This is the first hike I've ever done so late in the season as I normally call it quits come September. This hike starts as a fairly gradual climb through the forest, first through rainforest and as you climb the trees grow smaller, less undergrowth and drier - maybe this is second growth forest? The trail then turns quite steep and is a good workout, almost reminiscent of the Grouse Grind and I started to worry that I wouldn't be able to get back down as the trail grew steep. No scrambling was required.
Finally we came to the top of Elk Mountain where there were great lookouts from the boulders, then we continued on to the mountain ridge with spectacular views of the Fraser Valley; being at the end of the hiking season a few of the neighborining mountains were covered with a dusting of snow adding to the splendour. The trees along the ridge were covered in ice droplets which were starting to melt in the afternoon sunlight and made a lovely ethereal sound as they melted and tumbled down the branches to the ground. It was cold at the top and the ground was too damp to sit on so we had to stand. My fingers were freezing and numb within a few minutes. This ridge is where the paragliders jump off.
Feeling cold in our shorts and lacking gloves, not to mention we had intended to do an easy-moderate hike less than four hours long, we decided to forgo continuing on to Thurston mountain which was at the end of the ridge and instead started our descent. I can't imagine trying to come down the steep sections without poles - I had my hiking stick and Kevin gave me his wood walking pole as I can be unsteady on my feet on downhill sections. I think the issue is not so much the grade but there are no steps and rainwater seems to follow the path, washing a fair bit of loose gravel down the center of the path.
One thing to note, the trail seems quite popular with downhill mountain bike riders as we passed at least six people pushing their bikes up the hill so be alert for bikers flying down the hill as you might have to jump out of the way quickly. One of the bikers told us that the view of the sunset from the ridge is spectacular.
Time to complete: approx 3.5 hrs with a short break at the top
Level IMO: moderate with some strenuous parts - depends on the fitness level of a person, I had to stop several times to get my heart rate down but Kevin was fine and his heart rate wasn't that high. Would recommend bringing hiking poles to make it easier on the knees.
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