at the corners, it’s still standing, though given the volumes of snow recorded locally in past winters, it’s a wonder the structure hasn’t fallen in on itself. Sheets of plywood cover the windows. Saggy soffits outline the roof like lipstick applied by a dipsomaniac. Nestled in a meadow beside the twin Elfin Lakes, surrounded by peaks, the old lodge still enjoys one of the most stunning prospects in Garibaldi Park.
A stone’s throw away stands the alpine-gothic Elfin Lodge, a two-story, 33-person shelter with bunk beds and kitchen facilities including propane stoves. The chalet, quite cozy inside, is a favorite nest for skiers and snowshoers on cold winter nights. In reality, the Elfin Lakes are little more than two alpine ponds. One is reserved for drinking water, the other for washing. Several picnic tables sit on the open slope next to a small interpretive display. The history of the region is explained simply on several laminated panels that include historical photos.
Elfin Lakes
In an open meadow below and just past the Elfin Lodge is a spacious, 14-site campground with equally superb views. There are outhouses nearby and all-important food caches as black bears frequent the area. Although the campground does not offer much seclusion, there is plenty of room to spread out. Spend a night here and, immersed in the silence of the surroundings, revel in the view of the Tantalus Range to the west when first lit by the early morning light. At that magic hour, you’d think that the sun was pouring forth lava like primordial plasma, the cosmic soup from which matter evolved.
You can hike for hours beyond Elfin Lakes. But if you don’t feel like venturing too far, at least take 15 minutes to catch a brief glimpse of this continually changing landscape. The fall color here is not just confined to the trees. The ground cover of red heather interwoven with low-lying blueberry bushes is a riot of scarlets. And six shades of yellow, from gold to pumpkin, climb the banks of small gullies to where scree has tumbled down from Mount Garibaldi’s eroding volcanic cone.
> COLUMNAR PEAK
Access: A 2-km (1.2-mi) hike from the Elfin Lakes on a well-marked trail that leads uphill and away from the route to the Opal Cone, a short distance north of the Elfin Lakes campground. Ability Level: Novice to intermediate
You’ll discover majestic views from the top of nearby Columnar Peak. (Columnar is the name given to lava formations. Much of Garibaldi Park’s landscape was shaped by volcanic eruptions at the end of the most recent ice age.) And it doesn’t take long to reach the saddle between several of the spires that constitute the peak. From here you’ll get a close-up look at two particularly gnarly formations on Columnar’s north flank: dubbed “The Gargoyles,” they more than live up to that moniker. In the middle distance, their crumbling facades convey a freakish impression that is almost scary. Up close, they assume cartoonish proportions with glazed expressions, as if they’ve been kiln-fired in hell.
From the top of one of the spires, which barely affords enough space to accommodate small groups, enjoy the unrestricted panorama south to the North Shore peaks and west to Vancouver Island. Closer at hand, Diamond Head’s subtly colored pink ridge links Columnar Peak with a parade of peaks, domes, and ridges that culminates in the lone sentinel of Mount Garibaldi—all it takes to get a closer look at it is more time. When a northern pygmy owl (a very small “earless” owl with a spotted head, frequently heard calling with a mellow “hoo” or seen flying in daytime) alights on top of a nearby subalpine fir, you’ll revel in this unanticipated reward.
> JOANIE GET YER MEN
JOAN MATTHEWS of West Vancouver was a champion slalom skier in the 1930s, who, during the Second World War, mapped out routes in the backcountry north of Squamish. At a ski meet, she met two world-class Norwegian ski jumpers, Ottar and Emil Brandvold, whom she introduced to the Whistler region. After she married Ottar, the three built the Diamond Head Lodge in 1945–46.
The old road used today to reach Elfin Lakes was the approach that brought guests to the lodge. Joan left in the late 1950s, but the brothers operated the chalet for yet another decade, after which it was sold to the province for the park.
Squamish pioneer Rose Tatlow remembered Joan as the driving force behind the Diamond Head project, the one who negotiated the land rights with the provincial government and who worked shoulder to shoulder with the two soft-spoken brothers while displaying the constant cheerfulness that was her hallmark.
> OPAL CONE
Access: A 6.5-km (4-mi) trail leads north from Elfin Lakes to the Opal Cone. Allow two hours one way Ability Level: Intermediate
The scale on which formations present themselves in the Pacific Ranges that transect Garibaldi Park is truly astonishing. The Opal Cone is an interesting remnant of an old volcano. At first, much of the trail is downhill. Views of The Gargoyles, the gnarled black rock formations hulking on Diamond Head’s south flank, soon appear high above. Mount Garibaldi and The Sharkfin show their profiles north of Atwell Peak. Across the valley to the east, an enormous sheet of glacial ice hangs on the slopes of Mamquam Mountain. Watch for wildlife. Marmots and pikas sunbathe on rocky outcroppings, and if you stop to pick blueberries, you’ll probably scare up the occasional grouse.
Past the halfway point, where, in summer months, a bridge crosses boulder-strewn, silt-gray, glacier-fed Ring Creek, you enter a barren landscape. Walking here is difficult because of rock debris recently deposited by the retreating glacier. Perhaps in another century plants will take root, giving fall frosts a chance to color these slopes, too.
The trail climbs towards a ridge beside the Opal Cone. If you want only a view of this ancient volcano, bear left where the trail divides. After 30 minutes on this steep section you will reach a viewpoint of the Opal Cone and the icefields below Mount Garibaldi. If your destination is Mamquam Lake, bear right at the point where the trail divides. The lake, east of the Opal Cone, is a walk of several hours.
Lava is a small, solid-sounding word, one that appears infrequently on British Columbia maps—except for National Topographic Survey map 92 G/15 (Mamquam Mountain) of the region east of Squamish in Garibaldi Park, where it appears three times. These lava fields lie below the south flank of the Opal Cone, an intriguingly shaped granite plug formed when a spew of molten lava hardened.
Despite its name, the cone is neither conical nor opalescent in appearance. Rather, it squats like a green-gray molar at the foot of Mount Garibaldi’s south tower, dagger-nosed Atwell Peak, surrounded by a battleship-gray landscape scoured clean by the retreating Garibaldi and Lava glaciers. As topsoil is scarce, vegetation has yet to take root here. The few traces of flora that do cling to the sides of the cone flourish somewhat mysteriously. At this elevation, above 1400 m (4593 ft), growth is as slow as smoke. But if the lava is rather bland in appearance, it only serves to heighten the intensity of hues in the broader panorama.
> MAMQUAM LAKE TRAIL
For those pushing on beyond Opal Cone, the trail leads 4.5 km (2.8 mi) east across a rough and mostly barren landscape, crossing active Zig Zag Creek (fed by the Lava Glacier) and passing the Rampart Ponds on its way to Mamquam Lake. The lake lies hidden until the trail begins its descent to the three narrow but level campsites cleared beside its shore. There are no facilities here, and you can usually count on having the rugged surroundings to yourself. The lake makes a wonderful bowl from which to engage in some intensive stargazing.
> INSIDE TRACK
For more information on Diamond Head, go to www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks
