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Hynes - Sawchuck Traverse

Updated: Nov 10

Hynes Peak and Sawchuck Peak are both situated along the divide that separates the Tricouni group from the Squamish Valley. Seagram Lake and many smaller lakes are scattered below Hynes and Sawchuck. The sub-alpine meadows feel like a scene out of a BBC nature documentary. Blunt granite spires dominate the horizon while seemingly endless heather meadows carpet the floor of the hanging valley between Tricouni, Hynes, and Sawchuck. When I first heard of the name Sawchuck, I naively thought it was likely some sort of tool used in forestry. As it turns out, I couldn't be further off. Sawchuck is actually the surname of the legendary Manitoban NHL goalie, Terry Sawchuck. Sawchuck played for multiple teams including the Red Wings, Bruins, Maple Leafs, LA Kings, and NY Rangers over a twenty-year career from 1949 to 1969. Similarly, Hynes Peak is named after well-known Canadian folk musician Ron Hynes. Hynes, a Newfoundland native, had an illustrious thirty-year career as a singer and songwriter before passing away from cancer in 2015. Hynes Peak is a rounded granite dome with a long and undulating south ridge. The summit provides unique views over the Seagram Plateau. Sawchuck Peak is a narrow ridgeline that towers nearly 1800m above the Squamish River. Sawchuck has an impressive west face. However, the rock looks pretty bad for climbing...


Nick, Adam, and I decided to make a loop over both summits. Our plan was to park at the road washout on Branch 250 around 950m, follow the Tricouni Meadows trail, veer off the trail and head towards Seagram Lake, ascend Hynes, traverse the ridge from Hynes to Sawchuck, descend Sawchuck to Branch 240, and run Branch 240 back to the car.


After a very bumpy ride up Branch 200, we arrived at the washout and got ourselves ready for the day. Branch 200 is in the worst shape I have seen, likely from increased traffic and less logging activity in the area. We plodded uphill for around an hour before popping out into the sub-alpine on the edge of Pendant Lake. From here, we climbed gentle heather slopes to the NE shoulder of Hynes.



The NE Shoulder of Hynes is a pleasant hike with a few short sections of easy scrambling on solid granite. Once on the rounded summit, we took a brief stop before continuing towards Sawchuck. The ridge between Hynes and Sawchuck is quite convoluted, featuring many small bumps, gullies, and the occasional section of bush-crashing. Once we neared Sawchuck, we had the option of heading up and over a small unnamed summit or bypassing it along a bench on the east side of the ridge. We opted to hit the summit. This added perhaps an extra 100m of elevation gain but was aesthetic and provided some enjoyable 3rd class scrambling. The descent from this summit was fairly straightforward. We weaved around the ridge, avoiding several small bluffs, eventually ending up on the low col at the base of Sawchuck's north ridge.



The North Ridge of Sawchuck features solid and compact granite, exposure, and several sections of 4th class climbing. The crux section provides a couple of options: a low-5th class slab or a short but exposed 4th class traverse using a big block as a handrail on the east side of the ridge. Both are fairly straightforward but also high consequence if one were to slip. Overall, I thought the North Ridge of Sawchuck was actually high quality and well worthwhile. Not to mention it would actually be fairly easy to out and back the N Ridge on its own from Pendant Lake, making for a reasonable half-day trip. In terms of access, nice rock, and views, this is a good one. I would say it rivals some of the other popular "easy alpine routes" in the Corridor.



After a snack break and drinking the last of our water, we began descending the South Ridge of Sawchuck, the only real question mark of the day. After a couple of minutes, we stopped at a beautiful floating tarn to refill our bottles. I noticed bear prints embedded in the soil of the shallow pond. We continued downward, weaving around bluffs through steep heather meadows. The blueberry bushes were plentiful. I constantly reached down, scooping up handfuls; a luxury of being in the mountains at this time of year. We scrambled up and over one small bump in the ridge. This involved a 5.5 knife-edge ridge on excellent granite. For reference, you could easily bypass this feature on the left. From here to Branch 240, we bushwhacked steeply through tight forest and an old burn. Certainly the most unpleasant part of the day. However, the bush was short-lived and maybe took us thirty minutes before we popped out on the logging road. Before hitting the road, we wandered through a beautiful swath of old-growth. Huge piles of bear poop littered the ground with large prints in all directions. Perhaps a place for the bears to get out of the heat. A reminder of how important these sub-alpine ecosystems are. Quite a contrast to the massive cut block just a stone's throw away.



From the top of Branch 240 to the car was nothing to write home about. Our descent was roughly five kilometres. Branch 240 is in decent condition, which made for efficient travel. Upon closer inspection, I do think that one could possibly descend straight to the Branch 250 washout from the end of Branch 240D. However, this would likely involve some pretty heinous bushwhacking. Sometimes I don't mind a few extra logging road miles.


The traverse is seldom done but for no good reason. It is obscure; however, not that obscure. Considering that hundreds of people hike to Pendant Lake and Tricouni every summer, there is no good reason why some folks don't head up towards Hynes or Sawchuck. I do think that sometimes when mountains have lesser-known or more unofficial names, they see less traffic. For the small amount of bush you have to endure, I would say this one is pretty worthwhile. It is important to note that the North Ridge of Sawchuck does involve mandatory exposed sections of 4th and low-5th class and the South Ridge is littered with bluffs. If this concerns you, then perhaps a rope is wise.


Stats

Distance: 21km

Elevation Gain: 1950m

Duration: 5:43:10

GPX File:


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