–submitted by Ken Warren
Eight of us set out on a Maple Mountain loop from Chilco Road on Saturday. Maple Mountain is the best marked and mapped trail system I’ve found on the Island, in that trail marking is frequently updated and the actual trails correspond exactly with the mapped trails. We set out along the blue trail and switched to the yellow, walking parallel to the water to our first break at Grave Point and the opening of Sansum narrows.
Marine traffic was lighter than usual and the mixed sun and clouds gave us perfect hiking conditions. We continued along the yellow trail above the shore with views of Saltspring’s Mts. Erskine and Maxwell across the narrows. Connecting again to the blue trail we gently gained elevation as we walked towards Maple Bay. About half a klick from Maple Bay trailhead we turned onto the pink trail and started up the mountain. This steep climb caused us to pause and savour the views offered by the rock bluffs. Arbutus, Garry Oak, and Death Camas gave a backdrop to our hike. We had lunch at the summit looking over Maple Bay and Bird’s Eye Cove with hints of further bays and hills to the south becoming obscured by light rain moving our way.
Taking a combination of pink, orange, and blue trails along with some exploratory off trail walking we made our way back to the cars with occasional views of the water and coastal mountains. The threatened rain never materialized and
Marine traffic was lighter than usual and the mixed sun and clouds gave us perfect hiking conditions. We continued along the yellow trail above the shore with views of Saltspring’s Mts. Erskine and Maxwell across the narrows. Connecting again to the blue trail we gently gained elevation as we walked towards Maple Bay. About half a klick from Maple Bay trailhead we turned onto the pink trail and started up the mountain. This steep climb caused us to pause and savour the views offered by the rock bluffs. Arbutus, Garry Oak, and Death Camas gave a backdrop to our hike. We had lunch at the summit looking over Maple Bay and Bird’s Eye Cove with hints of further bays and hills to the south becoming obscured by light rain moving our way. Taking a combination of pink, orange, and blue trails along with some exploratory off trail walking we made our way back to the cars with occasional views of the water and coastal mountains. The threatened rain never materialized and
This steep climb caused us to pause and savour the views offered by the rock bluffs. Arbutus, Garry Oak, and Death Camas gave a backdrop to our hike. We had lunch at the summit looking over Maple Bay and Bird’s Eye Cove with hints of further bays and hills to the south becoming obscured by light rain moving our way. Taking a combination of pink, orange, and blue trails along with some exploratory off trail walking we made our way back to the cars with occasional views of the water and coastal mountains. The threatened rain never materialized and
Taking a combination of pink, orange, and blue trails along with some exploratory off trail walking we made our way back to the cars with occasional views of the water and coastal mountains. The threatened rain never materialized and a good day was had by all.
