PONTIAC PEAK 2505m 8219′
Pontiac Peak is on the east side of the park south of the head of Woodbury Creek, at the head of Pontiac Peak (Scranton Basin). It is the backdrop of Sunset Lake (Queens Cup Basin). In the fall, the larch is spectacular.
Since the road washed out, the ascent was increased by 3.2 km and almost 700 feet higher, about an hour’s walk.
Sunset Lake: Set amidst alpine fir and spruce at the base of towering Pontiac Peak, Sunset Lake is a gem-like spot. Careless campers once littered the area with garbage and fish remains.
Its history dates back to the 1890s. Its many remains still exist today. That includes the great miner’s trail up to the lake. The fairly significant Scranton Mine operated into the late 70s.
Difficulty: D2
Elevation gain: 1066m (3500′)
Key elevations: TH 1463m (4800′); Sunset Lake TH Sunset Lake 1865m (6120′); Summit 2505m (8219′)
Distance:
Season: early July through September
Access: Difficult access road out
Map: 82F/14 Slocan
Drive: Woodbury Creek FSR (high clearance, 4WD)
From Balfour (ferry): Drive 23.5 km (14.6 miles) north on Hwy 31 and turn left. Zero odometer.
From Kaslo (Esso station): Drive 10.2 km (6.3 miles) south on Hwy 31 and turn right. Zero odometer.
0.0 Start on the Fletcher Creek FSR, signed “Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park”. The old south road access is very rough.
1.1km Go left for Woodbury. (right ascends the unmaintained Fletcher Lake Trail (not recommended due to high concentration of grizzly bears.
2.4 km The old road comes in from the south. Go right, then bear left. 7.4km, cross a bridge.
11.8km Just after crossing a stream, at the height of the road, a branch goes up and left to Sunset Lake and Pontiac Peak. This is the trailhead as this road was washed out in 1998 and can’t be driven. Descend to the right for the Woodbury/Silver Spray trails.
Trail/Route:
0.0 Beginning of old road to Sunset Lake – now the trailhead 1463m (4800′). Cross Pontiac Creek.
3.2km. Sunset Lake Trail: 2 kilometres, elevation gain 193m (635′), 30 minutes one-way. The trail is in fairly good condition because people still hike in to fish.
5.2km Sunset Lake 1865m (6120′) – Queens Cup Basin. Summit of Pontiac Peak 2505m (8219′)
Once at the lake, go to near its end where the trail climbs to an old mine site. From here, look east to a river of large rocks. Hike to these (about 150 feet) and start climbing up. Stay slightly east or to your left to avoid bands of rock. At the saddle climb up about 100 to 150 feet to find a wide rock ledge that will lead you around an unnamed peak on your right in 20 minutes. Pontiac Peak is straight ahead (Southwest). Stay high and work your way around lower peaks and climb the remaining elevation to the peak. The views are fantastic.
1. Climbed and surveyed by a Topographical Survey party, date and route unknown.
2. North Ridge. Take the rising left fork (washed out in 1998) 3.2km to the Sunset Lake trail. Follow it, away from the lake, past old mine workings to the north ridge, skirting two lesser peaks to the summit. (II,3,s).
FA unknown, but probably by prospectors or miners.
Sunset Lake was a high-use area when the road was open but quite likely sees very few visitors these days with a 1300′ climb on an old road to the trailhead for the lake; please pack out everything that you pack in.
PONTIAC PEAK 2536 m. (Lat. 49.7666, Long. 117.0855) Oct 5, 2014 by Steve Miros
Pontiac Peak is located in the NE corner of Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park, surrounded by beckoning mountain tops. Though our main destinations in this area are usually Silver Spray Cabin and Woodbury Hut, Pontiac Peak is their equal for a day hike, including some easy scrambling and route-finding.
The area has a significant history dating back to the 1890s of mining the Scranton/Pontiac/Sunrise/Sunset vein system. Its many remains still exist today. This includes a great miners’ trail up to Sunset Lake. The fairly significant Scranton Mine operated into the late 70s.
The Scranton Mine provided for my first foray into Kokanee Glacier Park. An old-timer mining uncle of mine lured me to the area with a first-time helicopter ride into the Scranton Basin to shovel off the heavy snow load from the bunkhouses. Needless to say Waldo and I weren’t too sure of what we’d gotten ourselves into considering we’d have to get out on our own. But a one-way helicopter ride seemed to more than justify some snow shovelling and a cross-country ski out. We had no clue about backcountry skiing and it wouldn’t have helped anyway as neither of us knew how to ski. It probably wasn’t all that bad as I repeated the foray, with another friend of course, about a month later.
Fast forward 40 years. The Sunset Lake Trailhead is accessed by driving 12 km up the Woodbury Creek FSR. Parking for the Scranton Mine/Sunset Lake trailhead is at the junction where the road splits to the Silver Spray/Woodbury trailhead parking lot.
The well-marked access road to Sunset Lake trailhead/Scranton Mine is grown in for all but ATVers. You can see occasional glimpses of Pontiac Peak slightly up ahead and to the right. This roadbed section is rather long (about 4 km), but the pleasant miners trail up to Sunset Lake and beyond, more than makes up for it.
A park sign marks the trail off the grown-in road and a well-built foot bridge provides access across Pontiac Creek. Someone, probably a fisherman, maybe a parks crew, has cleared the deadfalls. Once you reach Sunset Lake, which has several nice camping spots, the trail follows the east shore while at the same time gradually ascends to the mines further up.
Pontiac Peak is behind (a part of) the ridge south of the lake. Though on a well-established trail base, the underbrush and lack of maintenance are taking an increasing toll on this section of the trail. Once you reach a mine at the foot of a minor headwall, the trail turns south (over the mine shaft) where it meanders south along an agreeable ramp overlooking Sunset Lake. Eventually, you reach another small mine from where you can easily pick your way up the stream bed to the col above. At the col, the route is to go right up the small ridge a short distance, stay below, and work your way along the base of the ridge face. It is not necessary to drop into the basin as there is a narrow ramp allowing you to work your way along the ridge base. Once past the narrow section, it’s an easy scramble on boulders and dirt in a southwesterly direction to the summit.
When we arrived at the summit it became engulfed in fog on what was supposed to be a sunny weekend. The fairly good shape summit register was deposited by Ron Perrier and Ross Scott in 1998. The summit had seen several visits of KMCers. After lunch and more waiting, the fog cleared to about 8000 ft allowing us to get oriented amongst the surrounding mountains. Riondel is visible from the summit. Views of the Woodbury Hut area and the mountains east of Kootenay Lake were great. Kane Peak is at the doorstep of Pontiac thereby providing a very different vantage point. It might also form a long day ascent route. Kokanee Glacier likewise. The Woodbury Hut/Silver Spray Hut traverse is slightly discernible to the north. All in all, we spent a great long time at the summit and had a pleasant descent.
We returned via the same route arriving at the truck by 6 pm (left vehicle at about 9 am). A triple header with a car camp at the various trailheads would be a great way to visit the area.
Eliane & Steven Miros
