Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
Bikepacking the Sea to Sky Trail: Squamish to Lillooet & Harrison Lakes (Video)
In their latest video, Jordan Ross rides the Sea to Sky Trail between Squamish and Pemberton, British Columbia, linking rugged gravel roads inland to Harrison Lake and back to Vancouver, where the trip began. Watch the video, check out the route, and read a reflection from Jordan here…
Words and photos by Jordan Ross
A few weeks ago, I tried to shake off a mid-summer emotional slump and go on a bikepacking trip. I’m happy to say the treatment was quite effective. The particular route in question is the Sea to Sky Trail, an incredible cycling and hiking trail that stretches from the coastal town of Squamish to the alpine meadows of Whistler and Pemberton. Following a route rich in history, it traces the historical paths used by the Coast Salish and Interior Salish First Nations for travel and trade since time immemorial. Winding its way along the Cheakamus River and the Sea to Sky Corridor, the trail offers breathtaking views, showcasing some of the most stunning landscapes in British Columbia.
We will also continue on past the end of this trail, going inland on forest service roads, camping along Lillooet Lake, exploring natural hot springs, and testing ourselves on the hilly and rugged logging roads of Harrison Lake.
Getting from my current home of Vancouver to Squamish is our first major prerequisite. While the Sea to Sky trail itself is a designated section of the Trans Canada Trail, there is no actual official overland route to the start of the trail itself (an official “marine trail” opened in 2015).
Despite combing over satellite and topographic maps for many hours, I couldn’t figure out a reasonable alternative route up to Squamish. The beautiful mountains, lakes, and river valleys to the north of Vancouver have access roads that could get you towards Squamish, but they are highly restricted by barbed wire fences and security (for watershed protection and conservation, apparently). Meanwhile, the next alternative route up Indian Arm is closed because of a major natural gas pipeline expansion, with apparently similar fencing and motion-activated cameras. It looks like we would be cycling up the Sea to Sky Highway.
Cycling up the Sea to Sky Highway is a risky proposition to many given its reputation for speeding traffic and winding, often narrow bends. Sometimes referred to as the “Sea To Die Highway,” this 120-kilometer stretch of road was the site of 12 road fatalities in 2023 according to The Squamish Reporter. Though I wasn’t able to find any data on cycling-specific fatalities, I certainly was quite nervous.
Maybe I was lucky, or maybe I had just set my expectations so incredibly low, but cycling up to Squamish on the highway was actually not that bad. Leaving later on a Thursday morning, I found the traffic to be quite light, especially leading up to Britania. There are maybe three low-visibility curves where the shoulder gets almost non-existent and where you will be fearful a speeding car will go along the bend, so I don’t want to say it was for the faint of heart. But still, not bad.
You could also drive or take a bus or private shuttle up to Squamish. Which, considering that option only took a couple of words to mention, is probably the easier but less interesting approach. However, if you went the easy way out by driving or taking one of the privately operated buses to Squamish and are concerned you will miss out on a challenge, worry not. The Sea to Sky Trail has its own challenges, mostly in the form of an elevation profile that makes the Sea to Sky Highway section look like the Caterpillar Coaster at the local county fair.
Luckily, the actual distance from Squamish to Whistler, around 65 kilometers, helps make the steep, often punchy climbs overall more manageable. That, combined with breathtaking views and adventurous route, means you’ll feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere, even if you’re really just a few kilometers from the highway.
After a restful night in Whistler, we would be back on the trail to Pemberton. If Whistler represented the climbing section of our rollercoaster, then going to Pemberton is more similar to the downhill drop, though it certainly didn’t always feel like that with its share of hike-a-bike sections. Depending on your pacing and when you leave Squamish, I think trying to make it to Pemberton in one day would be quite doable.
Arriving in Pemberton along a path that seemed to float on the lake was a fun experience. With an almost 360-degree backdrop of Coastal Mountains, Pemberton seemed like an interesting but beautiful mishmash of Whistler and Squamish, though with a much more small-town feel. This would also mark the official end of the Sea to Sky Trail, at least for us. It apparently continues on northeast to the nearby town of D’Arcy, but this segment does not appear on the Trans Canada Trail map for whatever reason. Regardless, my eyes were not to the northeast, but to the southeast, a remote route back to Vancouver on the rugged forest service roads of Lillooet Lake and along the steep and dusty logging roads of Harrison Lake. There would be no cell service or places to refuel for the next few days, so I bought extra food and snacks and hoped they would be enough to sustain us for the rest of our journey.
Jordan’s Sea to Sky + Harrison Lake Loop
Further Reading
Make sure to dig into these related articles for more info...
Please keep the conversation civil, constructive, and inclusive, or your comment will be removed.
We're independent
and member-supported.
Join the Bikepacking Collective to make our work possible:
