Six hikers started out from the parking area at Chinese Mountain trailhead at approximately 10 am. Morning showers had been forecast the night before, but the trail was dry with no rain. There are some areas of trail which could be awkward if there has been any amount of rain as the trail follows a dry creek bed for a short distance and would require a bit of bushwhacking to get around. Also most of the trail is on bare rock so in damp conditions it could be slippery in sections. The weather was overcast in the morning with more blue sky peeking through as day went on. There are several viewpoints on the way up with good views of Drew Harbour, East and West Quadra Island and views beyond. One viewpoint just before the top of the mountain gives an amazing 180 degree view of the East side of Quadra Island and if we had less cloud cover the peaks of the Coast Mountains. It was close to 12 noon when we reached the peak so we stopped for a lunch break and a rest after the steep ascent. We retraced our trail and had an easy downhill trek back to the parking area. (6.9 kilometers up and down, 4 hours, 350 meters elevation gain)
Allan
Thanks to Jim and Norris for the photos.
(click on photos to view larger)
- View to the southeast
- Lunch break
- Harebell or Bluebell
- View toward Discovery Passage
- View from the summit
- Golden Jewel Beetle









