Semi-remote subalpine camping and hiking in BC?
A couple of years ago, we took the best trip of our lives to the national parks of the Canadian Rockies -- jaw-dropping scenery, day after day, for several weeks. The only drawback (and it was very minor) is that some of the campgrounds were a little busy and were located at relatively low elevations. We are used to camping in the Eastern Sierra, where the high country campgrounds are fairly empty (except on weekends and holidays). And often, we boondock way out in the middle of nothing, which is permitted in the national forests (but not in the national parks).
So, I have spent a lot of time poring through the excellent BC Provincial Parks website, looking for something that may not exist -- we are hoping to find quieter RV-accessible camping in close proximity to good day hiking in alpine terrain.
The reason that I say that this may not exist is that unlike California, where there are quite a few canyon roads that stop almost at treeline, the Canadian roads seem to stay mostly in the river valleys. That makes sense, of course -- why build a road into the mountains when you can use the valleys? But it means that there is not a lot of vehicle-accessible camping in mountainous terrain.
Apart from the campground issue, the other problem that I am finding is that once one gets away from the heavily used parks, the hiking trails get pretty sketchy, with indistinct markings and lots of bushwhacking through the willows and boulder-hopping and thousands of vertical feet to get to open alpine terrain. Again, this is not surprising -- in such remote locations with so few visitors, it is unlikely that the park personnel will spend a lot of time and money to create less-demanding trails.
No matter what, we will be heading back to BC to camp in Glacier National Park, the Kootenays, and so forth -- but it would be nice if we could experience both types of camping.
Your thoughts will be greatly appreciated!
So, I have spent a lot of time poring through the excellent BC Provincial Parks website, looking for something that may not exist -- we are hoping to find quieter RV-accessible camping in close proximity to good day hiking in alpine terrain.
The reason that I say that this may not exist is that unlike California, where there are quite a few canyon roads that stop almost at treeline, the Canadian roads seem to stay mostly in the river valleys. That makes sense, of course -- why build a road into the mountains when you can use the valleys? But it means that there is not a lot of vehicle-accessible camping in mountainous terrain.
Apart from the campground issue, the other problem that I am finding is that once one gets away from the heavily used parks, the hiking trails get pretty sketchy, with indistinct markings and lots of bushwhacking through the willows and boulder-hopping and thousands of vertical feet to get to open alpine terrain. Again, this is not surprising -- in such remote locations with so few visitors, it is unlikely that the park personnel will spend a lot of time and money to create less-demanding trails.
No matter what, we will be heading back to BC to camp in Glacier National Park, the Kootenays, and so forth -- but it would be nice if we could experience both types of camping.
Your thoughts will be greatly appreciated!
