The attractive Garibaldi Lake with turquoise glacial waters, sits at 1450m above sea degree surrounded by snow-capped mountains, alpine meadows, and volcanic constructions. Climbing to this stunning lake in Garibaldi Park is a highly regarded day hike from Vancouver and one among our favourite day hikes in British Columbia.
It isn’t a simple stroll to the lake, it’s an 18 km out-and-back hike to the lake, uphill the entire method that takes most individuals about 6 hours. The 9km path to the lake is vast and well-maintained ascending by way of old-growth forest, passing creeks in a sequence of steep uphill switchbacks. Straightforward to achieve from Vancouver, Squamish, or Whistler there are a number of wonderful climbing choices in Garibaldi Nationwide Park together with, Panorama Ridge and climbing to the Black Tusk. Garibaldi Lake is a good tenting spot, the place you may swim or hike some extra trails within the park.
Climbing to Lake Garibaldi is an incredible day journey from Vancouver, Whistler, or Squamish.
The Garibaldi Lake trailhead will not be situated inside Vancouver however is shut sufficient to achieve by automobile or public transport to do day hikes. If you wish to do a difficult hike inside Vancouver, take into account climbing Grouse Mountain. If there are non-hikers current, they will at all times take the cable automobile and meet you on the prime!
Garibaldi Lake Hike Statistics
The reported return distance for the hike is eighteen km with 820m elevation achieve, and 4 to 7 hours is the common time it takes to finish the hike. The climbing statistics beneath had been from my final hike to Garibaldi Lake measured with my Garmin GPS watch.
Issue: Average
Distance:
Complete Distance spherical journey 20 km
Distance Trailhead to Lake Garibaldi 9km
Stroll across the lake: 1.6 km
Max Elevation: Peak 1612 m
Complete Elevation Achieve: 900 m
Time: 4 hours 50 minutes
Reserving the Garibaldi Lake Hike 2023
A free day cross is required to hike to Garibaldi Lake in season (from June 14 – Oct 9), the cross is free and may be purchased forward from 7 am two days earlier than your go to. I perceive the concept behind the passes had been to restrict the individuals on the path per day since it might get very busy in season.
Reserve your Garibaldi Lake Day Move Right here
Day passes are required for climbing from the next trailheads; Diamond Head (Elfin Lakes) trailhead, Rubble Creek (Garibaldi Lake) trailhead, and Cheakamus trailhead. If in case you have a sound reservation for in a single day tenting, you do not want a day-use cross, simply carry your reservation with you.
How Tough is the Garibaldi Lake Hike?
Strolling up and down a mountain for hours is difficult. The vast, well-maintained predominant path is good and straightforward to stroll on all the best way, particularly in the summertime months. This isn’t a technical climbing route. The 820m elevation achieve from the beginning of the path makes the hike arduous work, you go up all the best way. A lot of the path is rated by Garibaldi Provincial Park as reasonable going up in a sequence of switchbacks, the primary couple of kilometers are the steepest. If you’re comparatively match it shouldn’t be too arduous. The typical climbing time is 4 to 7 hours, however in case you stroll very slowly it might take as much as 10 hours to finish the round-trip hike. Snowshoes and microspikes are advisable for this path in winter.
Garibaldi Nationwide Park
Garibaldi Nationwide Park is a wilderness park situated on the coastal mainland between Whistler and Vancouver. Visiting Garibaldi Nationwide Park was one among my favourite issues to do in Vancouver. It’s simple to achieve and do lengthy one-day hikes from Vancouver, being situated 70 kilometers, a couple of 1.5-hour drive, north of the town. The park is called after the glacier-ringed Mount Garibaldi (2,678 meters) and is a hiker’s paradise providing over 90 km of well-marked trails together with a number of of the highest trails in Canada akin to Garibaldi Lake, Black Tusk, Panorama Ridge, and Elfin Lakes.
The Rubble Creek Trailhead
The Rubble Creek trailhead is the principle entry level for a few of the greatest hikes in Garibaldi Provincial Park within the Whistler space together with the Garibaldi Lake climbing path. There is a reasonably large parking space on the trailhead, but it surely fills up rapidly in summer season. The trailhead is situated midway between Whistler and Squamish, about 2 kilometers from the Sea to Sky Freeway. The identify Rubble Creek refers to an enormous rock slide that swept down the valley about 45 years in the past.
Get to Garibaldi Lake
It’s simple to achieve the Rubble Creek trailhead by automobile from both Vancouver (70 km/44 miles away), Whistler (35 km/22 miles), or Squamish (38 km/23 miles). To get to Garibaldi Provincial Park from Vancouver, take Freeway 99 referred to as the Sea-to-Sky Freeway. For automobile rental choices I like to recommend utilizing Uncover Automobiles to match and e-book a automobile from all the principle respected automobile rental corporations in and round Vancouver.
