Mount Fosthall

Mount Fosthall (2686 metres) is the highest mountain in Monashee Provincial Park. There are many routes to reach the summit (e.g., south ridge, east ridge, west ridge and north face). You can access Mount Fosthall from Sol Mountain Lodge. In this report, I detail the south ridge from the Monashee Provincial Park - Spectrum Lake parking lot.

The Hike

To reach the trail-head for Spectrum Lake - Monashee Provincial Park, you'll drive toward Cherryville. Before reaching Cherryville, you'll turn left by Frank's store. For the first part, this road is paved. It transitions to a well maintained gravel road taking you past Sugar Lake. Following this road to the Sugar-Spectrum forest service road. By following the Monashee Provincial Park signs, it will take you to the trail-head.

Following the trail, you'll make your way toward Spectrum Lake. You'll cross a number of creeks along the way.

After about 5kms, you'll arrive at a fork in the trail. To get to Mount Fosthall, you'll need to take the trail to Peters Lake.

Along the way, you'll catch glimpses of the west ridge on Mount Fosthall.

After gaining some elevation, you'll arrive in the sub-alpine area nearby Slate Mountain (left side of the picture).

The trail will take you around Little Peters lake (picture below).

You'll cross a creek. There was a bridge; at the time of this report, it was damaged. You can easily step on rocks across the creek when the water is low.

You'll continue along the trail passing by a small boulder-field. A few years ago, I encountered a sow grizzly and yearling. Unfortunately, I surprised the sow and she bluff charged a few times. Fortunately, she did not make contact.

You'll make your way to Big Peters Lake (picture below). From here, you get a better view of Slate Mountain. You can also catch fish in the lake. Great for a swim too!

From Big Peters lake, you'll make your way to the fork in the trail leading to the southern slopes of Mount Fosthall.

The trail will take you through some meadows. Unfortunately, there was a fair bit of smoke from forest fires that obstructed the view.

From this saddle (picture below), you'll turn toward the southern slopes of Mount Fosthall.

You can see the southern ridge in the photo below. The route ascends nearby the snow patch to the left side of the photo. After gaining the ridge (class 2), it's a simple walk to the summit.

Closer view of the southern ridge in the photo below.

Once on the southern ridge, you'll cross some small rocks and boulders. From here, you can see the summit.

Not much of a view on this smokey day. To return, you can reverse the route back to your car.

Final Thoughts

Mount Fosthall is a long hike (39km) with plenty of elevation gain (2300 metres). The trail travels through forest, by three lakes, sub-alpine meadows, and rocky terrain. While not technically difficult, the hike to the summit of Mount Fosthall traverse a wide range of ecosystems.