Hiking Mount Sproatt near Whistler
Contents
Mount Sproatt Hike Information
Difficulty: Difficult
Distance: 18.20Km
Elevation Gain: 1,175m
Highest Elevation: 1,834m
Average Gradient: 12.90%
Effort/Reward Ratio: High / High
Time Needed:
– Slow: 8 – 10 Hours
– Moderate: 6 – 8 Hours
– Fast: 5 – 6 Hours
Dogs Permitted?: Yes
Season: Year-Round (Winter Preferred)
4×4 / High Clearance Required? No
Scrambling / Exposure: A couple of sections that require use of hands, no exposure.
Mount Sproatt Trail
Note: The above trail includes both Mount Sproatt & Tonic Peak. If you are only hiking Mount Sproatt obviously ignore the sections going to Tonic Peak.
Trailhead Coordinates: 50°07’48.8″N 122°59’06.7″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 Sproatt Overview
Mount Sproatt is a summit situated slightly west of Whistler village that makes for a popular winter objective for ski tourers in particular. This is very much a winter hike, with the majority of the route self-navigated and off-trail. A healthy snowpack is necessary to ensure smooth sailing, otherwise you can expect to face a bushwhack for large portions of the trip.
There are at least 3 different approaches for a hike to Mount Sproatt, one from the Callaghan Valley, one from Function Junction and the final route, the one that is covered here, from the Rainbow Lake trailhead.
Mount Sproatt is a lightly trafficked hike, typically only attempted by adventurous folk looking for a challenge. Despite the somewhat moderate stats, given the challenging terrain and self-navigation required, you can expect this hike to take longer than you might expect.
The hike begins on the Rainbow Lake trail for the first 4.7km or so, before abruptly leaving the manicured trail and diving into the forest, where the remainder of the hike is self-navigated. After a brief (but steep) climb through some bush, you’ll soon enter a valley where the gradient mellows out and the trees gradually begin to thin, with views improving as you progress. After following this valley for a few kilometers you’ll eventually see the approach to Mount Sproatt, at which point it’s a steep climb to the summit. The views from the summit (and for much before) are exceptional, with stunning views of Rainbow Mountain, Whistler/Blackcomb, the Wedgemount group, Overlord Mountain, Fissile Peak, Brandywine Mountain, Mount Fee, Mount Cayley, Tricouni Peak and much more.
One of the benefits of Mount Sproatt is that it is a 2WD friendly hike, even in winter, as the trailhead is on a paved road. This hike is typically best saved for the depths of winter when the snowpack is deep, so as to allow a healthy coverage of the bushes, with the prime time realistically December – April. Once the snowline is thin you can expect much tougher conditions lower down.
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Is Mount Sproatt worthwhile?
There’s no doubt that Mount Sproatt is a challenging objective, with some technical, demanding terrain and a lot of self-navigation. Most people will be pretty exhausted by the end of a long day spent on snowshoes & carrying heavy packs. That being said, on a clear day the views from Mount Sproatt are exceptional, making all the effort well worth it. This is an excellent, albeit challenging, winter objective.
How difficult is the hike to Mount Sproatt?
The stats for this hike need to be taken with a pinch of salt as you cannot compare a full winter hike with a summer objective. While the stats might be moderate, don’t let that fool you into thinking this will be a quick and simple outing. The majority of the elevation gain is on unmarked, technical and slow terrain. If you are also breaking trail you can expect this to be extremely draining. Overall, despite the somewhat moderate stats I’d suggest this is a physically difficult hike.
Technically the hike obviously has some challenges. The Rainbow Lake trail is straightforward, but once you depart this trail the terrain immediately becomes technical, with a lot of route finding necessary. There is one section here that is very steep, requiring the use of hands to climb up, which can be tricky in snow. The exposure is fairly minimal though. After this steep climb you’ll soon enter the valley, where again you will be route finding, though the terrain is straightforward and mellow. There may be a few creek crossings you need to navigate depending on the snowpack. The final climb up to Mount Sproatt is steep, and there are multiple ways you could possibly take. If you follow the exact GPS here there will be one steep section again requiring the use of hands/poles to help you climb up, but this can perhaps be avoided with a detour.
Mount Sproatt Route Information
The trailhead for this route to Mount Sproatt is the same as the Rainbow Lake trailhead on Alta Lake Road. This is a paved road accessible for all vehicles.
