Distance

Saturday Course Description

Start at Brennan Park Recreation Centre.  Run north out of parking lot on the gravel trail that runs along the east side, merge left onto Centennial Way and go through the underpass.  Follow the sidewalk to Government Rd, turn right and go over the bridge.  Immediately after the bridge turn right onto the dike, and then right again down to the river and on to a trail that will take you back toward Hwy 99.  Veer right to cross over a foot bridge.

After passing under Hwy 99 continue until the open gravel area under the power lines.  Turn left, go over a small bridge, and proceed onto the Rotary trail which parallels Hwy 99.  Carefully cross Mamquam Road and continue on the trail in front of shopping centre.  After passing under a pedestrian overpass, turn right (with a hotel on your left), and up Diamond Rd.  

Go left on Garibaldi Way, then take the next right (Parkway Rd).  In about 200m you will see a trail between houses marked Coho Park. Follow the trail for a short distance and take a right turn to cross a small bridge.  Then go left and start climbing.  The trail goes up and down some small bridges and then becomes more technical.

Stay left to follow a creek for a ways.  Cross the creek beside the broken log bridge on Trestle trail, then continue up into open scrub veering left.  Ignore a couple of major intersections and then turn right off the main trail onto Lumberjacks trail (about 20m before a major gravel road intersection).  Follow it until you come to Perth Drive.  Turn left and go up the paved road.  Water is available at the top of the street.

Go through the yellow gate. At the first fork in about 100m, go left along a crest trail. (If it's clear, enjoy views of the Tantalus mountain range!)  Take care on steep stony downhill.  Continue straight.  There will be a couple of short hills.  Ignore the two turn-offs to the left.  As you approach trees, the main trail bends right, but ignore this and fork left onto thinner trail into trees (Jack’s trail).  Climb gradually for 2.5k to Alice Lake (water & washrooms available).

Fork left and run to the west of Alice Lake.  Pass behind the picnic tables, cross the small bridge near the washrooms and turn left onto the paved road.  Continue towards Hwy 99.  Just before a steep downhill, turn left onto single track.  Descend a short, steep hill and then immediately turn right onto Wonderland.  If you cross a bridge, you've gone too far.  This trail will take you back out to the paved road.  Climb back up Alice Lake Rd and past the campground entrance on your right.  Fork right on the gravel road just before the paved road ends at the park office.

Pass the yellow gate and climb gradually for ~3k staying on the main trail until the park sign for Fawn Lake.  Go left and left again on to a broad trail which narrows to become the Bob McIntosh trail.  There is an outhouse just after the turn.

As you come into a recently cleared area, go left at a mini crossroads to run the Dead End Loop.  Follow this loop until the first fork in the trail near the river, then go left.  This will bring you back to the power lines.  At the clearing, ignore the old, steep Rock & Roll hill on the left, and instead take the new trail on the right that comes out to a point just beyond the top of Rock & Roll.

25.0k

A long gradual downhill section starts here, alternating between the broader Mashiter Trail and several single tracks to the right.   Powerlines mark the general route in this section.  After about 400m pick up the winding Rob’s Corners to right of main trail which brings you out by a shelter near a yellow gate.  Turn right and immediately left onto another winding trail: Cliff’s Corners.  This brings you back onto the Mashiter trail.  Turn right and proceed downhill for ~400m.  The trail comes to a Y, with the left side becoming rocky and going downhill.  Take the right side instead (Ray's Cafe trail), and then right back onto the main trail.

Within 100m, make a sharp right up a wooden ramp onto Tracks from Hell trail (marshy, but on boardwalks).  Follow for 700m to Edith Lake.  At the four-way junction, take the trail farthest on the left onto Mike's Loop, climbing gradually through the trees for about 1k, and then more steeply for another 1k.  At the T-junction, go right onto a flatter narrow trail for about 1k.  Veer left onto Entrail.  Just past a small lake cross a small pond to the left on a wiggly bridge.  Go uphill on switchbacks and then left onto Marc my Word trail, then down steep, technical trail to a T-junction (take care in this section).  Turn left onto Border Patrol which leads eventually to the Mashiter trail.

