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Monday night, the three of us decided to climb the William Ridge in Chilliwack Valley on sunny Tuesday. The climb up to the ridge is long and steep. It's a killer descent for your knees!
The flip side is the views on the top are spectacular and well worth the painful experience.
Grading According to “103 Hikes”:
Round trip: 12 km
Elevation gain: 1420 m
Average grade: 23.7%
Allow: 8 hours
High point: 1880 m
Trail head grid reference: 061398
Map: 092H04 Chilliwack
Driving Distance: 145 km
Trail Info:
http://books.google.ca/books?id= ... hikes+william+ridge,+chilliwack&source=bl&ots=cQx1OVCW5q&sig=z9-48BGfpE6P2Pbk6PZZEewE2Fs&hl=en&ei=F4qgToKgOOGSiQKt67lZ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&sqi=2&ved=0CEUQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q&f=false
http://www.clubtread.com/Routes/Route.aspx?Route=91
Getting There (103 Hikes Reference):
From Vancouver, head east on Highway 1 and take Exit 119 (Vedder Road, Yale Road, City Centre). Head south through Sardis and Vedder Crossings until you come to the bridge over the river. Upstream of the bridge, the river is called the Chilliwack River. Downstream it is known as the Vedder River. Turn left here and set your odometer to zero. You are now on Chilliwack Lake Road and you should drive east for *****34 km (21 mi)******.
103 Hikes may be a little incorrect about the trailhead.
The Th is around ~32 km down the Chilliwack Lake Road rather than the 34.5 it claims. It all depends on the car's odometer reading. It takes about 25 min driving on Chilliwack Lake Road to the TH.
After turning left before the bridge at junction of Vedder Crossing and Chilliwack Lake Road, about 7 min you pass the 1st bridge on Chilliwack Lake Road, then pass the sign “Alison Pool”, pass the 2nd bridge on Chilliwack Lake Road (the service road to Mount Cheap on the left at the end of 2nd bridge).
Pass the 3rd bridge, then, Look for a sign on the Left that says “Wms Ridge Trail” that is visible from the road. Park the car on the side road.
Time Line: (5 hr ascent-3.5 hr hiking, 1.5 hr on breaks.
2.5 hr descent the trail)
8:55 am: Trail Head
9:10 am: Log House
10:30 am: T-Junction
12:30 pm: William Ridge rocky knoll (lunch) – end of hike; otherwise, continue o the summit.
1:00 pm: William Ridge Summit attempt
1:30 am: Reached a smaller peak beside the William Ridge Summit – there were no routes to go further, just cliffs. We headed up to a peak next to the William Ridge summit. We shall decent to the valley bowl from the first rocky knoll and then climb upward to the William Summit when next time we attempt the summit. The final climb up to the peak is a Class 3 scramble and requires some technical skill. There are some snow covering the peak. Due to limited time and luck of equipments, we decided to retrieve to the knoll. It requires additional 3 hour for a return trip to climb the summit. Start even earlier next time in this time of the season.
2:00 pm: decent to knoll
2:30 pm: William Ridge knoll
3:30 pm: T-junction
4:15 pm: log house.
4:25 pm: TH.
Bear/Insect Trace:
We found two bear poos in the forest before reaching the ridge. The bear poos might be from yesterday. We found a dry cougar poo in the forest. There were mosquitoes on the ridge.
The Hike:
It is confusing at the trail head. There are a number of old trails and logging roads which start from the same point. Look for the trail that has 3 big rocks, behind these rocks is the trail to William Ridge. Follow the orange markers carefully and look out for any signs that point you in the right direction. About 90 m up the logging road the orange markers will lead you into the bush. The trail zig-zags its way upwards and is very very steep, I only see my knee not my feet during the work out. There is no flatter session until you get to the ridge. So, stop for small breaks to catch your breath. Just before you reach the ridge there is a little opening view point where you may look up the Centre Creek valley with Mount Rexford and the Illusion Peaks to the right.
About 15 minutes before the T-Junction, there is a small intersection with one marker directs you to upwards, and another directs you to the right. Take the one directs you UPWARD.
Next you'll come to a T-Junction with a trail to Mount Ford going off to the left. You should turn RIGHT and follow the ridge through the forest. There are a number of open bluffs that lead you to some great views of the nearby mountains and valley. Eventually you will come to a rocky knoll where we had lunch. If you do not wish to go on the William Summit, that is the end of the hiking trail; Otherwise you'll have to be prepared for an exposed Class 3 scramble and additional of 3 hours for round trip. After lunch, we decided to aim for the summit. We went upward from the knoll to a peak nearby the William Peak, thinking we might approach summit from a lower peak. About 30 min later, we found there were only cliffs, valley in between the William peak and the one we were on. We don’t know the name of this peak we were on, but for now, let’s call it “鹿回頭” peak for even deers have come up this cliff require to retrieve. Due to limited time and luck of equipments, we decided to retrieve back to the Th.
The hike is wonderful though!! Along the trail, you will find blue berry trees in deep red are all over the ridge. The views are absolutely fantastic. The views from the knoll are spectacular, you will see the Cheam Range to the northwest, Chilliwack Lake to the east and Mount Rexford to the south. |
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