–submitted by Matthew Lettington
Tlatlos Peak was pretty much as expected: a steep logging road drive, some bushwhacking, a bit of route finding, and a beautiful summit on a lovely fall day.
I was very grateful for the day we all shared on Tlatlos Peak. I organized this exploratory trip to a North Island peak after a club member recommended nearby Peak 5800, often mistakenly called Tsitika Peak, which is quite different from Tsitika Mountain. I would have loved to explore Peak 5800 via the newly punched-in roads along its north ridge, but rumours suggested that active work in the area meant the roads were gated. No worries! After some discussion, we settled on neighbouring Tlatlos Peak instead. It wasn’t on my personal peak list, but it was new to me, and I’m always happy to get out and explore somewhere different.
After gathering some local knowledge and studying the topographic maps, I decided to offer this as a slow-paced, exploratory trip. I hoped that would make it accessible to more members, although I was disappointed that, once again, the trip didn’t fill. I asked everyone to bring their mountaineering gear, but we never seriously considered taking it out of our packs. There was just one spot where we decided to put on our helmets. Hey, we brought them, so we might as well use them!
I also offered the option for South Island members to join me for a night of camping at the Montague Creek Recreation Site. What a spot! Quarters were definitely tight, but six of us arrived around sunset, set up camp, and spent the evening socializing around our makeshift lantern (a headlamp tucked under a Nalgene bottle). We caught up on our recent adventures and chatted about plans for the coming winter and summer seasons.
The next morning, we enjoyed a leisurely start. By 9 AM, we were packed up and ready to go, just as the Courtenay and Campbell River participants arrived. A lengthy convoy of vehicles set off along the steep, winding Eve River Mainline, circling around the northeast side of the peak before looping back toward the southwest. Eventually, we found a suitable stopping point at around 1,200 metres.
My planned route followed what looked like the most obvious approach on the topographic maps. However, once we could see the terrain for ourselves, I opted for a more direct line that avoided the possibility of an unseen creek crossing. We plunged into the cutblocks and blowdown, pushing through several metres of gnarly bush before finally reaching the relatively open, forested saddle.
From there, we worked our way up the ridge, generally keeping to the high ground and picking our way through the notches as we went. One thing that surprised me was finding several sets of flagging marking what appeared to be trails in different locations along the way. These may connect with routes coming from the Peak 5800 area. I’m always tempted to follow flagging just to see where it goes, but this time I resisted!
We stayed on course, although we nearly succumbed to the temptation to call the first obvious bump our summit. Fortunately, one of the group spotted a beaten track and some cut trees leading around the left side of the peak. Following this route, we descended slightly and traversed a small talus slope before regaining the ridge. A little light scrambling brought us the rest of the way to the summit.
Despite our late start and a few minor misadventures on the drive in, we reached the top around 1 PM. We were rewarded with wonderful views of the surrounding mountains and distant ranges. Even Mount Waddington was clearly visible on the horizon.
As 2 PM approached, we shouldered our packs and started down. I encouraged everyone to keep moving because I hoped to get home before my kids went to bed. We made a slow and careful descent, but the temptation to stop and pick mushrooms proved irresistible. We took nearly as long to descend as we had to climb, but everyone made it back to the vehicles well before sunset. I, however, wouldn’t quite make it home before the kids were tucked in for the night.
All in all, it was a beautiful fall day in the mountains, shared with great company. While Tlatlos Peak might make a worthwhile outing for those already exploring the North Island, I’m not convinced it warrants a special trip from the South Island. You’ll definitely spend far more time behind the wheel than you will on your feet!
