Sunshine Coast Trail Explained

Location:Sunshine Coast (British Columbia)
Established:2000
Trailheads:Multiple access pointsSarah Point (north)
50.0588°N -124.8371°W
Saltery Bay (south)
49.7842°N -124.1747°W
Use:Hiking

Backpacking

Camping

Snowshoeing

Highest Name:Mount Troubridge
Highest M:1,304
Website:https://sunshinecoasttrail.com/
Length:180 km (112 mi)

The Sunshine Coast Trail is a 180 km (112 mi) wilderness hiking trail in the Sunshine Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. The trail traverses the qathet Regional District from Sarah Point on the Desolation Sound in the north to the BC Ferries terminal at Saltery Bay on Jervis Inlet in the south. The trail goes within close proximity of the communities of Powell River, Lang Bay, Lund, and Teeshohsum, through public, private and Tla'amin Nation treaty lands. It connects provincial parks such as Malaspina Provincial Park and Inland Lake Provincial Park, as well as many recreation sites and regional parks.

The Sunshine Coast Trail is notable for being the longest hut-to-hut hiking trail in Canada.[1] Campgrounds are also available alongside the huts, and there are number access points to the trail, providing multiple options for shorter trips. It traverses a wide range of environments such as temperate rainforests, mountains, coastlines, lakes, and rivers.

History

In 1992, outdoor enthusiasts formed the non-profit Powell River Parks and Wilderness Society, now called the qathet Parks and Wilderness Society (qPAWS), with the idea of creating a hiking corridor to protect and access the increasingly vanishing old-growth forests in the Upper Sunshine Coast region.[2] The Sunshine Coast Trail was completed in 2000 and outdoor groups began building wilderness huts along the route in 2009. The trail has 16 public huts as of 2021, two huts are managed by BC Parks and require a small user fee while the remaining huts are free and maintained by qPAWS and other outdoor groups.[3]

Sections

A list of trail sections from north to south as featured in The Sunshine Coast Trail Guidebook:

!#!Section Name!Note!KM
1Land's End Trail (Sarah Point)Sarah Point Hut & Trailhead0
Sarah Point Campsite0.6
Feather Cove Campsite2.8
Bliss Portage Hut8.2
Wednesday Lake Campsite12
2Gwendoline Hills Trail12.1
Manzanita Hut16
3Thunder Ridge Trail21.3
Fern Gully Creek Campsite22.6
4Toquenatch Trail25.2
Plummer Creek Campsite25.8
5Marathon TrailHomestead Campsite28.9
Rieveley Pond Hut33.5
6Appleton Canyon TrailAppleton Creek Campsite35.6
7Tla'amin (Sliammon) Lakes Trail 37.7
Kokanee Campsite40
Shangri-La Shelter & Campsite43.1
8Scout Mountain Trail45.6
9Mowat Bay Trail 50.6
10Tony's Trail 52.8
Tony's Point Campsite55.4
11Lost Lake Trail 58.3
12Inland Lake Trail 62.8
Inland Lake West Hut64
13Confederation Lake TrailAnthony Island Hut66.8
14Fiddlehead TrailConfederation Lake Hut74.1
15West Tinhat MountainFiddlehead Landing Hut81.4
16Tinhat Mountain TrailTinhat Cabin89.3
17Lewis Lake Trail93
East Lewis Hobbit Campsite 93.8
19March Lake Trail98
March Lake Campsite107.2
Elk Lake Hut109.3
20Elk Lake Loop110.3
20Walt Hill Trail114.3
Coyote Lake Campsite116
Walt Hill Hut123.4
21Suicide Pass Trail126
Suicide Pass Campsite127
22Smokey's Blue Ridge Trail128.1
Deer Creek emergency camp130.6
23Eagle River Trail132.3
24Lois Lakeshore Trail 136.9
Br.41 Campground139.7
Lois Point Campsite141.5
25Elephant Lake Trail144.5
Golden Stanley Hut144.9
Br.42 - Jessie's Carved Chair Campsite147.2
26West Mount Troubridge Trail154.1
Mount Troubridge Hut157.6
Troubridge Emergency Shelter159
27East Mount Troubridge Trail159.3
View Bluffs Campsite160
28Rainy Day Lake Trail167.2
Rainy Day Lake Hut169
29Fairview Bay Trail169.5
Fairview Bay Hut171.2
Pirate Cove picnic site176
Saltery Bay Trailhead178
30Saltery Bay Trail / Blue Grouse Ridge168.5
Saltery Bay Trailhead178

See also

West Coast Trail

North Coast Trail

Howe Sound Crest Trail

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sunshine Coast Trail Things to Do Sunshine Coast Tourism . 2023-09-19 . www.sunshinecoastcanada.com.
  2. Book: Walz, R.E. . The Sunshine Coast Trail Guide Book . End of the Road Press . 2021 . 978-0-9681166-4-7 . 5th . Powell River.
  3. Web site: 2023-03-20 . Sunshine Coast Trail — Hut to Hut Hiking - Powell River BC . 2023-09-19 . Sunshine Coast Trail . en-CA.