THE PLAN

Friday

Camp at Copper Creek

Saturday

Do the Placer-Ashnola traverse, then camp at the Agate Mtn forest fire lookout station

Sunday

Do some sightseeing along the old KVR rail line and then head home via the Coquihalla Hwy, taking the tollbooth bypass route

FRIDAY - Copper Creek

We knew from the outset that this would be a special trip. It represented a few things which we had collectively been wanting to do. For Jeff Franchuk, my brother, Bill, and myself, we had always wanted to do the Placer-Ashnola traverse. Bill and I grew up in Princeton and had always dreamed of doing the trip one day but at the time, we didn't have driver's licenses and were limited by the range of our dirt bikes. Jeff had hiked that area extensively but had never done the traverse and had wanted to do it for many years. Rob Bryce wanted to get back to some exploration-type offroad trips. His focus for the past couple of years was on hardcore trails and now that the Island Rockcrawler 4x4 club had finished Rockcrawl '98, he was desperate for some relaxation and easy trail riding. He was sick of pushing his truck to its limits and wondering what would break next. Jonathan's work schedule had been extremely hectic lately so he was also hoping for a chance to unwind.

So it was with hopes of an easy, relaxing weekend of exploring that we gathered in Chilliwack on a Friday night to gas up and make our way to the trailhead. The trailhead was about two hours away, at Copper Creek. Since they weren't working that day, Rob & Rick left early and had already set up camp at the creek. (Readers of my earlier trip reports are probably wondering who was going to cook for Rob since the closest he comes too cooking is making toast -- and that only happens when he accidentally leaves bread out in a warm room. On this trip, Rick would act as Rob's cook.) While in Chilliwack, we made radio contact with Houtan and his friends. Houtan was organizing the Camp Jeep event at Apex Alpine this year and was on his way towards Hedley to scout some trails. I kibitzed with him for a few minutes before joining the rest of my group.

The commute to the trailhead was filled with the usual CB banter. We were all keyed up, looking forward to a weekend away from the city. By the time we arrived at Copper Creek, Rick had a huge fire going to warm us up. Fortunately, it wasn't needed because the temperature that night was unusually warm. Rob mentioned that a group of full-size 4x4s had already proceeded up the trail, probably to camp at Placer Lake. We wondered if they were the club from Squamish which was also doing the same trails that we were that weekend. That was a concern because if there was snow on the traverse, we wanted to be the ones to break through first (Rob loves snow). We also wanted to be the first ones at the Agate Mtn fire lookout station because camping there would be limited (not much space on the mountain top). With that in mind, we turned in early, planning for an early start the next morning.

SATURDAY - Placer - Ashnola Traverse, Hedley, Agate Mtn

We eventually made a group decision to follow a turn to the south which went to Border Lake and, fortunately for us, linked onto the correct trail after 100 metres. This other trail was marked with some signs which provided a map showing our position and the path that this trail would take. Tracing the path, we could see that it matched our target route on our topo so we were positive that we were on the right track. Another bit of confirmation came a few kilometres later as the road started a descent via some very sharp switchbacks. As we got further down the mountain, the colour of the switchbacks changed. Of particular note were a couple which were composed of very red rock. One of them was sharp enough to require even the short wheelbase Jeeps to make three-point turns. Once we made it past the sharpest switchback, fat drops of rain began to fall...then hail...then sheets of rain. Since we were driving anyways, we stayed in our vehicles and out of the wet. It made the drive rather interesting. The descent down Placer Mtn was fairly steep, bringing us to the Ashnola River in short order.

