Lindeman and Greendrop Lake Hike

Celeste invited us for a family hike on May 9 – Mother’s Day. The plan was to hike to Lindeman Lake and, depending on how the kids were doing, hike to Greendrop Lake. This hike would be our second hike with Celeste and her family after the Sugar Mountain hike in April.

Lindeman and Greendrop Lakes are in Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park, about an hour and fifteen minutes from our place. I had not been to Chilliwack since the Mount Thurston and Elk Mountain hike in November, and I was looking forward to this hike.

Hike to Lindeman Lake

Thanks to a relatively early start, we had no issue finding parking at the trailhead. Around 10 am we were on the trail to Lindeman Lake.

The trail is wide and flat for the first few minutes but soon gets interesting as we hike next to a stream and gradually gain some elevation. The trail is well marked and easy to follow.

It took us about 45 minutes to reach Lindeman Lake. I had not done any research, so I had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to see a beautiful turquoise lake with some great backcountry camping sites next to it. 

At just 1.5 km and less than 200 m elevation gain, Lindeman Lake is an excellent backcountry camping option for families. As per the BC Parks website, there are six backcountry campsites at Lindeman Lake. 

We took a long break at this lake. The kids were not too happy to hear that we would continue the hike to Greendrop Lake. “Why can’t we just stay here?” “How long is the hike?” questions followed. The information on the trail sign didn’t mean much to the kids.

Hike to Greendrop Lake

For almost one km, the trail hugs the shoreline of Lindeman Lake. We hopped across several boulder fields, and this was the fun part for the kids. 

As we made our way up, few groups warned us about snow on the trail up ahead. Celeste had already informed us that there would be snow at Greendrop Lake. So we carried microspikes and a pair of snow boots for Kavya. But after these repeated “warnings” from well-intentioned hikers, I started wondering – “Do we need snowshoes? How bad is it?”

It took us almost forty minutes to get to the North end of Lindeman Lake. It was a beautiful day, and we had a fantastic view of the lake from this end.

A few minutes ahead, Kavya lost her balance and landed in a pool of water. Her shoes got wet, and she was embarrassed. As we asked her what happened, she started crying. My tone didn’t help with the situation.

We had an extra pair of boots and socks, but we asked Kavya to continue hiking in her shoes. Given the weather, we thought it would dry out.

Are We There Yet?

About halfway between Lindeman and Greendrop Lake, fallen trees covered the trail. It made for a good exercise in route finding for the kids. 

Soon after this section, we had packed snow on the trail. We continued hiking without the spikes as it was still manageable.

The kids were tired by now, and given the complaints, I was not sure if we would get to Greendrop Lake. “Are we there yet?” became more frequent, and the kids would roll their eyes to our “We are almost there” response. 

Finally, we were at the Flora Lake Connector, and it was 700 m to the Greendrop Lake. About the same distance as it is from our neighbourhood to the kids’ school.  Finally, around 1:45 pm, we arrived at the lake. The lake was partially frozen. 

Including the break, it had taken about four hours from the parking lot. The kids were relieved to arrive at the lake but not too happy about the hike back down. If they had phones, they would have called rescue to fly back down.

Kavya changed into her boots and a fresh pair of socks and was much more comfortable. We took another long break to refuel. I wish I had brought some hot drink in a thermos or at least my jetboil to make some instant tea.

We made good time on our way back and, in total, took about 7 hours for the 12 km round trip. The hike and the views were much better than I had expected. Hopefully, we can come back here for some family backcountry camping trip.