Tom Koleszar – “Slide Mountain”

The peaceful outflow creek from Scrub Lake before its dramatic falls
T. Koleszar

Saxifrage nestled in a crevasse in the granodiorite
T. Koleszar

goat tracks in a dried pond
T. Koleszar

pink heather was ubiquitous throughout the area
T. Koleszar

white heather was also quite common
T. Koleszar

the view from above the small lake we hiked around
T. Koleszar

the lower end of the lake looking up to the ridge we climbed
T. Koleszar

water was running everywhere, with mosses covering many wet areas
T. Koleszar

the view north from Slide Mtn
T. Koleszar

there were a few lush areas with nice ponds
T. Koleszar

xenoliths in the granitic rocks
T. Koleszar

volcanic and sedimentary layers on the west side of the mountain
T. Koleszar

massive volcanic deposits on eastern Slide Mtn
T. Koleszar

the north face of Slide Mtn
T. Koleszar

there was still lots of snow left at higher elevations
T. Koleszar

snowfields and waterfalls lower on the north side of the mountain – not much grows there!
T. Koleszar

these old Mountain Hemlocks have had a very hard life!
T. Koleszar

there were little waterfalls everywhere!
T. Koleszar

the waterfalls feeding snowmelt into the lake
T. Koleszar

Map showing flight path to the Slide Mtn hiking area
– Google Earth

Tom Koleszar – “Slide Mountain”
by Tom Koleszar, 17 August 2020.

Slide Mountain is an impressive peak about 40km NNE of Powell River, near the head of Powell Lake. At 2105m, it is one of the highest peaks in the area. I selected an area 2.5km NE of the peak along a ridge extending out towards the Eldred Valley for a day of hiking in an untouched alpine area. We were dropped off by helicopter near a small lake at 1370m elevation, in a spot with a magnificent view of the north face of Slide Mtn.

Our day’s hike was a circumnavigation of the lake, beginning with a sometimes very steep and rocky ascent of the ridge along its SW side. We eventually crested the ridge (1580m) overlooking the upper Eldred Valley with a view to Mt Alfred – it was a great lunch spot! After lunch we descended the opposite side of the lake on more gentle slopes and through heather meadows. When we got back down to the lake, it was time for a VERY refreshing swim (there was still snow at the other end of the lake!). We then had a couple of hours of relaxation and photography until the helicopter arrived to take us home.

We encountered many wildflower areas – mostly pink and white heather, but also saxifrage and others as well. The few trees were gnarled old yellow cedars and mountain hemlocks. At the higher levels there was still plenty of snow (this was in mid August) melting, and thus water running everywhere. Lots of mosses and waterfalls! However, we did not see any wildlife – only some goat tracks in a drying pond.

For the geologically inclined, Slide Mtn is a fascinating area. Though we spent the day hiking on Mid Cretaceous (~100 million years old) granitic rocks, Slide Mtn itself is composed of a mix of Triassic aged (200-250 million years old) basaltic volcanic rocks and Lower Cretaceous (100-150 million years old) interlayered volcanic and sedimentary rocks.