Mount Macfarlane & Pierce Lake Hike, Chilliwack, BC | Crazy Steep Hike

Mount MacFarlane is a difficult hike in the Cascade Mountains that offers spectacular scenery from start to finish. Mount MacFarlane sits beside Mount Pierce at the northern end of the Slesse divide in Chilliwack. On the route to Mount MacFarlane, you pass by Lower Pierce Lake and Upper Pierce Lake, both of which are stunning. The MacFarlane summit has panoramic views of the Fraser Valley, Mount Slesse, the Cheam range, and more.

00:00 Hike trailer

00:26 Trailhead
Mount Macfarlane trailhead is around 1.5 hour drive from Vancouver. There is no need for a 4x4 vehicle to reach the trailhead as the trailhead is right beside the highway. The parking area has a capacity of around 20 vehicles. It's first come first serve basis. So, start early from Vancouver as this is one of the most popular hikes among hikers from Vancouver and Chilliwack. From the trailhead, the trail is almost flat for the first KM along the FSR (Forest Service Road) and the trail is along the wide offroad trail.

01:00 Off-FSR trail
After around 10 minutes, you leave the forest service road behind and take left for the mount Macfarlane hike. Once you take the left, you leave behind the forest service road. Also, the trail becomes narrow and steep from here until the Mount Macfarlane summit. The trail is well-marked almost throughout the hike. Also, there are distance markers until the lower pierce lake. Since this is a very steep hike, you gain elevation really fast and soon you will find yourself at a good altitude even though you have just started hiking within an hour. There would be some fallen trees and logs along the trail but they pose no harm and overall the trail is straightforward and obvious

02:48 First open area & lookout
You arrive at the first open area from where you get the open views of the surroundings at around 3 KM from the FSR and it takes around 75 minutes to reach there. This lookout is situated at 3175 feet altitude. It's a nice spot to take a water break and a light snack break. Once you proceed from there, the trail becomes relatively flattered for the next 300 to 400 meters so that's a relief.

03:55 Pierce creek & log bridge
After 4 KM or almost one and a half hours (90 minutes), you will arrive at Pierce creek. You will also see a log bridge across the creek to cross the creek. This is a nice spot to wash your face and cool down. You can also refill your water bottle here. This wooden log bridge was not here before but it was made possible by the Chilliwack Outdoor club so thanks to them. The trail continues to be steep from here until the Lower Pierce lake and meadows.

06:10 Lower Pierce Lake
The meadows start from Lower Pierce lake. Relatively, you are at the same altitude as the Taylor meadows on the Panorama ridge hike. You will come across numerous wildflowers and plants. This place is just surreal. You get a very nice of Lower pierce lake from up the trail. Lower Pierce lake is around 5.2 km from the FSR and takes around 3 hours to reach there. I would say that the trail becomes relatively much more scenic and not so steep from here throughout the meadows. This lake is situated at an elevation of 4000 feet

07:13 Meadows
The meadows are situated at a distance of around 6 KM from FSR. There are wooden logs across the meadows to preserve nature. You will come across more water streams in the meadows. These are good spots to again refill your bottle and cool down. In the meadows, you get a very nice view of the valley, and surrounding peaks. This part of the hike is just serene.

08:39 Boulder field
Once you cross the meadows and hit the boulder field, the trail becomes steep again and it continues to be steep throughout the hike until the peak. For me, this part was the steepest and the most tiring part of the hike.

09:08 Rope section
While in the boulder fields, you get a rope section too. The rope section is not so hard and is easy.

10:45 Upper Pierce Lake
As you hike further and further, the trail becomes more open. You start seeing more of the surrounding peaks. We took a break at Upper Pierce Lake not while going up but while coming down. The water at the lake was definitely very cold but it was worth jumping into the lake to cool down and get refreshed. Reaching Upper Pierce Lake took around 4 hours from the FSR and is situated at an elevation of 5900 feet.

11:28 Final ascend
From Upper Pierce Lake to Mount Macfarlane peak, the distance is around one KM but it takes around 45 minutes to one hour to reach the peak because of the steep, views and scrambling part of the hike. The main scrambling part of the hike comes under this part only. Some part of the trail is sketchy so practice caution.

14:28 Mt. Macfarlane Peak
Once you reach Mount Macfarlane peak, you get a very different sense of your own. I wanted to write more about the experience at the top of the peak but I would skip this part in the hope that you will experience that on your own.

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