From Vancouver, the paths in Garibaldi Nationwide Park may be reached by public transport utilizing the Parkbus. The bus service is at present $95 for a return ticket to the Rubble Creek parking space on the trailhead (Could 2023). The bus leaves early within the morning and offers you about 10 hours to hike earlier than the return bus picks you up, this needs to be sufficient time to do any of the paths.
If you’re alone and don’t wish to hike alone you may at all times attempt to hook up with somebody on the bus since everyone seems to be on the identical itinerary, most individuals go to hike to Garibaldi Lake.
The Garibaldi Lake Climbing Path Route
The hike to Garibaldi Lake begins from the Rubble Creek car parking zone, situated between Whistler and Vancouver. The climbing distance to the lake is 9 km (18 km return). It’s a vast well-maintained path that may be arduous to lose.
Rubble Creek Parking Lot to the place the Path Forks
The path is well-marked with kilometer markers on the best way. The path forks solely as soon as the place you will need to select which course to go. The primary 6 kilometers are steep and rated as “strenuous” by Garibaldi Provincial Park ( with a grade higher than 15%). The elevation achieve over this primary part is 770m. There may be one small creek the place you may refill your water bottle about 2 km into the path. The primary kilometer is the steepest a part of the path with a sequence of switchbacks from kilometers 3 to five. Across the 5-kilometer mark, there’s a lookout level over The Barrier, a lava dam. It’s a vast, clear, well-maintained path to Garibaldi Lake. The route winds by way of a forest of largely Western Pink Cedar and Douglas Fir bushes.
The Junction to Taylor Meadows Campground
Shortly after the 6km mark, you attain the Taylor Meadows Junction, there’s a map of the encompassing space right here. The steepest climb is over at this stage and many individuals cease right here for a little bit of a break. From the junction to Garibaldi Lake campground is 3 kilometers, this half has a reasonable grading with an elevation achieve of 130 meters over the past 3 km. Taylor Meadows Campsite Route – Going left takes you thru Taylor Meadows, an attractive space with colourful alpine flowers in the course of the late summer season and early fall. You additionally stroll this strategy to head to Black Tusk Mountain. The path good points about 125 m in altitude over 1.5 km as you ascend to Taylor Meadows Campground. Passing the campground itself (with a bit wood cook dinner shelter) you’ll attain one other junction, flip proper and re-enter the bushes to a well-maintained path. Going proper on the junction is the direct path to Garibaldi Lake. Heading to the lake you’ll cross two smaller lakes Barrier Lake and Lesser Garibaldi Lake over the last 3 km earlier than reaching Garibaldi Lake. Barrier Lake is a pure dam shaped by lava flows 1000’s of years in the past.
Garibaldi Lake
The lake is huge, it’s 5 km lengthy and 4 km vast. A few hundred meters stroll on the lakeshore there’s a wood doc, this can be a good spot to swim from and to only sit and benefit from the stunning lake. The right turquoise colour of the lake originates from glacial flour suspended within the meltwater from its two major inflows, the massive Sphinx Glacier and the Sentinel Glacier. Alongside the lake, there are cooking shelters, pit bathrooms, and a campsite. There are some trout within the lake so fishing may be performed right here. To get again to the trailhead simply observe the identical method down. Strolling on trails subsequent to the lake added one other 1.6 km to my hike.
Swimming in Garibaldi Lake
The dock subsequent to the lake is a good spot for lunch and to take a swim! The right blue water was a bit chilly, however not freezing. The water in Garibaldi Lake was good for a fast dip. We had been a few individuals swimming on a cloudy day in late August.
Garibaldi Lake Tenting
Tenting on the Garibaldi Lake hike is allowed all 12 months on the Garibaldi Lake campsite and at on the Taylor Meadows campsite. If you happen to spend the evening within the campsite there are some incredible climbing choices. You may climb up Panorama Ridge for wonderful views of the lake or do the hike to Black Tusk and return to the campsite earlier than sundown. The campsite could be very fashionable and fills up rapidly in summer season so make reservations nicely upfront. Make reservations for Tenting right here. The campsite can accommodate 35 tents, a further 40 tent pads on the Taylor Meadows campsite which should even be reserved. Each campsites have pit bathrooms, nevertheless, there isn’t any working or drinkable water and all rubbish should be packed out with you. The campsite at Taylor Meadows has a hut the place you might be allowed to retailer meals, however sleeping within the hut will not be allowed. The space from Taylor Meadows campsite is just like Garibaldi Lake campsite from the Rubble Creek trailhead, about 9 km. Additionally it is attainable to hike into Taylor Meadows from the Cheakamus Lake car parking zone through Helm Creek. That is apparently a tricky hike and is normally performed as a multi-day tenting hike. The tenting charges are $6 per tent pad and $10 per evening for every grownup (16+).
