KSteffa

You are right that twist/hell raving pass doesn't go nice. However, there are two nice passes from sand/hell raving - one near that small lake you mention, another near Vetch peak. Hell-raving has been used by some as an approach route. However it is not only considerably longer, but also has a higher ratio of downed trees and brush. John Baldwin's third edition 'exploring the coast mountains on skis' makes similar mention now. Sand Creek is really the most efficient valley-to-alpine route. Twist creek has also been under consideration, which could lead more directly into the 'heart' of the range. However, that is a considerably larger project with more details to be worked out. I believe that NOLS regularly uses this route for their courses? If enough interest/volunteers materialize, we could certainly pursue that further.

Aye, good to hear that the area has seen some advocates! Suffice to say we will not be cutting trail through the meadow zone. Our route will end at about the 1800m mark in the Sand Creek drainage. Beyond that, the passes are all pretty rocky or glaciated, so its all cross-country terrain past there. I think the more interesting features are just over small passes in adjacent drainages (twist and hell-raving). There should be plenty of room to spread out and leave for discovery. To travel to Nirvana Pass, I think the easiest route would be to cross over the divide between Siva and Osaris peaks, taking a line via the hell-raving side. More technical yes, the Vishnu/Bayamee col. What route did you take to get from valley through timberline on your trip in 2008? The Niut range looks pretty nice from the ranch too - though no trail assist - you probably wont see anyone else up there!

Greetings - I am helping to coordinate a 'volunteer vacation' type trip into the BC coast mountains this August. These plans are in conjunction with Ryan Foster at the Sand Creek Ranch. The Foster family lives at the end of the 'westbranch' road near Twist Lake. Nearest town is Tatla Lake, in the Chilcotin region of BC. This area is the traditional jumping off point for trips into the Waddington and Pantheon Ranges. We will be establishing a foot-trail from the end of the road on the valley floor, westward up Sand Creek, to timberline. This will provide a direct brush-free route for skiing/climbing to the near side of the Pantheon range (near Siva Peak). It will also provide an indirect access, via alpine routes, to Nirvana Pass, as well as longer traverses in the Pantheon and Waddington ranges. Our dates are set for August 12-22. Tools and a basecamp will be provided. In addition to volunteer days, we will definitely plan on the 'vacation' part with a few rest days. This could be either fishing on Twist Lake, relaxing around the Ranch, or exploring into the alpine around Siva Peak. If you are interested in more details, contact me. Kevin Steffa email: kevinsteffa at gmail dot com Note: Driving takes about ~12 hrs from Seattle/Vancouver/Lower Mainland. I will coordinate a limited number of carpools for those date ranges (or sub-ranges) above.