Rob starts the descent to the Ashnola

The first switchback

Mark & Jeff approaching the tightest switchback

Bill & Jonathan wait their turn

We convoyed along the Ashnola in the pouring rain, looking at all the beautiful and empty river-side campsites. As we got closer to the pavement, the rain began to let up. When it stopped completely, we decided to pull to the side of the road and air up our tires. Thanks to Rob's and Jeff's on-board, engine-driven air compressors, this procedure took less time than it would have were we at a full service gas station. Once on the pavement, we drove parallel to highway 3 and the Similkameen River for a few kilometres before crossing over the river via an old red bridge (which I had seen several times as a child but never crossed) which brought us to the highway. Turning east would have taken us to the orchard town of Keremeos. We headed west, towards Hedley, Agate Mtn and Princeton. Because Rick has family ties to Hedley (one of his ancestors was a pioneer of Hedley), we stopped for gas and gave Rick an opportunity to visit the cemetery and old family homes. Of interest to all of us was the local museum which had great photos of the Mascot Mines, perched high above the town, clinging to a rock wall. We were appalled at the before/after photos of Nickel Plate Mtn. The top of the mountain had been literally blown off and strip mined. It was vandalism on a grand scale. While I was arranging the camping gear in the back of my Jeep, I looked behind me and spotted some Jeeps coming out of one of the side street and onto the highway. They were all lifted and one of them looked like Houtan's Jeep. I yelled, "Houtan!" and he turned around. They had just come back down the Old Hedley Rd after a failed attempt to find some trails on the mountain. They were proceeding to another route for further exploration. It was quite a coincidence seeing them again.

Once the rain had stopped, it didn't take long for the sky to clear. That's one thing I've always remembered about Princeton: the weather changes frequently and abruptly, unlike the coast. Our plan was to travel towards Princeton on Hwy 3 and then, about 15 minutes from town, turn south at the Wolf Crk road. When we arrived, we were disappointed to see a sign stating that the road passes through aboriginals' property and prior consent must be obtained before proceeding. Jeff noticed a shortwave radio frequency posted on the sign and to my surprise, someone answered his query when he started asking if anybody could hear him on that frequency. A lot of discussion followed, as did a failed attempt to phone the manager of the land. Our last option was to drive to the owner's property and ask permission to pass through but we all decided to skip the hassle and take the back way in. It would be longer but we felt better about that route.

The back way to Agate Mtn meant heading towards Princeton, taking the turn-off to Copper Mtn and then turning east as we neared the Copper Mtn mining operation. This was a trip down memory lane for Bill and I because we had spent many weekends exploring this area on our dirt bikes. Once we made the turn eastward, the road started a descent, leveling out when it paralleled Willis Creek. Within a kilometre of running along the creek, I saw what I thought was the turn-off to Agate Mtn. However, it didn't match the trail description on the topo. We were relying on the topo because I had only been to Agate Mtn twice before and that was almost twenty years ago. We continued on but failed to find the proper turn-off. Rather than explore the first turn-off, we deciding to look for another turn-off which the topo indicated as being a few kilometres down the road. The turn-off was marked as "Nichols" and matched the route described on our map. I had never taken this route before but since it matched our map, we figured it had to be right. The track became muddy right away. It wasn't deep mud but it was sticky and slippery. As the trail continued, the mud got worse. At one point, Rob tried to crawl up a mud-covered hill in 2WD and got stuck. Backing down, he shifted into 4WD and after a lot of sideways sliding, he had to back down to a level spot before clawing his way to the top. Seeing Rob have difficulty was enough warning for everyone else to use more speed than he did. We all made it through except for Jeff, who was bringing up the rear. His big red Ford was running on nearly bald mud tires and, as we watched him try to climb the hill, we noticed that one of his front wheels wasn't turning. He had just installed new hubs and apparently, one of them wasn't working properly. Not making progress in 3WD, he tried fixing the hub. It worked for a while but disengaged before he made any significant progress up the hill. Next he installed one of the old hubs but that still wasn't enough. His tires were just too bald. He ended up winching, using Jonathan's TJ as an anchor.

