Mount Thom Family Hike

After the Mount Matier climb on July 10, the following week was a recovery week for me. As I was looking for family hike options on Outdoor Vancouver, Mount Thom in Chilliwack stood out. It is listed as a moderate 8 km hike with about 290 m vertical— perfect for a Sunday afternoon.

Byron, Lucy and their daughter Elsa were able to join us on this hike. Kavya was super excited to have Elsa’s company. More than the hike, I think she was looking forward to geeking out on everything related to Harry Potter.

The traffic was terrible on Hwy 1, so it took us almost two hours to get to the trailhead on Sylvan Drive.

I never thought I would write about a porta-potty, but the one at Thom Creek Trailhead is special. It has some messages for you to read while you take care of your business.

Thom Creek Trail

We started our hike around 4 pm. The hike begins with a set of stairs and soon provides a good view of the Chilliwack Area. After the stairs, it is a well-maintained gravel trail.

About 10 minutes into the hike, we were at a junction, and the trail to Mount Thom went left.

Kavya and Elsa were ahead of us, and they would take turns running ahead while yelling one of the Harry Potter spells. For extra effect, Elsa even brought two wands from her collection of homemade wands.

About fifty minutes into the hike, a small bench was just big enough for the kids to take some rest.

We were now getting closer to the top and followed the signs for Mount Thom Summit at all trail junctions.

It had taken us about an hour and fifteen minutes to get to the top.

We had a good view of Cultus Lake and Chilliwack. Now, it was time for a snack break. There was no shade at the viewpoint, so we went down the trail to a shaded spot with a bench. Honestly, I liked this spot better.

We hiked back down after a long break, and we were back at the car by about 7 pm. We didn’t hike the loop at the top, so our hike was under 7 km, with a total elevation gain/drop of about 380 m.