Backcountry Camping at Upper Joffre Lake

We had taken a day off following Canada Day, and the plan was to do a moderate backcountry camping trip. Initially, we were thinking of camping at Frosty Creek in E. C Manning Park. But, on one of the climbing forums, I saw that a site was still available for July 1 night at Upper Joffre Lake. So, I logged into BC’s Discover Camping website, and luckily, we got the booking for June 30 night as well. I was super excited as we were finally going backcountry camping at Upper Joffer Lake.

Upper Joffre Lakes is about 5 km from the trailhead and has an elevation gain of just under 400 m. Overall, it’s an easy hike. But, I wanted to minimize the gear we would be carrying in preparation for some of the other challenging trips we would be doing later in summer. We were able to fit everything we need in a 70+35L backpack. Kavya carried her own small pack with 2L of water, snacks and books.

On June 30, we left early in the afternoon and arrived at the trailhead at Joffre Lake Provincial Park around 5 pm. Being a weekday, it was less busy, and we didn’t have an issue finding a parking spot. We shared our confirmation number for the booking with the Ranger and started our hike around 5:30 pm.

Lower Joffre Lake

Our first stop was at Lower Joffre Lake, just a short walk from the parking lot. The last time we visited Lower Joffre Lake was in February 2019, and we had a fun time on the frozen lake. 

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We retraced our steps to the trail junction and got on the Middle and Upper Joffre Lake trail. 

Middle Joffre Lake

The initial section of the hike is easy as it winds around the lake. Once the Lower Joffre Lake is out of sight, the trail climbs gradually for the next two km. 

About 30 minutes into the hike, we were in the open and walked across the boulder field. Soon we had a great view of the Joffre Creek.

As we hiked along the creek, there is a series of steps, and this might be the steepest section of the hike. 

One of my favourite spots on the trail was next to a small creek. A pipe channelled the water from the stream into a beautiful wooden basin.

About an hour and fifteen minutes into the hike, we arrived at the Middle Joffre Lake. 

Here is a closer look at the Slalok Mountain and Stonecrop Glacier. A mountaineering route goes up the glacier to the summit.

Late evening on a weekday, there was no one else at the lake. So we took our time going back and forth on the log. The water was ice cold.

Upper Joffre Lake

After a long break, we were back on the trail. It is a short hike from the Middle Joffre Lake to Upper Joffre Lake but has some fantastic views.

Within a few minutes from the Middle Joffre Lake is Holloway Falls. It is a beautiful roaring waterfall. 

It took us less than 20 minutes to arrive at the Upper Joffre Lake. 

We could see few bright tents on the other side of the lake. We still had another km to hike to the campground. The trail is flat but rugged and took almost 30 minutes to get to the campground.

The sites close to the lake were taken, so we ended up camping slightly higher from the lake.

We made some instant soup and ate sandwiches for dinner. It was close to 11 pm before we turned in for the night.

Day Hike Above Upper Joffre Lake

The next day, we got up once the sun was up over the mountains. It got hot pretty soon and I used the tent’s footprint to create a small shelter for us.

Later in the afternoon, we hiked up the trail that climbs up from the campground.

The initial section of the trail is part of the mountaineering route up Slalok Mountain. Higher up, it goes straight and is used to access climbs around Matier Glacier.

We decided to hike up to the base of a big snow patch and turn around from there. It was about a km from the campground and we had an elevation gain of about 270 m.

After a short break, we made our way down to the campground.

After a good hike, it was time for a dip in the ice-cold lake. Kavya went in first and then I reluctantly joined her. Kasturi saw us shivering and was happy to enjoy the show from the shore.

Uno and Spooky Stories

Other than the short hike, there is not much to do around Upper Joffre Lake. But I didn’t mind it and spent most of the time just soaking in the views from the campground and sometimes just from our tent.

Uno is Kavya’s new favourite game and we spent quite a bit of time playing Uno, sometimes making up our own rules.

Later in the evening, few other backpackers arrived and we had another family at the campground. Kavya went and said hi, made a new friend who later stopped by to play Uno. Things are so simple with kids.

Kavya had packed the “Ghostly Campfire Stories of Western Canada” book in her bag and it is her current favourite. Given the heatwave, we didn’t have any campfires but we still enjoyed reading a couple of stories each night. The remote setting made some stories extra spooky.

Goodbye Joffre Lakes

The next day, I got up a bit early and went up the trail we had hiked yesterday. It was a good workout in the morning. It was a bit cloudy in the morning and couldn’t see the mountains beyond the lake, but it was still beautiful.

After breakfast, we started our hike down. It was Friday and it was quite busy on the trail. I was glad that we had hiked up earlier in the week when it was less busy. It allowed us to spend more time at the lakes and other scenic spots. We made it down to the parking lot in just over two hours.

As a family, we have been fortunate to visit and explore some of the most beautiful places here in British Columbia. But this backcountry camping trip is probably my favourite family outing so far.

Resources:

Joffre Lakes Provincial Park: BC Parks Website

Backcountry Camping Reservation in BC: Discover Camping

Guide Book: Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia by Taryn Eyton

Weather Forecast: Mountain-Forecast | Yr.No | Spot WX

Leave a Trip Plan: AdventureSmart

Disclosure: I am not affiliated with any of the other organizations.

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