The Cathedral Provincial Park boundaries follows the British Columbia / Washington State border on the South, the Ewart Creek on the East and on the West and North by the Ashnola River.  Cathedral Provincial Park Map

In the British Columbia southern interior, 3 km West of Keremeos on highway 3, take the Ashnola Road South as it crosses a red covered bridge and connects to a well packed gravel Ashnola Forest Service Road where the road follows the Ashnola River into the park.  There are 3 hiking routes that provide access to the park’s core from the Ashnola River corridor. Ewart Creek, Lakeview, and Wall Creek. No vehicles can enter the park except the Cathedral Resort vehicles that use the private access jeep road that leads to the core.

The Cathedral Park Access Trails;

Wall Creek Trail (Ashnola Corridor to Quniscoe Lake). 20km, 7-8 hours hiking time, 1097m vertical climb. Fairly scenic, most of route a gradual climb.

Ewart Creek Trail (Ewart Creek to Quiniscoe Lake) 28km, 10-12 hours (1.5 days), 1860m vertical climb. Longest access route into the Core Area, wet sections, scenic.

Ewart Creek Trail (Ewart Creek to Haystack Lakes). 20km, 6-8 hours, 1402m vertical climb. No-trace camping allowed at Haystack Lakes.

Ewart Creek Trail (Ewart Creek to Twin Buttes). 20 km, 6-7 hours, 1433 vertical climb. Twin Buttes is the last camping area before Pyramid Lake.

Lakeview Trail (Ashnola Corridor to Quiniscoe Lake). 16km, 6-7 1357m vertical climb. Steep climb, most direct route to Core Area, carry drinking water.

Lakeview Trail Head

The Lakeview Trail crosses and uses parts of the Jeep Road that is heavily used by the jeeps that shuttle paying passengers to the Cathedral Lakes Lodge.

Safety Caution – hiking the jeep road is neither recommended or approved as Cathedral Lakes Resort vehicles frequently traverse this narrow, steep and winding access road. If you do use the road, please watch and listen for oncoming vehicles and step off the road to let traffic safely pass.

Cathedral Lodge Private Road Entrance

Cathedral Mountain Lodge Shuttle

Hiking Trails within the Core area of the Cathedral Provincial Park.

Trail Heads of Cathedral Provincial Park

Quiniscoe Lake is the hub from which trails and routes radiate to most of the park’s scenic attractions. The approximate hiking times for the trips listed below are for a round-trip. Most of these trails are well-defined and some have improved walking surfaces. Distances, elevation changes and walking times are all approximate. Please stay on designated trails. Short-cutting and stepping off trail to avoid wet areas increases erosion and destroys plant life and soil structure. Due to the short growing season, these impacts take years to rehabilitate.

Quiniscoe Lake Trail: Length, 2 km. Suggested hiking time, 30 minutes. An easy walk around the lake that passes a small waterfall.

Quiniscoe Lake

Quiniscoe/Lake of the Woods/Pyramid Loop Trail: Length, 2 km. Suggested hiking time, 1 hour. 30 metre elevation change. Walking surface is improved to hard-packed dirt, crowned to drain moisture and roughly three feet wide. Milled lumber bridges and boardwalk are in place over creeks and wet areas.

Quiniscoe Lake to Lake of the Woods: Length, 1 km. Suggesting hiking time, 30 minutes, 30 metre elevation change.

Quiniscoe Lake to Pyramid Lake: Length, 1 km. Suggested hiking time, 30 minutes. Minimal elevation change.

Scout Lake Trail: Length, 3 km. Suggested hiking time, 1 hour. Elevation change, 60 metres. A short detour from the Diamond Trail takes hikers to this small lake.

Diamond Trail around Scout Mountain: Length, 8 km. Suggested hiking time, 4 hours. Elevation change, 250 metres. The trail winds up through clusters of beautiful flowers and rock bluffs as well as a small rock glacier where the rocks are slowly moving and pushing into the soil. The Diamond Trail offers the best views of the Ashnola Corridor.

Red Mountain via Glacier Lake Trail to Centennial Trail: Length 10 km. Suggested hiking time 6 hours. Elevation change 250 metres. This trail provides some of the best views in the park as hikers scramble up through the open, mossy alpine. Hiking to the peak of Red Mountain is not recommended for inexperience hikers.

Glacier Lake Trail: Length, 3 km. Suggested hiking time, 90 minutes. Elevation change, 200 metres. This trail is the quickest way into the alpine and fairly steep. It is also one of the main access routes to the Rim Trail.

Quiniscoe Mountain via Glacier Lake Route: Length, 8 km. Suggested hiking time, 5 hours. Elevation change, 500 metres. Above Glacier Lake, this is a fairly easy well marked route. The plaque atop the mountain is a positional marker once used to aid in mapping the area.

Stone City and Giant Cleft via Glacier Lake Routes: Length, 12 km. Suggested hiking time, 7-8 hours. Elevation change, 500 metres. “Stone City” is a quartz monzonite formation eroded by the action of wind over the millennia. The “Giant Cleft” was formed when softer basalt rocks eroded, leaving a split in the granite.

Ladyslipper Lake Trail: Length, 7 km. Suggested hiking time, 3 hours. Elevation change, 200 metres. The trail winds up through larch and spruce trees offering great views of Grimface, the Matriarch and Macabre Tower. Ladyslipper is the best spot for fishing.

Lady Slipper Lake

Goat Lakes Trail: Length, 10 km. Suggested hiking time, 4-5 hours. Elevation change, 150 metres. This trail stays in the valley bottom, following the outlet creek through wetlands and riparian vegetation, making it a good choice for days when the weather is poor.

Lakeview Mountain Trail: Length, 12 km. Suggested hiking time, 7-10 hours. Elevation change, 600 metres. Lakeview Mountain is the highest point in the park and, therefore, offers panoramic views of the park and neighboring Snowy Protected Area.

In addition to the above hiking trails there are a number of cross-country routes. These routes are unmarked and should only be attempted by experienced, well-equipped hikers with map-reading and orienteering skills.