Rob gets stuck... temporarily

Jeff uses Jonathan's TJ as an anchor

Rob gives Bill a helping hand

At the top of this mud hill was a switchback turn which continued upwards. At its apex was a narrow, overgrown trail which we didn't think was the turn we wanted. Continuing up the main road, we had to cut through a fallen tree and then encountered another uphill mud section. Bill was in the lead. His AT tires and open differentials were no match for the mud. It was close but he just couldn't get past this section. Rob drove around him and pulled him through. After that section was a landing (a flat area where logs were processed and loaded onto trucks). Bad news: we couldn't find the rest of the road. It ended at the landing. Bill walked the perimeter of the landing, looking for traces of the road while Jeff and I examined the map. The GPS suggested that we were on the right road but because we were using the wrong datum, we couldn't be certain of our position to within 100 metres (I had compared its reading against a known point earlier in the day so I knew it was off -- I assumed the accuracy of the map was in question). Jeff and I decided that the overgrown trail at the apex of the last switchback must be the turn-off that we were looking for. I called Bill back, we turned our trucks around and headed to the switchback. I drove alone into the old trail to see if it went anywhere. If it was the trail we were thinking of, it would cross a stream within a few hundred metres. There was flagging tape all along the trail, marked with the words, "road location." Hmm...at least someone had been here recently and knew that this road goes somewhere. The brush became extremely dense. Since this was marked as a road (or would be turned into a road), I had no compunctions about driving over the saplings growing in the middle of the path. I had to go very slowly due to the density of the brush. Eventually, I crossed and stream and entered into even thicker brush. According to the map and the somewhat-accurate GPS coordinates, this was the right trail but it was incredibly overgrown. I could not imagine how the trail I had been on so many years ago would have been left to deteriorate to this point. I radioed my finding to the group and they came up to help me clear the path with the chainsaw. While we were working, Jeff walked on up ahead. About 20 minutes later, Jeff radioed that the road ended in a very thick wall of trees. We could go no further. By this time, steam was coming off of my clothes and I was soaked in sweat. We were all filthy and covered in mud. The last thing I needed to hear was that the crowning point of our trip, camping at the Agate Mtn lookout, would not come to pass.

What to do? What to do? We had alternate plans but all of them were quite boring. None of them would take us to new places and the only good option, doing the Whipsaw trail, would take too much time. I didn't want to make a decision just yet. I wanted to go back and check out that first trail although I really didn't think it would lead anywhere. Mainly, I didn't want to admit that this trip was going to be a DNF (did not finish). We were so close that it was too upsetting to concede defeat. We decided that I would check the first turn-off on the way back. If that didn't go anywhere, we would then decide on an alternative agenda. On the way back to the main road (along Willis Creek), Jeff's tire came off the rim (a common problem with Ford 16.5" rims). Rob & Rick stopped to help him, suggesting that I use that opportunity to explore the turn-off. About this same time, Mark, who also didn't want to concede defeat, continued up Nichols road on the assumption that we had turned off too soon. So off we went.

Jonathan and I went to the first turn-off where I parked my Jeep and rode with Jonathan. We crossed the stream and turned west (the map showed that we had to turn east if we were to reach the summit of Agate Mtn but all there was on the east was a heavily overgrown, impassable trail). Over the CB we could hear frequent updates from Mark, telling everyone what he found and asking what kind of landmarks he should be looking for. We only had one map of the area so Jeff acted as the base support -- this made sense since he had the best radio equipment and could easily communicate with all of us. Rick was helping Jeff. Rob said they were like little kids, poring over the map trying to determine Mark's location. The road we were following started turning away from Willis Crk and soon presented a turn-off to the right, heading up Agate Mtn. The map indicated that continuing on this road would take us to the Willis Ranch so we turned right, instead. Immediately we began to climb, gaining altitude at a good speed. Thinking back to the last time I was on Agate, I could recall what one or two sections of the trail _should_ look like but so far, none of the scenery matched the scenes in my head. Still, this trail kept climbing and that was a good thing. This began to feel like a competition. The further we went, the more it felt to me like we were on the right track. At the same time, Mark's trail also sounded more and more promising. Rob & Rick went up to Mark's trail with another GPS in an effort to figure out exactly where that trail was going in relation to where we wanted to be.

