending on your timing the final climb will either be on loose scree, which will be draining as every step will slide back, or it will be snow covered, which is much simpler. While steep, you will never need to use your hands, and you should never be exposed to any fall. Work your way up the scree, and ensure to veer left towards the saddle between Mount Price and Clinker Peak. If in doubt, check your map. The views behind you will now be fantastic, but they’ll only get better as you ascend.
Once you reach the saddle the remainder of the ascent is a piece of cake. The terrain remains similar but the gradient eases off for the last 500m and in no time you will be at the summit, which is marked by a cairn.
The views now are 360 degrees, with the most impressive of course being Garibaldi Lake with the Black Tusk backdrop. You’ll also have unbelievable views of Mount Garibaldi, Table Mountain, Guard Mountain, Castle Towers, Mount Carr, The Sphinx Glacier, Panorama Ridge, Clinker Peak, the Tantalus range and much more.
The actual summit of Mount Price is vast and flat, so you may have to walk around a bit for the best photo opportunities. I actually ended up adding an extra kilometer or two to the hike just by wandering around the summit for photos. We also saw some ptarmigan at the top, briefly.
After soaking in the views and taking a good long break, it’s time to head back. I won’t lie, this is a long return to the trailhead. The hike back to the lake is slow due to the technical terrain, but the hike back from the lake to the trailhead is mind numbingly boring, and after such a long and tiring day you’ll be sick to death of the switchbacks down to the Rubble Creek parking lot. They go on forever and ever, partially ruining what was an amazing day otherwise!
When should I hike Mount Price?
I would suggest this route to Mount Price as a summer only route, ideally mid-July to mid-October. Once snow reaches the lake elevation, the lava field will be treacherous, with huge boulder traps covered by thin snow. Many people hike Mount Price in winter conditions, but they take an alternative route not described here.
Obviously, as with any hike in Garibaldi, you want a sunny, clear day.
Top Tip
Please, take an offline map. One of the biggest challenges of Mount Price is the challenging route finding after you depart from Garibaldi Lake.
Prepare for a long, hard day. Even though this is “only” 32km, expect this hike to take a full 12 hours due to the technical terrain, so start early, bring plenty of food/water and definitely a headlamp.
If you don’t think you can do this in a day, camp at Garibaldi Lake and begin the hike early the next morning. From the lake and back you can expect the hike to take around 6 – 7 hours usually.
