Loomis Lake & Little Loomis Lake Off-Trail Hike on 7-Sep-2003

Tucked tight against the continental divide in the Elk Range in Don Getty Wildland Provincial Park, the lake was a delicious mix of aquamarine and cobalt blue, set in an austere bowl topped by rugged peaks and held back by a 400 foot high moraine.

The hike up Loomis Creek was exceptionally beautiful, with fall colours and old growth forest. Access was by old logging road. The long-ago logging was obviously selective logging, as there are no clear-cut scars in the entire valley, and the beauty of the wilderness is preserved. There was still a fair amount of smoke in the air but visibility in the area of the hike was quite good.

At 7,000 feet elevation there is extensive larch forest. With no cut blocks the area holds water better than most logged areas. After the drought of this summer it was actually refreshing to hike past numerous boggy areas which had not dried out.

We enjoyed lunch on the sunny slope above the lake. From the left: Anita O’Reilly, Mike Bazkur, Kim, Ivan Pull, Karel Silovsky, Glenys, and Mike Hayes. The lake was an attraction for many varied activities, including mountain biking, bow hunting for bighorn sheep, horseback riding, backpacking and fishing. Trout action was brisk—a couple who came by horseback were pulling in fish right and left.

This 400 foot high moraine holds back the lake. The route up is the bulge near the right, where you can avoid the limestone scree.

Five of us did the circuit over the pass to Little Loomis Lake. The north slope is an enjoyable run through fine shale, but care must be taken as hard bedrock bits are interspersed among the loose material.

Little Loomis Lake is a small tarn with muddy bottom but lies in a spectacular subalpine setting below Mount Loomis—the peak on the right. We learned to our dismay that there is no trail down from the lake to complete the “dotted line” circuit on the map, and suffered 600 vertical feet of steep, heavy bushwhacking through old growth forest and deadfall. We agreed that retracing the route over the pass, despite the effort that would involve, would be much more pleasant. Numerous cuts and scrapes (badges of courage) were sustained.