Garibaldi Lake tenting affords 4 day-use shelters, every with 2 picnic tables, washing sinks, and pit rest room amenities. Taylor Meadows Tenting affords two day-use shelters, with two picnic tables, a wash sink, and pit rest room amenities.
Tenting in Garibaldi Nationwide Park is a well-liked weekend getaway from Vancouver. For an ideal weekend of climbing and tenting hike to Garibaldi Lake and arrange camp right here as a base for the weekend. Hike to Panorama Ridge on at some point and Black Tusk on the subsequent earlier than breaking apart camp and returning to your trailhead.
Necessary suggestions
Deliver your personal clear water or plan to boil water for ingesting as there isn’t any clear water in Garibaldi Provincial Park. Even water from the creek at Taylor Meadows will not be advisable to drink with out remedy. I carried a Lifestraw filter bottle for treating water.
There may be very restricted cell service within the park
It’s a nationwide park, and no canines are allowed in Garibaldi Provincial Park.
Bears on the Garibaldi Lake Path
Each black and grizzly bears are current within the space surrounding Garibaldi Lake. Grizzly bears are not often seen. It’s best to hold bear spray to guard your self, particularly in case you are tenting in a single day.
Are Canines Allowed within the Garibaldi Provincial Park?
To guard the biodiversity and for bear security considerations canines and different pets are usually not allowed within the park.
Greatest Time to Hike to Garibaldi Lake
Garibaldi Provincial Park is open for climbing all 12 months spherical. Hikers are usually discovered on the path from Could till October, however the very best time to go to the lake is the second half of July or early August. Throughout winter, the path is mostly coated in snow, sporting winter boots and carrying microspikes and snowshoes with you is advisable. The entry street to the Rubble Creeks is plowed, however can nonetheless be coated in snow and troublesome to drive.
Lodging in Squamish and Vancouver
I’ve hiked in Garibaldi Nationwide Park from Vancouver and Squamish, and reaching the trailhead was simple from each places. This can be a nice weekend journey from Vancouver
Lodging Squamish
Extremely rated lodging in Vancouver with location.
Extra Nice Hikes in Canada
Garibaldi Lake Nationwide Park has some good tenting choices, however if you wish to do some longer backpacking journeys Vancouver Island is the place to go. The well-known West Coast Path is a brutal 6-day hike all alongside the coast. We noticed so many animals on the path from killer whales to bears, all up shut! The Juan de Fuca climbing path moving into the other way on the identical coast of Vancouver Island was additionally a incredible hike with some extra flexibility. The attractive Vancouver Island affords unimaginable nature with stunning cities and thrilling actions, see our Greatest Issues to do on Vancouver Island put up.
Banff Nationwide Park in Alberta is house to a few of the most stunning one-day trails that I explored in Canada. I stayed in Banff and Lake Louise for greater than per week climbing wonderful routes round Banff, Lake Louise, and Moraine Lake every single day.
Packing for Climbing in Garibaldi Nationwide Park
Garmin Fenix 5 GPS Watch is a good instrument for climbing measuring velocity, elevation, coronary heart fee, mapping, and extra useful and necessary climbing parameters.
For footwear for climbing your predominant decisions are path runners, climbing footwear, or boots.
Climbing footwear or path runners work nicely on the Garibaldi Lake path if there isn’t any snow since it’s a well-established path that’s normally not too muddy.
Merrell Moab 2 Waterproof is a incredible climbing shoe that works nicely in quite a lot of circumstances.
For longer hikes and in snow, we desire boots and dry ft.
My Salomon X Extremely Prime gortex boots are an incredible pair of shoes, for winter, summer season, mud, snow, and rain snug, mild, and fully waterproof.
Girls mannequin, Alya loves her Girls Salomon X Extremely boots. I you need climbing footwear we had been very impressed with Merrell Moab 2 Waterproof Alya walked 3000 km in hers earlier than they had been completed.
For mild rain jacket the North Face for women or North Face Resolve for males are nice merchandise.
Columbia climbing pants for males and Columbia climbing pants or yoga stretch pants for women are good fast dry pants for trekking.
I at all times pack a BUFF Multifunctional Headwear – for solar and wind safety (doubles as a face masks).
Trekking Poles are very useful within the mud or whether it is slippery on the path, TrailBuddy Climbing Sticks are very well-rated, good worth for cash, aluminum trekking poles.
Planning to spend the evening on the campsite? I really like our MSR Hubba Hubba NX 2-Individual Light-weight Backpacking Tent, a incredible, simple mild, tremendous high quality tent.
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The robust half of Stingy Nomads, a nomadic aquaman that may be completely satisfied to spend all his life within the water diving, browsing and spearfishing however typically has to compromise with Alya and go climbing as a substitute. Campbell is liable for all our marine adventures and following them with write-ups. He loves touring, braai (BBQ in South Africa), pink wine and spending the day in a wetsuit.
