Through the Cornwall Meadows
Cornwall Hills Provincial Park is situated in the hills between Cache Creek/Ashcroft and Hat Creek. Access is by the Hat Creek Road which bears west 18 km from Cache Creek on the Trans-Canada Highway. The gravel road climbs through the Oregon Jack Creek Valley for 11.5 km. At that point is the junction with the Cornwall Hills Forest Service Road (to the right) Most of that road is high clearance, but the first kilometer can be quite muddy or rutted, especially in spring. It is possible to drive all the way to the top, but early in the year, a 4X4 and a chainsaw would be a good choice. On our previous hike to the top of the Cornwall Hills, we parked at the Three Sisters Forest Recreation Site at the bottom and the route was 17 km return. In 2019, we drove farther up to shorten the hike. We could have drive right to the park entrance (which is what we will do next time). The best part of the hike is the last 4+ km, through extensive subalpine meadows.
At the top is the old Cornwall Hills Fire Lookout, now being maintained by the Four wheel Drive Association of BC (with our thanks), There are wide views from this spot.
To the south we could see the Venables Valley.
The upper part of this hike is through scenic verdant subalpine meadows.
To the west is the Hat Creek Valley and beyond that is the forested Clear Range overlooking the Fraser River. Rising above the Fraser River (on the west side) in the distance are the Coast Mountains. Mt. Brew is on the right and Lillooet is 36 km to the west.
From the north side of the hilltop we can look up the Thompson River to Ashcroft.
The best reason for hiking the Cornwall Hills, though, is to enjoy the wonderful display of wildflowers. We witnessed the June bloom, but there will more varieties in July for the summer wildflower display. A few photos from our recent hike were compiled into a video:
More Information:
- Cornwall Hills Provincial Park (BC Parks)
- Cornwall Hills (2015)