After endless hills and corners, Jonathan and I came to a section of road which jogged my memory! I had been there! I was certain of it. We started going faster, eager to find out whether this was the right trail or not. Jonathan drove like he was auditioning for a part on the Dukes of Hazzard. Although I radioed my findings to everyone else, no one seemed to care very much because, well, let's just say that my memory has failed me before and everyone knew it. The rain had started again and Jonathan and I were getting soaked from the wet leaves & branches which whipped into the Jeep (it was too humid to keep the windows rolled up). Mark, Rob & Rick continued to radio information but their results were inconclusive. Their road was large enough that it looked like it was going somewhere but it didn't seem to be getting close to the west side of Agate Mtn which is where the lookout was located. On the other hand, Jonathan and I could see light shining between the trees on our left. We were running on the west side of Agate. Our trail then veered away from the edge and into a forest of tall, thin evergreens. The forest floor was lush and devoid of deadfall, as though someone had grown a forest on their lawn. Rather unusual, I thought. Another kilometre later, the undergrowth became thick and it started to look like the trail I remembered. When we drove between a pair of tall trees which edged the road, I was positive that this was the right trail. The final confirmation came 5 minutes later when we again reached the western side of the mountain, passed through a gate and drove up to the lookout. I was ecstatic. I radioed to Jeff, "Jeff, I've got an announcement. Ready?" And then I screamed into the microphone. "We found it! We're at the lookout!" With that bit of business done, we stepped out into the pouring rain and gorged ourselves on the view. We couldn't see very far due to the rain and clouds but in the distance, we could see blue skies headed our way (remember what I said about Princeton weather?). The lookout station was much the same as I remembered it. The windows were boarded up but the lock on the door was missing. We went inside. It was relatively clean and there was a single wooden sleeping platform. I made another announcement over the CB, "I get first dibs on the bed!"

We headed back down the trail to pick up my Jeep and lead the others to the lookout. Mark, Rob & Rick had already decided that their trail wasn't the one we were looking for and were waiting at the turn-off when we arrived. In the back of my head, I was wondering if, during the time we spent coming back down to the turn-off and then heading back up, that other group from Squamish would come up to Agate through the reservation and scoop the cabin from under our noses. My paranoia was unfounded. When we arrived, we had the lookout to ourselves and the rain had just stopped. Perfect timing. The planets were in alignment. We love you, El Nino. Whatever the reason, things were working out perfectly and beyond our wildest imagination. Did I mention that we were just in time to catch the sunset?

Making our way to the lookout

Rob passes between the two trees which I remembered from a long time ago

The first order of business was to setup camp. Bill & Carolyn and Jeff decided to setup tents. Mark was going to sleep in his 4Runner, as usual, which left me, Jonathan, Rob & Rick to sleep in the lookout. Rick swept the broken glass and garbage out of the lookout while I unboarded the windows. Rick got me to help him move some of the tables outside so there would be space for them to sleep on the floor. It didn't take long before everything was arranged. Firewood was unloaded from the trucks and dinner was cooked and eaten with gusto. Sitting around the fire, we couldn't resist looking up at the stars. They were captivating. Living down on the coast, we rarely have the opportunity to stargaze under such a clear sky. Speaking of rare opportunities, Jeff took advantage of this high vantage point to contact other ham radio operators which he couldn't normally reach from his home base in Richmond. He spent half the night in his truck, yacking on the radio. The other half he spent apologizing to us for not socializing around the fire. Rob tried to go to bed early but Rick went into the lookout station and dragged him out. We indulged in some beverages, talked (some of our conversation will be remembered years from now...campfire talk spawns legends), and went to bed at 4:00am as the eastern sky was getting light.

SUNDAY - Coalmont / Tulameen / Brookmere / Coquihalla Tollbooth Bypass

At 6:30am I was awoken by my bladder and the light flooding through the windows. I sat up and as far as I could see was a vast cloudscape. I can only compare it to flying above the clouds in a jet, or being at Mt Haleakala on Maui. It was gorgeous. We were an island in a sea of white cotton. Attempts to go back to sleep were in vain (even after I went to the bathroom) so at 7:30am I got dressed. The weather was warm, bug free (almost) and the skies were a dark blue with no hint of incoming precipitation. What could be better? I wished my wife, Sue, could be there. She would have been overwhelmed by the view but she had report cards to prepare for work so she had to stay home. Bill, Carolyn, Jeff and Mark were already awake, as was Rick, who had provided us with so much entertainment and fear the previous night (no, I won't get into the details). It was too nice of a day to be hung over so I wasn't. Like I said, the planets were in alignment. Luna was running around, chasing ground squirrels and smelling whatever needed smelling. Even she was excited about this beautiful morning. Bill, as always, taught us something. He demonstrated the halo effect of standing in front of the sun in such a way as to cast a shadow onto the clouds below. If you look at where your shadow should be, you'll see a circular halo-like rainbow in its place. I tried it and sure enough, I saw the halo. This phenomenon was falsely recognized as having some kind of spiritual significance in historical times but even though I understood its underpinnings, I was still "wowed" by the effect. Its times like that that really make me appreciate having my big brother around. Need I explain why Carolyn calls him Encyclopedia Brown?

