Yak, Nak, Thar Traverse

Yak, Nak and Thar Peaks are summits located adjacent the Coquihalla Highway in British Columbia north of Hope. As part of the Coquihalla Recreation Area, Yak Peak is a popular destination for hiking, scrambling and climbing. Nak and Thar Peaks are likely visited less often.

The Hike

Yak Peak sits alongside the Coquihalla Highway in the Coquihalla Recreation Area. Yak Peak boasts many climbing routes, scrambling opportunities and a straightforward easy scramble to the summit (i.e., class 2). The easiest route is well-defined.

The summit of Yak Peak is the peak on right side of the photo.

After reaching the summit of Yak Peak descend back to the col between Yak and Nak peaks. From there, you can follow the trail along the ridge that connects to Nak Peak. You can see the trail along the ridge in the photo above. The route is a straightforward hike.

The summit of Nak Peak.

From the summit of Nak Peak, you can follow the obvious ridge in the photo above to Thar Peak. Along the way, there are two short sections of scrambling.

You can down climb the left or right side of this short scramble. I chose the left side. It's only a few moves of class 2+/3. The second section is a short down-climb onto the ridge connecting to Thar Peak. The route to the summit of Thar Peak requires a bit of bushwhacking. From this point, I reversed the route back up to Nak Peak then over to Yak Peak.

Final Thoughts

While the Yak, Nak, Thar Traverse offers beautiful views and a few sections of scrambling, the route is not particularly interesting. Having said that, if you're already going to hike/scramble Yak Peak, it is a worthwhile addition.