Timberline Tales

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Septimus

–A personal trip report submitted by Evan Martin

Ever since my failed attempt up Mount Septimus’ X-Gully last year I’ve been eyeing the Route 2 Variation. We were so close to the summit last year. All the technical parts of the route were complete – the gully proper, the glacier crossing, and the steep snow off the glacier. Hence, I still wanted to bag the summit, but wanted to do it via a fresh route. The standard “easy” rock route is 2V, which is rated 5.6, but requires multiple pitches and Phil Stone’s description in Island Alpine Climbing is “easy climbing but poor protection”. I was intimidated by the route, so wanted a solid partner. When Trevor, my climbing mentor from Newfoundland, asked me if he could come out in early May to do some climbing, I quickly narrowed in on 2V as our objective.

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5040 via Cobalt Lake Overnight

May 5, 2026

~ submitted by Melanie Yu

5040 is one of those hikes that, in my opinion, offers some of the best panoramic mountain views for the relatively short effort required to reach the summit. It’s a mountain that is attainable for most hikers. 

When you’re first getting into hiking, this hike can feel like the hardest hike in the world, but the rewards at the top makes every step worth it. To find better views than 5040, you usually have to commit to objectives well over 1000 m of elevation gain.

Although I’ve done this hike four times, I have never stayed at the hut. Every time I passed by on a day hike, I wished I could stop and spend the night there. Booking the hut in May was also a gamble.  I knew there was a chance we’d get absolutely no views as I was also booking almost 2 months in advance but was willing to take the risk.

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Triple Peak – Recon turned Summit trip

May 3, 2026

~ submitted by Evan Martin

Triple Peak is an iconic landmark on the southern part of the island.  Hence it tends to be on every novice island mountaineers checklist.  Having not checked it off myself, it was high on my list.  However, between being early season and not having been in the mountains for a while, my expectations were low.  Hence, I posted this as a reconnaissance trip rather than a summit attempt to keep expectations in check.  Maybe that’s why I got very little interest.  Either way just I and another Rambler headed out for the day with the sole purpose of getting out, but with a healthy amount of hope.

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Century Sam Lake

May 2, 2026

~ submitted by Melanie Yu

Three of us were keen on checking out the trail on a clear sunny warm weekend. The warm and disappointing winter ski season we had got me questioning how soon Comox Glaciers would be feasible…I still have to check it off my bucket list. It felt like the perfect time to check out how much has melted up there, and a good opportunity to check out the road conditions.  This was my third time doing this hike, and I was able to drive to the trail head in November and thought it was still attainable. It was shocking to find how much worse all the cross ditches/water bars were since I had last been up.

No vehicles today made it to the trail head. A stark difference from last season. A significant amount of rainfall and washouts seemed to have happened since, as even at the trailhead, a lot of foliage had disappeared and it was almost completely exposed. I deeply remember hiking up this road years ago when I did it the first time and remember finding relief at the shaded trail head. This is no longer the case! 

Even with maximum clearance of 15 inches with one truck, the only thing that would have made making the trailhead with more confidence was a stronger approach angle and a short wheel base (though it wasn’t necessary to have short wheel base for this one). The cross ditches to the trail head felt worse than the ditches to Mount Joan.

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Sutton Peak via Harrison Lake: A Long Day Done Right

April 11, 2026

~ submitted by Matthew Lettington

It had been a long time since a 3 a.m. alarm dictated the start of my day. There’s something nostalgic about that kind of alpine start—the quiet house, the groggy coffee, the slow realization that you’re about to commit to something big. It felt good to be back in that rhythm.

Our objective was Sutton Peak, this time opting for the Harrison Lake approach rather than the long ridge. It’s a trade-off: less ridge travel, but a nearly five-hour drive each way. The kind of day where the effort begins well before you lace up your boots.

The logging road in was mostly cooperative, though one small washout forced us to stop, fill it in, and coax the vehicle through. We parked at around 800 metres and continued on foot, quickly encountering the first patches of snow near the end of the road. With a big day ahead, we didn’t waste time. As soon as we were sinking more than about eight inches, the snowshoes went on.

That decision came with some entertainment value—most notably a short, awkward scramble down with snowshoes still attached. Not graceful, but effective.

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Empress-Emperor Mountains Loop

March 22, 2026

~ submitted by Julianna Wells

Our group met at the Sooke Potholes Parking Lot #2 for greetings, info gathering, and route planning.  It was decided then that we would head for Mount Empress first, then down and over to Emperor Mountain before heading back to the cars.  We were on our way just after 9am and the forecast was perfect for a great day of hiking.

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Heather Mountain

April 5, 2026

~ submitted by Nick Fisch

Snowshoes on, then off, then on, then off again…. and again.. and again. It was one of those days.

Four of us set out on Easter Sunday to tackle Heather Mountain from the little Shaw gate. It was a bluebird 20 degree spring day. We began at around 9:30am from the locked gate for a very long slog of an approach up the logging road. We hit snow at around 3100ft and dawned the snowshoes. The going was slow.

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Mount Adder – A Different Kind of Winter Day

March 22, 2026

~ submitted by Matthew Lettington

It’s been a strange winter. Every time I plan a day out, the weather seems to turn, and my hopes for skiing have been repeatedly dashed. I’ll admit, there’s also a growing unease about what this lack of snow might mean for the summer ahead.

But if there’s a silver lining, it’s this: the poor snowshoe and ski conditions have opened the door to some incredible early spring travel—conditions we usually don’t see until much later in the season.

Our recent trip to Mount Adder was a perfect example. We left the snowshoes at home.

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Larkspurs to Empress: Ridge Ramble Hike

March 21, 2026

~ submitted by Su Castle

A fine day in the Sooke Hills with 5 humans, one Dog (Huxley) and innumerable ticks.  We tackled the Larkspur to Empress Ridge Ramble and a moderate pace.

Typical terrain- Slippery spots, logs for “under over”, bogs to detour, lake and peak vistas to admire. 

17 kms, almost 1000m elevation gain and a short car shuffle from Charters to Parking Lot #2 to avoid 2 kms of Goose walking. Total time: 7 hours on the trails. 

Photo credits: Adam Bowman 
Group Selfie: Su Castle