Brockton Point Backcountry Skiing

Brockton Point (1265 m) in Mount Seymour Provincial Park is a beginner-friendly backcountry skiing objective in North Vancouver. To reach Brockton Point, one skins up the Mount Seymour Trail and then skis down a combination of Mount Seymour Resort runs to return to the parking lot.

Brockton Point is a beginner-friendly objective because the access is via a well-used winter trail, is short (<1.5 hours return), skiing is on groomed runs and has relatively low avalanche hazards. I say relatively low avalanche hazards, as any backcountry travel carries risks, and one should never underestimate them. Take an AST-1 course to better understand and manage the risks.

I have been to Brockton Point multiple times over the last three years. For this post, I am using a combination of photos from different trips (Hidden Lake, Pump Peak) in this area when I went to Brockton Point.

Avalanche Forecast

My last trip to Brockton Point was with Jesse on March 10, 2024. The danger rating for the North Shore and the Sea to Sky region was high, so we made a short trip to Brockton Point, avoiding avalanche terrain.

Avalanche.ca forecast for March 10 for the region –

Our route to Brockton Point on FATMAP with an overlay of Avalanche Terrain –

Mount Seymour Trail

In 2024, we needed a BC Parks Day-use vehicle pass for backcountry access on Mount Seymour. Parking lots P1 and P5 are designated for backcountry users.

Mount Seymour Brockton Point Backcountry Parking — Source: BC Parks

We arrived at Mount Seymour around 7:30 am and parked in the P5 lot. Once we got our gear sorted, we got on the groomed pathway along the road and made our way to the trailhead. From the start of the P5 parking lot, it is about a km to the trailhead.

Jesse on the pathway from P5 to trailhead (left) and doing a beacon check at trailhead (right)

After a quick beacon check at the trailhead, we continued on the Mount Seymour Trail. It had snowed recently, and the conditions were great. The winter trail is well-marked and easy to follow. There are some short and steep sections where I had used the heel risers in the past, but today, I didn’t have to.

From the trailhead to Brockton Point, it is just over 250 m vertical over two km and took us about forty-five minutes. The visibility was low, but here is a picture from a previous trip –

View of South Face of Pump Peak as seen from Brockton Point

I had been to Pump Peak in the past, but the avalanche hazards were too high, so we had planned to visit just Brockton Point today. The next day, a friend shared the North Shore Rescue Facebook post about a snowshoer who triggered an avalanche on South Face of Pump Peak. She was buried for 15 minutes but luckily, she survived.

North Shore Rescue Facebook posts shared by Neha

After a short break, we transitioned to ski mode and connected to the ski runs south of Brockton Point. We skied down a combination of different runs – Brockton Gully, Manning and Elevator Shaft. In less than 15 minutes, we were back at the trailhead.

Territory Acknowledgement

I would like to acknowledge that this trip took place on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. I commit to learning about Indigenous peoples and issues and making reconciliation an ongoing effort.

Source: Native-Land Pronunciation Guide: First Nations.info