High Falls Creek
Introduction
This is great, fairly seldom traveled trail just up the Squamish Valley. It's starts at fairly low elevation, and doesn't reach any prominent peak, but it is still a very enjoyable forested trail, with beautiful views of the valley and of the falls themselves. Due to a low elevation, and about a 4-5 hour return trip, this hike can be done early or late in the hiking season.
Route Info
High Point: 715 meters
Trailhead elevation: 75 meters
Round Trip: 12 kilometers
Time to complete: 4-5 hours
Difficulty: moderate
Technical difficulty: steep sections, many roots, some sections above cliffs
Driving Distance (from Vancouver): 105 kilometers
Directions
Drive up to Squamish up highway 99. Zero your odometer when crossing Cleveland Avenue. 10 km north of Squamish, turn left onto Squamish Valley Road (the turnoff to the right leads to Alcie Lake). At 13 km, keep left. At abou 33 km, the road becomes a gravel road, called S-Main. You will notice distance markers on the trees on the side of the road. Just after 36 km on your odometer, and the 22 mile sign, you will see a bridge over High Falls Creek. Park in the pulloff area before it.
Trail Description
Walk across the bridge heading north, and about 100 m down the road. Watch for a sign and flagging tape to your right in the trees. At first, you are walking on an old road, but it soon turns into a real trail. The trail is well marked all of the way, so simply follow the flagging tape and orange square markers on trees. Enjoy the many viewpoints as you keep gaining elevation. You will eventually leave the forest into an old clearcut area. Shortly after, crossing a small rockslide, you will hit the Branch 200 logging road, near it's high point. This is the end of the trail. You can now either turn around and retrace your steps back down through the forest, or turn left onto the logging road and follow back down to S-Main, and then follow S-Main back to your car. The logging road route take about 6.5 km and is an easy stroll down. Though it isn't as exciting as trail walking, but it always has nice open views of Squamish Valley, and gives you an option to not to go down the way you`ve just walked up. Overall, it is a very nice day trip, that isn't very high output, but still with a good workout and gorgeous views.
