Squamish is a community in BC, located at the north end of Howe Sound on the Sea to Sky Highway. It had its beginning during the construction of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway in the 1910’s. It was the first southern terminus of that railway now CN.
It is THE “Outdoor Adventure” place in the area. We left Van city this morning and headed to Squamish. The road to Squamish is amazing as it winds through the mountains.
The Stawamus Chief on Canada’s West Coast is a world-renowned rock-climbing destination known for its beautiful multi-pitch routes and unrivalled crack-climbing pitches. But many visiting outdoor enthusiasts are unaware that the iconic granite monolith also carries the scars of a legendary battle. The region’s Squamish people tell of the mythical hero Xwech’taal vanquishing the double-headed sea serpent Sinulhkay before uniting the Squamish Nation.
The Stawamus Chief — pronounced stah-WAH’-muss, but known simply as “The Chief” attracts thousands of visitors every year, both for its premiere rock-climbing offerings but also for accessible hiking trails that climax in rewarding ridge-top vistas.
The mountain towers 700 metres over the head of a picturesque, inundated fjord, about 50 kilometres northwest of Vancouver. Looking down from the first of its three rounded granite summits, the slithering Squamish River can be seen reaching the salty waters of Howe Sound, which ripple between shades of teal and aquamarine under a shifting, cloud-covered sky. The initial peak is accessible about 1.5 kilometres from and 540 metres above the trail’s starting point, while the two remaining summits are located slightly higher and farther along. It’s all straight up climbing on all trails.
The panorama offers a view across the core of the Squamish Nation’s territory.
Today’s mission should you choose to accept it….to Conquer “THE CHIEF” To start our day, we took the Sea to Sky Gondola just to get a view of what we were looking at for a climb. We were able to look down on the Chief Peaks from a viewing platform a short hike away at the Gondola Summit. We had fun on the Suspension bridge and a snack before heading back down.
Later this afternoon when it was cooler we were ready to climb the Chief! We chose Peak 1 because it supposedly has the most amazing view of the 3.
We stopped by Shannon Falls and connected on the Sea to Sky trail then connected to the Stawamus Chief Trail. And from there it was straight up!!
It was a hardish climb…well for me with short legs, David was fine…
And after we were all finished and had a refreshing shower, we enjoyed a lovely dinner beside the Squamish River at the Watershed Restaurant.
Just An East Coast Girl 