Turn right on Mashiter and proceed to a four-way junction.  Take the middle fork for 200m, and then turn right by an upright pipe onto Roller Coaster, a single track with great views of the Chief and Howe Sound.  Stay left at the first junction and downhill on narrow trail.  As trees get bigger, the trail turns dusty/rocky and forks right.  Go carefully down the hill and out onto the paved road of Perth Drive (water available).

Turn left and continue down Perth Drive to the stop sign at The Boulevard.  Turn left and cross the bridge, then immediately right and on to a dirt road.  Stay on this for ~1k, including a springy wood chip section, until you reach a wide gravel road (Mamquam Road).

Distance

Sunday Course Description

Start at Brennan.  Run north out of the parking lot on the gravel trail that runs along the east side and toward the Centennial Way underpass.  Take the path to the right of the underpass that leads up to the bridge.  Immediately after crossing the bridge take a sharp right and then left on the trail below.  Continue straight on this trail through the open gravel area, and stay close to the river.  The trail will wind around to the left and come out at the golf course clubhouse.

Turn right and take the road uphill.  There's a short section of paved road at the university but all in all, about 5k of gravel road.  Go left onto Ring Creek North Forest Service Rd (large sign).  This will climb gradually through some slightly overgrown clear cuts for about 2.5k.  Do not take any of the roads to the left.  Just before the SORCA bike kiosk go left and down Pseudo Tsuga trail.  At the gravel road go left for a few metres and right on to trail again.  At the end of this trail, take the trail on your right over the creek and down the steep, rocky Phil and Cam's.  This will take you down to the gravel road just above the university.  Go back down Mamquam Rd to the intersection at the parking lot where we turned right yesterday, and turn left.

The trail goes steeply down and crosses the Ring Creek Falls bridge.  Continue straight on fairly flat trail for about 1k (ignore right turn).  At top of small hill, fork right and steeply down.  (Water is available in this section at a kiosk on your left).  After a short hill, continue on main trail and then down a steep black-stoned road.  Cross Powerhouse Bridge and up the slope through a yellow gate.  At the next intersection go sharply right.

Follow the trail downhill.  After about 75m, go left off the main trail and after a short climb, dip down to a clearing where you pick up the Far Side trail on the left as you enter Crumpit Woods (a new metal sign actually labels it Farther Side).  After climbing for approximately 800m, turn left up the Farther Side trail.  This area is a roller coaster of single track with many side trails. Stay on the main trail.  At a 4-way trail crossing, ignore the closed wider trail to the left (boggy S&M connector) and instead go straight across onto a narrower marked loop trail.  This trail comes back onto S&M before forking right to another similar loop back to the main S&M trail…a fast, gentle downslope. On emerging from the trees, turn right.

Continue along the hydro corridor uphill on the gravel trail. Go right onto the short 3 Virgins spur trail, which leads back to the main trail.  At the top of the ridge (with a good view of the finish area), go left onto 7 Stitches trail.  Caution...there are many distracting side trails!  Keep right and uphill for the next 1k.  At the next T intersection, turn right onto Summer's Eve trail.  After climbing gradually for another 1k turn right on reaching a wooden staircase.  In the next 800m, you will pass several rock climbing walls.  Watch for climbers. Go left back into the woods, up a short set of stairs, down some switchbacks, then down a large wooden staircase.

At the junction with the wide Smoke Bluff Trail turn right.  Follow this for 1k  and then turn right at a T intersection and down to the Climber’s Parking Lot.  Cross over Logger’s Lane (paved road) and enter wooded trail.  Cross the new wide trail and at the next fork, go right.  Proceed straight, crossing over Finch Drive, towards the soccer field lights.  The finish line will be to the left (West) of the Rec Centre.  Congratulations.  You are done!