Chadsey Lake Hiking Trail, Sumas Mountain North, Abbotsford B.C.

Time: 5 hours round trip

Elevation gain: 2000 ft

Difficulty: Medium. Steep sections with good elevation gain. Not a hike for new hikers or those out of shape.

Description: This is a great low level hike with beautiful forests and views of the Fraser River below. The trail varies and changes landscape frequently as you climb higher up the mountain. At the turn around point, you will see a nice little lake that has trout and, oddly enough, goldfish. There is a way to get to the top of the mountain, but we will turn around at the lake.

Photos: Chadsey Lake Hike Slideshow

How to get there:
Drive on highway 1 and turn off on Exit 95 (Whatcom Rd) towards the Tim Hortons and gas stations. Follow Parallel Road east to Sumas Mountain Rd, on which you go north for 9 km. Right after the pavement runs out and the road turns to gravel, part way down that initial steep hill, watch for a Centennial Trail signpost and orange markers on the right, where there is a small parking spot. I don't know if there is a sign for the trailhead, but the road is widened out at this spot and there are usually more people parked here along the side of the road.

See event description on calendar page for pre-departure meeting place for when the club is doing this hike next.

Hiker Comments

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Sumas Mountain (Chadsey Lake) Review

Reuben V says about the Sumas Mountain Hike:

The full traverse of Sumas mountain on March 18, 2007

I mentioned doing this hike earlier to Steve and Brent, co-leaders of the hiking club, and Steve decided to come along in hopes of using his new bear spray and to have a little more practice with his do-everything watch. This is a trail that I have hiked on for over 15 years but keep coming back to because I am a cheap dutchman who doesn't want to drive any further than he has to. Another reason to hike it was to scout the whole length for a new hiking club outing. You just never know what condition a trail will be in from year to year with all the blow downs, washouts, and exploding bear and cougar populations:) We found the trail to be in reasonable condition, except for one spot. Coming from the north side of Sumas mountain, just past Chadsey lake, there were a lot of fallen trees across the path. These trees could be a big problem for someone that is injury prone or a little unsteady on their feet. This is really the only real problem I can see with the whole trail, though other more fussy hikers may think differently. There were also a few fallen trees before the lake, but I can't remember them being a big deal. This is a great hike with many different changes in the forest and one place where the trees have recently disappeared altogether. Don't worry, the logging slash isn't that big. Chadsey lake itself is nothing to write home about. It would look great in Ontario or Manitoba but over here we're used to alpine lakes with mountainous backdrops. It is a pleasant place, however, and very relaxing after the hike up.

It is my opinion that hiking the north end of the trail to Chadsey lake and coming down the same way is a little nicer than starting at the pump station on the south side. The south end of the trail starts out in nice forests, but after that you are going to mainly be following a logging road. We did get some nice views of the valley from the south end of the mountain, but those will disappear when all the leaves start coming out. Of course, doing the whole traverse with a two car system is the nicest, because you don't have to back track. I think the whole trip took under five hours to do and we were not rushing it at all.