Road Conditions? Centre Creek, Chilliwack valley

[bcboy]

Anyone know the condition of the road up Centre Creek in the Chilliwack Valley? I'd like to get as far up the valley as possible in order to climb Lindeman.

The most recent info I've found is several years old from Bivouac:--------------------------------------------------From Bivouac Website--------------------------------------------------1999.06.18 Scott Pick - Furthest km: 10 Status: EffectiveThe Centre Creek road is in easy 4wd shape presently. As of mid-june the creeks are running high and water os going right over the first crossing of Centre Creek, about 1.5km up from the start of the road. Many small creeks are crossed in the waterbars along the way.

You will need a key for the gate - get this at the Fish Hatchery right at Sleese Creek bridge, about 10km before the turnoff to the Chilliwack South Forest service road off which the Centre Creek road starts. When going to the hatchery, go through the gate and stay left, curving around to the brick office. It's open about 8-4 every day. Then ask for the key to the Centennial gate and watch them fumble around for 1/2 an hour while they look for it. The gate is broken and a real nightmare to close - someone tried to push it over with in a fit of rage.

Once past the gate, the road is really simple 2wd along the river flats for approximately 4 km at which poing it crosses Centre Creek on a good bridge and you will see a wrecked car straight ahead. Turn right here and start to head up the valley. This section of road is 2wd. In about 1.5km, the road crosses Centre creek to the west side and the road gets steeper and rougher. Cars will have to park most likely. The real obstacles are the waterbars, otherwise the road is quite drivable. At 4.4km from the turnoff up the valley, the road crosses Centre Creek back to the east side where it stays for the rest of it's way to the border.

Once past approximately 6 km, the huge east faces of the Illusion Peaks and Mt. Rexford come into view, as does the pyramidical Mt. Lindeman at the head of the valley. The road gets rough towards the end past the 10 km mark but goes almost right to the border into a narrow v-shaped meadow right below Mt. Cope and well past the south peak of Rexford. At about the 10 km mark, the side roads the climb up the side of Mt. McDonald are seen. Did not drive them but they looked to be in decent condition still. As of Mid-June you can drive right to the very end of the lower road. This is a spectacular little valley with the sight of the Yosemite-like granite walls and hanging glaciers being the main reward for getting here.

[erik]

good guess drul!!!!!!

[ 04-02-2002: Message edited by: erik ]

[Dru]

The road is currently undriveable past the second bridge, as described above where road crosses back to west side of Centre, cause the bridge has been removed. Plan on about 3 hours of skiing from there to valley head at the moment cause snowline is low. The next CASBC Newsletter will have an update on the situation.

[ 04-02-2002: Message edited by: Dru ]

[bcboy]

what about in the summer? how far can you drive and what is it like (4x4?) when there's no snow?

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by bcboy:

what about in the summer? how far can you drive and what is it like (4x4?) when there's no snow?

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the bridge is gone. even a HumVee wont make it through the creek. you are looking at about 6 hrs (?) of hiking from missing bridge to summit, and about 4 hrs (?) back out, that is, if you hike as fast as me, and assuming you are going to do the west ridge. north edge will take longer.

[bcboy]

what is the road like up to the bridge?

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by bcboy:

what is the road like up to the bridge?

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good with moderate clearance and low gear 2wd if you can get the key. check out KM's selected alpine climbs for more info - same approach as Rexford East side. walking all the way from the gate adds an extra hour each way, unless you take a mtn bike in which case it adds 40 minutes going in and 10 coming out. or something like that i havent ridden that road since 1996 but i did hike it to rexford last summer.

[Stefan]

I tried Lindeman in December, but we did not have all this beta becuase I didn't do my homework--we walked out in a downpour. I have decided to go up the Nesakwatch drainage and then traverse over to Lindeman from there.

I would very much like a trip report when/if you do it.

[ 04-03-2002: Message edited by: Stefan ]

[Dru]

quote:

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Originally posted by Stefan:

I tried Lindeman in December, but we did not have all this beta becuase I didn't do my homework--we walked out in a downpour. I have decided to go up the Nesakwatch drainage and then traverse over to Lindeman from there.

I would very much like a trip report when/if you do it.

[ 04-03-2002: Message edited by: Stefan ]

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Isnt that kinda brutal bush and rock ridges to cross over?

I would recommend either 1) going in via Radium Lake and traversing over MacDonald2) approaching from south end of Chilliwack Lake via Hanging Lake.

Both of these are longer than Center Creek, and require more technical travel, but are more aesthetic than the Center Cr. valley. Center Cr, despite the bridge being out, is more direct and faster than any other option even if you hike all the way.

[Stefan]

I am still planning to do Lindeman as a winter outing. Hanging Lake sounds better and looks better as well as Centre creek--but the problem is that the road is usually blocked by snow (Chilliwack road) well before the trailhead to Hanging Lake. (Dru, please correct me if I am wrong). The problem is access! I want the shortest walk to Lindeman! I don't even think I could get a key for that gate on a Saturday from the Fisheries people.The shortest way to Lindeman in the winter (without a key) is Nesakwatch. However, Nesakwatch is looking mighty tempting with someone I know having a snowmobile..........Stefan

[ 04-04-2002: Message edited by: Stefan ]

[Dru]

its spring now stefan winter ended a few weeks ago.

even if you snowmobile all the way in to the end of nesakwatch you have to go up and over mt cope (1000m elevation gain) then traverse bumpy sub alpine ridges for 6kms. if you really think thats going to be faster than just skiing or snowshoeing up center creek then by all means try it. my own, humble opinion, is that center cr. is the fastest way to go (except as noted below)

actually the fastest thing would be boating down chilliwack lake then climbing up the northeast cirque to the col at the base of the north edge.

anyways Bruce Fairley did a winter ascent of Lindeman in the 1980's or so I hear, so why bother now??? there are funner peaks to climb in the winter. its not like it would be a FWA.

[Stefan]

I also want to get Middle Peak in a weekend winter outing......maybe I will try it as a an early winter ascent where I can take my mountain bike up the road without having to worry about "the key" for the gate. The peak just interests me. Do you know if the road is mountainbikeable?

Nevermind. I just read the other posts

[ 04-04-2002: Message edited by: Stefan ]

[Denis98]

If anybody wants to go up Lindeman next weekend or the weekend after I could pick up the key for the gate on Friday.

Denis

[Don_Serl]

dru's right: in the winter, center ck is way faster than any other imaginable approach to lindemann. but don't expect a quick trip...

i've been up that road 3 or 4 times in winter, and tried lindemann seriously once. the main valley takes only maybe 3 hrs, but the travel in the snowy forest beyond the end of the road is slow and strenuous; we were a full day from the chilliwack river in gaining the lindemann/macdonald col, where we camped. progress was slow enuf we abandoned lindemann and turned back to do the fwa of macdonald.

a snowmobile wld speed travel on the road, but you'll still have to travel fast and get good conditions to do lindemann in winter in a 2-day weekend. but then, that's true of ANY winter climb - almost anything beyond a valley-side scramble will take 3 or more days.

as for nesakwatch, point 1 is that winter travel is always faster at low elevations than higher, and this approach has a LOT of high elevation travel involved. point 2 is that the head of the valley, south of the border, is extremely bushy and difficult - there's a thing or two on my list two down there, but after one experience with the approach, i shuffled them back down the list a bit...

good luck whichever way u go!