The Charlotte Alplands lie between Charlotte Lake and Tweedsmuir Park.   Forested valleys lead up to rocky steep sided mountains with lots of hiking alpine terrain above 6000 feet.  We flew from Nimpo Lake to Fish Lake in a float plane.   Our gear was then taken by a horsepack outfitter (One Eye Outfit) from Frog Lake to Fish Lake where we had a wilderness basecamp for a week of hiking.

Fish Lake

Some maps show a trail in the valley.   It is visible in a few spots, but for the most part it is a general route through brush and wet meadows.   Waterproof boots and good hiking pants are needed.   A GPS would be helpful.   It took about an hour to hike to the western Frog Lake.

All of the open area around the Frog Lakes is wet meadow.   Our camp was a triangular-shaped slope of dry ground surrounded by marshes and squishy meadows.   All access to the alpine required traversing these meadows, then routes wound through brushy forest to get to the open areas above.

Frog Lakes from above

The peak to the south of the camp could be called Frog Mountain, but it is unnamed on maps so it is referred to as South Peak in these articles.   In Chris Czajkowski’s books, she calls this peak Louise O’ Murphy.   The wet meadows near the camp were ideal grazing areas for the outfitter’s horses.

The view of the valley’s peaks from our tents was fine from sunrise to sunset.

To the southwest was another lower mountain which we hiked over and around.   The Charlotte Alplands have the highest number of alpine lakes in the province in any park or protected area.   We passed by several on that day’s hike.

reflection of the southwest peak in Frog Lake

We twice took the route between the two Frog Lakes to access the South Peak.   This was a fun way to traverse the wetlands.

the complex route between the two Frog Lakes

We hiked 4 days on the slopes of the North and South Peaks.   When we hiked out at the end of the week, we followed the same route back to Fish Lake, then angled up to a pass on our way to Charlotte Lakes.   Looking back at the valley below, Fish Lake stands at the foot of what we call 2222 Ridge (its height in meters) with South Peak to the west (on the right).

From the open alpine pass, our route was a long forested walk to the Cowboy Lakes Camp.   In theory there is a trail there, but for the most part it was traversing wet meadows, thick brush, and untracked forest.   The route from Frog Lake to the camp near Cowboy Lakes was about 14 km.   From the Cowboy Lakes Camp to the Recreation Site at Charlotte Lake was another 12 km, mostly on a good track.

Cowboy Lakes with Charlotte Lake beyond

The Charlotte Alplands is a beautiful area, but with no real trails, hikers have to expect to deal with route-finding, heavy brush, wetland crossings, black flies, and the possibility of wildlife encounters.   With a guide/outfitter we were provided with a real wilderness experience and access to the alpine areas of the high country, a unique opportunity for those of us who nomrally hike in the accessible routes of theSouthern Interior.

More Information:

• Charlotte Alplands article
• One Eye Outfit
• South Peak (October)
• North Peak (October)