The trail descends into the forest before beginning a gradual ascent. After a couple of hundred meters the trail will pass by a road leading up from Whistler Cemetery. You can hike up this road or continue on the trail, both routes will ultimately join together onto the Rainbow Lake trail, which begins next to a small building. After a sharp switchback you’ll continue on the Rainbow Lake trail, ignoring any spurs.
The Rainbow Lake trail is very simple, beginning as a wider path before entering a more dense forest. Assuming you’re going in winter, this will all be snow covered and most likely will have skin tracks from ski tourers. Simply continue following the Rainbow Lake trail, which passes over multiple creeks with small bridges.
As you progress you’ll want to keep an eye on your map to make sure you do not go past the turn off point. At around 1,150m elevation you will depart from the Rainbow Lake trail and begin working your way towards a valley between Mount Sproatt and Tonic Peak. Up to this point you may not have needed snowshoes, but once you leave the Rainbow Lake trail you almost certainly will need to put them on. Immediately after departing the Rainbow Lake trail you will be thrashing through some rugged terrain, with some deadfall and creeks to navigate. A deeper snowpack will make things easier here.
The first 500m after departing the Rainbow Lake trail is rugged and very steep. There is one section in particular that will require you to use your hands to pull yourself up a steep embankment, but for the most part it’s manageable. Once you’ve passed this short, steep section the terrain mellows out into a far milder gradient, and the trees begin to thin out. Soon you’ll be passing through some openings in the treeline and you’ll begin to get some views of a nearby unnamed summit.
Continue working through the valley, which will involve some relatively simple creek crossings. As this is a valley the snow here can be fairly deep and the cold air sits in the valley, there will likely be no sun to keep you warm so I’d advise moving steadily if possible. Thankfully travel here is quite simple and the route is fairly obvious even if you don’t have any tracks to follow as there is only one way to go since you are surrounded on either side.
After traveling through the valley for 1.5km or so you should start to make out a col that sits between Mount Sproatt and Tonic Peak. This is the general direction you want to aim for. The gradient now increases fairly markedly and travel slows quite a bit, but just keep chugging along in the direction of this col, and as you progress you’ll start to see your route up Mount Sproatt to your left. You’ll also begin to get staggering views of Rainbow Mountain behind you now, and in general the scenery from here on out is breathtaking.
Now you have a choice, you can either continue all the way to the col between the two peaks before departing towards Mount Sproatt, or you can make a beeline for Mount Sproatt earlier. This might be a little steeper but it saves taking an elongated route. If in doubt just follow the route mapped here. The route above will show ascents of both Tonic Peak and Mount Sproatt, but if you’re just hiking Mount Sproatt you can obviously ignore the route to Tonic Peak.
Whenever you decide to start working towards Mount Sproatt the gradient increases significantly, with the last kilometer ascending around 250m. The terrain for the most part is straightforward, just steep. Just before you reach the summit, at around 1,790m, you’ll reach a short, steep section that again will require you climb up using your hands and kick stepping into the side of the hill. There may be a longer way around if you approach more from the south if you want to avoid this. Either way, it’s short and perfectly manageable. Once you’re up this final steep section the remainder of the trail is a simple plod to the summit, marked by a radio tower.
From the summit you will have 360 degree views of countless peaks, with notable ones being Rainbow Mountain, Whistler/Blackcomb, Mount Weart, Wedge Mountain, Overlord Mountain, Fissile Peak, Mount Fee, Mount Cayley, Tricouni Peak, Brandywine Mountain, Cypress Peak and much, much more.
After a good long rest at the summit (assuming it’s not too cold to linger), you simply return the same way you came. Adventurous parties can also summit the nearby Tonic Peak, but the views are far better from Mount Sproatt so I’d only recommend that for fervent peakbaggers.
When should I hike Mount Sproatt?
The ideal time to hike Mount Sproatt is in the depths of winter when the snowpack is deep. You may also get lucky and have tracks to follow for the majority of the hike if, as noted, ski tourers have been up in the region. Realistically the season for Mount Sproatt is mid-November to the end of winter, perhaps around May. The peak season will be December – April.
I wouldn’t advise hiking Mount Sproatt outside of winter given the bushwhack that this would include.
Top Tip
You’ll most likely want a solid group of people to complete this hike with as it’s a long and tiring day. This is made much easier if you have multiple people breaking trail, and even just the motivation of others will help push you on.
If you expect it to be particularly icy you may want to carry an ice axe and crampons for the steep sections. While they are very brief they could be challenging in certain conditions.
If you want to extend your trip you can also summit the nearby Tonic Peak, but the views are not as good as Mount Sproatt, and doing both makes for a very tiring day.
