Echo Lake: It’s a Kind of Magic

This hiking trip started with a canoe trip across the Squamish River. At least, for most of us – one of us chose to swim across, braving the frigid water. This was a rare weekend on which Neil and I had the opportunity of doing a more strenuous trip. I had been eyeing a hike to Echo Lake for a while, but wasn’t sure of the logistics. Going with friends who know the way made this easy. Either way, hiking trips that start with a canoe trip have always captivated me. The canoe trip adds an element of excitement and adventure, and drives the crowds away.

That wasn’t the only special aspect of this trip though. After paddling across the Squamish River, we stashed our canoe in the bushes, and started hiking up the trail, in our sandals, in anticipation of more water fun. On the way up, we came across water pools, or shall I say natural water parks. There, water has sculpted and smoothed the granite boulders into a magical scene.

After climbing up to an upper pool with the help of a fixed rope. We spent a good amount of time sliding down into the water and jumping in. A bit higher up, we came to the most impressive pool. It is adorned by a massive rock feature that looks like a keyhole. Perhaps one of us climbed on top, in her birthday suit, and jumped in. Perhaps.

When we arrived to Echo Lake, we found an excellent spot for our two tents, on a little beach. Our friends told us that the beach was much larger than earlier in the summer, due to the drop in the level of the water in the lake. We went for a long swim, and by the time we got back we had some neighbours camping next to us – there are only a limited number of camping spots by the lake.

The next day, we set out for a bit of a bushwhack up towards a nearby summit. The kids really enjoyed this part, despite climbing steeply. We came out on to an open rock outcrop, and could see the Chief below us and on the opposite side, dwarfed by the many larger mountains beyond. We also spotted a small lake below us, and decided that due to the warm weather and limited energy levels, another swim was in order rather than a peak.

After a short bushwhack, we swam around this warm lake, and headed back down to our camp at Echo Lake. We packed up our stuff quickly and hiked down, this time taking the separate “down” trail, which unfortunately doesn’t pass by any pools. We entertained the kids with various games on the way down.

In order to cross the river and still end up where we started, we had to portage (carry) the canoe a short way up the river along a small log-filled channel. The canoe trip across was exciting – we had to cross quickly, to avoid ending up too far downstream. Pretty soon we were back in the car, on our way home, with memories of another grand adventure.