Mount Cheam — Attraction in Area D (Popkum/Bridal Falls/Wahleach)

Hiked Mt Cheam late July 2018. Not for beginners or the faint of heart as the elevation gain is significant and the heights can be dizzying, but the view from the summit is worth it. There are steep sections with lots of loose rock, so proceed with caution to avoid slipping. Recommend having quality hiking shoes with good grip soles. There’s a 2 person bench to chill on at the top with an amazing view of the Fraser Valley below. It’s a drop off at the edge so please be very careful at the top. This hike can be fairly grueling if you’re a little out of shape like we were, so take your time. Be sure to bring 2-3 liters of water for each adult on a hot day, have snacks in your pack, be safe and deliberate about your footing, and remember trail + backcountry etiquette. We were slow, so it took us 4 hrs from the parking lot to the summit and 2+ hrs to get back down to the parking lot. If you’re planning this hike, you need to drive to the lot with a 4x4 with decent clearance as there lots of ruts, rocks, and wash outs on the forestry road to the lot. We stayed in 4-low the entire way from chipmunk creek to the Mt Cheam parking lot and back. We also removed our trailer ball hitch so it didn’t scrape on the big dips. This is a pretty popular hike so the parking lot will likely be full, but you can find spots on the side of the road to park. Since people are coming and going all day, it’s a busy trail and so you shouldn’t have to worry much about bears. We still brought bear spray just in case. We froze water bottles to keep our Platypus water cool and as they melted, we refilled at the top. Be sure to arrive early enough so you get down before the sun sets as the drive back down is pretty rough even with daylight. Overall this was a great experience/adventure that we planned for...

Highly recommended. Hiked this in late June 2018. Still a decent amount of snow. I managed in running shoes (don’t like hiking boots) but some crampons would probably have been helpful especially on the way down. I slid down (intentionally) as much as I could on the way down, super fun.

Difficult for me to comment on trail itself as I’d say 60% is still covered in snow, but the parts that weren’t covered were great- beautiful fields of wildflowers with view over cascade mountains.

Dogs are allowed on this trail (I was accompanied by a disobedient vizsla puppy), but the summit is pretty sketchy and in hindsight I’d probably leave the pooch at home next time.

I’m pretty outdoorsy and in decent shape, and round trip took me just under two hours vs. posted four and a half.

4x4 is absolutely essential to access trailhead, road is pretty rugged with some pretty wide (and deep) creeks to cross. I’m not that knowledgable on forest roads, but personally I wouldn’t like to drive on that road in the dark as depth perception...

Cheam Peak was a glorious hike that is definitely worth the effort to get to. Breathtaking views and beautiful wildflowers around.

Warning (July 20, 2024): 4x4 Vehicle with 7" or more suspension is definitely required. Experience with off-road driving is recommended. You will cross many waterbars/ditches. The first time, it took about 45m-1hr to ascend from the logging road entrance.

Tip: An active Facebook group answers most questions you have if you aren't confident going up!

Length: 4.5km took 2h30m going up and 45 mins to get back down.

Experience: My partner and I took a Toyota Highlander and decided to park it 4km from the trailhead since we weren't too confident. The walk to the trail from there was about as hard as the hike itself, no tree shade at 12pm, and required plenty of water. The trail itself also had very little shade.

Water: There are a few places to top-up on water if you have a portable filter at the base of the trail. I ended up drinking 5L of water throughout the hike...