Hiking Mount Seton near Lillooet
Contents
Mount Seton Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 15.00Km
Elevation Gain: 1,535m
Highest Elevation: 2,859m
Average Gradient: 20.48%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 9 – 11 Hours
– Moderate: 8 – 9 Hours
– Fast: 7 – 8 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: ~May to October
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: Minimal
Mount Seton Trail
Trailhead Coordinates: 50°35’15.4″N 122°12’18.7″W
Mount Seton Overview
Mount Seton is the highest peak in the Cayoosh Range around Pemberton and Lillooet. It’s also in the top 10 highest peaks in SWBC (#9) and the top 10 most prominent peaks in SWBC (#6) with over 1,500m of prominence. As such, while not popular with the masses by any means, Seton sees quite a few ascents every year predominantly from the more dedicated peakbaggers.
The standard approach for Mount Seton begins from Downton Creek FSR off of Duffey Lake Road, not too far from Lillooet. It’s a long ~4 hour drive from Vancouver to get here, so most parties will likely spend a night in the area, either camping at the lakes below the peak, or spending a couple of days exploring other areas along Downton Creek. It’s perfectly manageable as a day trip with an early start.
Climbing Seton is a largely non-technical affair, with little scrambling and no exposure. The route begins by following a forest trail to around 2,000m, before a steep climb up to the basin below the peaks where the lakes are situated. From here, the remainder of the route is a steep scree ascent to the summit. The forested section is typically in rough condition, with lots of blowdown to contend with.
One of the biggest challenges over the years for Mount Seton has simply been accessing the trailhead. Downton Creek FSR has a history of closures due to a number of bridges early on along the road being in poor condition. The road was closed for several years but re-opened in 2024/25. That being said, it could close again at a moment’s notice, so it’s important to confirm that this road is open prior to going, as hiking or even biking the road would be impractical for most parties.
In terms of seasonality, most people will complete this hike during the summer, however late spring will also work and some people may prefer this time to allow snow to cover the scree on the final climb to the top. That being said, the lakes are very nice, and if you go in spring you may miss them if they’re still covered in snow. The peak season is therefore July to October.
Mount Seton is pet friendly, though dogs will likely need some help around the sections of blowdown. There is also quite a lot of scree, so boots may be handy to protect their paws. This is also grizzly territory, so do keep that in mind.
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Is Mount Seton worthwhile?
Mount Seton offers very unique views due to a particularly barren landscape once you reach the alpine basin. On a sunny summer day the region is breathtaking, especially around the lakes, but on an overcast day it might seem a little drab for some as there already isn’t that much colour in this area. We found it very pleasant overall, and totally different to most hikes you will do in SWBC.
How difficult is the hike to Mount Seton?
With over 20% average gradient and ~1,500m of gain, Mount Seton is a fairly big day. That being said, it never felt like a slog, and the lakes offer a nice spot to rest (both on the climb and descent). With a decent break at the summit and the lakes most parties will find this pretty straightforward.
Technically speaking there isn’t too much challenge to Mount Seton. The biggest issue for some parties will be the amount of blowdown on the early stages of the hike. While this can be a bit annoying and tiresome, it’s fairly short lived and shouldn’t slow you down too much. The key ramp up to the alpine is steep but not really scrambling, then the final climb up to the summit is again very steep scree, but also not really scrambling. There is no exposure anywhere along the trail.
Mount Seton Route Information
The hike begins from a small pullout on the side of Downton Creek FSR. The road to this point is usually suitable for most vehicles, with little issues of pinstriping (beyond this trailhead the road narrows, bushes grow in and pinstripes likely begin). As noted, you’ll want to verify that Downtown Creek FSR is open before going, as there are 5 bridges to cross to get to this trailhead, and if one is out then the entire road will likely be closed.
From the trailhead the hike begins with a short and steep grind up to the forest on fairly open, south facing terrain. It’s a bit of a rude awakening, you are certainly not eased into this hike. After ~200m of climbing you’ll reach the forest and immediately begin dealing with blowdown. Over the next kilometer or so you will have to navigate some fairly significant stretches of deadfall, some of which may make route finding a challenge. We always managed to find the way thanks to good flagging, but if you do find yourself off trail, make sure to look around immediately as you don’t want to get off track here.
Shortly before reaching 1,700m you’ll exit the forest onto a boulder field, with the next couple of kilometers following a series of boulders and sparse forest. At around 1,800m you’ll be back in the forest proper, always remaining south of a creek. Over the next 1.5km or you’ll continue following a well defined trail through the forest to around 2,000m, where the forest ends. You’ll now need to cross a small grassland aiming for the key ramp up to the alpine. Refer to your GPX if in doubt as it may not seem obvious which ramp to go up.
The ramp climbs steeply for around 150m, and is a mixture of heather, scree and rock. You shouldn’t really need to use your hands to ascend it. At the top of the ramp you’ll find a small tarn signifying the start of the more desolate alpine terrain. There are no trees anymore, just brown peaks and open grassland. I imagine this is what the Scottish Highlands look like.
It’s now an easy plod through this landscape towards Saddlebag Lakes beneath Mount Seton. Most parties will stop for a rest at the lakes as they’re pretty nice. From the lakes you can see your route up to Seton, which might look a bit intimidating from a distance. You should see a creek flowing down the mountains directly ahead of the lakes, this is the route you’ll be taking (keeping right of said creek).
Passing through the middle of the lakes you’ll want to work up the rocky slopes towards this creek. You can now pick whatever way you prefer to go as the terrain is quite forgiving. At around 2,300m the terrain begins to steepen, and around 2,400m it steepens even further. You’ll now be climbing on a mixture of scree and rock, but if you pick a good route you can likely avoid the worst of the scree on the ascent. While steep, there shouldn’t be much need to scramble, perhaps using your hands for balance now and then is the most you’ll need to do. It’s really just a very steep grunt up to the ridge.
At around 2,700m you’ll finally crest the ridge, at which point the gradient mellows out significantly, with the final climb to the summit a simple hike along the talus. Thanks to the prominence of Seton you’ll be higher than almost every other peak around (bar Whitecap Mountain to the northwest). The views will of course be plentiful, and the lakes down below provide a speck of green/blue in a sea of brown peaks.
From the summit, you simply return back the way you came. Descending the scree is a quick and pleasant ride back down to the lakes, then it’s just a matter of retracing your steps to the car.
When should I hike Mount Seton?
If you want a snow free ascent the whole time you should likely stick to July – September. Some parties prefer snow to cover the scree and may want to go in June or potentially even late May. October is a bit of an unknown as peaks of this elevation could see fresh snow once the temperatures drop and the rains return. Usually early October will be okay, but late October perhaps not.
Top Tip
Make sure to verify that Downton Creek FSR is open before visiting this area.
This is of course grizzly bear territory, so prepare accordingly for that.
If you’d rather split this up over a couple of days, camping at Saddlebag Lakes below the peak is an obvious choice. You could also likely ascend other peaks in the area from here as well, such as Saddlebag and/or Modal Peak.
