A new trail is being added to outdoor recreation options in Hope that includes a stone garden, streams, granite outcrops, dramatic viewpoints and waterfalls.
It will begin at a trailhead off Silver-Skagit Road, where a dirt road already exists. The trail will then head north and up a moderate climb that ends in a lookout over Hope.
According to Kelly Pearce from the Hope Mountain Centre, construction could start as early as the spring, although the area has been “bushwhacked” in the past. The plan for the new trail has been under the working title Dragon’s Back Trail, but is more likely to be given the Halq’eméylem place name, Kw’okw’echíwel Stl’áleqem.
The project has been underway for several years, Pearce says, and is now just awaiting what’s called a Section 57 approval, which will allow the construction necessary to make it accessible for hikers. That’s likely to happen very soon, and the news has excited those who have been working hard at the approval process.
The Halq’eméylem place name means ‘lookout of the two-headed serpent,’ and has been suggested by Sto:lo cultural historian Sonny McHalsie, who is currently consulting with local nearby Sto:lo communities.
Pearce also says that “attractive, professionally-designed interpretive signs at key locations along the trail will educate the public regarding Stó:lo culture and traditional use of the Hope landscape.”
Work on the new trail will likely take place in the spring, Pearce says. When done, it will give residents and tourists alike a new place to enjoy the beauty of the area.
“In particular, it offers Silver Creek residents a backyard adventure enjoyable to all ages, similar in difficulty to the Hope Lookout Trail,” Pearce says. “Attractive, professionally-designed interpretive signs at key locations along the trail will educate the public regarding Stó:o culture and traditional use of the Hope landscape. Recent archaeology has uncovered exciting new findings about the trail.”
The trail was first suggested several years ago during a meeting, by Hope resident Justin Brown. He also is the one who originally “bushwhacked” the trail.
Watch for news in the spring or summer when the trail is ready for public use.
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