Rob...isn't he cute?		Mark, Carolyn, Jeff, Bill & Rick
Carolyn & Jeff	Mark & Jonathan cook breakfast above the clouds	Jeff
Bill dons the mask of The Colonel	I, too, wear the KFC bag to hide my identity

Eventually, Rob and Jonathan joined the land of the living. We had a very leisurely breakfast. Every action was punctuated by a pause to take in the view. It was that beautiful. Sticking to our credo, we made sure we left the lookout better than when we arrived. One last check after packing up and we were on our way. Our immediate destination was the VORTAC station due east, also on Agate Mtn. We drove through more of the tall, thin trees for 3km and stopped at the VORTAC. This installation serves as a navigational beacon for commercial and (I think) military aircraft. Stern warnings were posted on the doors, stating that any trespassing will automatically trigger an alarm which will notify the Princeton RCMP. We stopped only briefly before heading to Hwy 3 and into Princeton. By that time, the temperature had risen to an uncomfortable (for me) level. Once in Princeton, we stopped for gas and ice cream. On a day like that, the ice cream tasted twice as good. The air pump at the gas station was broken so again, we made use of Rob's and Jeff's air compressors. With dairy treats in our guts and air in our tires, we went through the centre of town, crossed the wooden bridge and followed the road to Coalmont.

About 5 km before reaching Coalmont, we saw a sign indicating a trail down to the KVR (Kettle Valley Railroad) rail bed. Since the objective of this part of the trip was to follow the KVR line, we followed the trail. It took us down the side of the valley to the Tulameen River. We found ourselves at a secluded and empty sandy beach. Bill borrowed Rick's gold pan to try his hand at panning for gold. Meanwhile, Luna tried her hand (paw) at swimming. It was a touching moment for me, seeing her take her first plunge into water which she knew was too deep. With the sun beating down on us, the water was very inviting. Sadly, we had to get back to Vancouver in time for Rob & Rick to catch the ferry so we had no time for a swim. We continued along the rail bed, passing through Coalmont before being stopped by large rocks which prevented further travel. Back on pavement, we made our way through Tulameen, past Otter Lake, and on to Brookmere. Again, I took the wrong turn and was corrected by Jeff (I should just put him in the lead whenever I organize a trip). At Brookmere, we stopped briefly to look at the remnants of the KVR station. The only interesting things to see were fenced off so we had little reason to stay any longer than we did.

Examining a KVR bridge	Luna was willing to learn how to swim in order to fetch sticks thrown in the river	Bill pans for gold while Luna shows off her stick
KVR rail bed	Coalmont General Store	Brookmere
Starting up the bypass route	This section of the bypass follows a pipeline	Rob's about to descent from the bypass back down to the Coquihalla

From Brookmere, we reached the Coquihalla Hwy in less than 30 minutes. We headed south until the last exit before the tollbooth. At that exit, we headed west and then south which took us through the bypass route which climbed a ridge high above the highway. The combination of altitude and a very active lightning storm added a sense of excitement to this otherwise tame but scenic trail. When it dumped us back onto the Coquihalla Hwy, that was the end of dirt roads for us. We convoyed back to the coast, satisfied with a great weekend of exploring but regretful that the adventure was over.

EPILOGUE

After Jeff had told me that I must have set the GPS to use the wrong map datum, I re-examined the track log for the Agate Mtn trail using the correct datum. Even so, the route described by the GPS was not shown on the map. So even if I had set the GPS to use the correct datum, it still wouldn't have helped.

Rob said the weekend adventure was a tonic for both him and Rick. They returned to Vancouver Island rejuvenated and in a better state of mind than when they left. As for myself, well, I've still got mental problems but one can only expect so much from offroading. Just kidding.