The popularity of Squamish within the #vanlife community has increased to the point that there is great concern about the group’s collective environmental impact. “Wild” or “Freedom” camping has become unmanageable environmentally because of the high numbers of campers. This is a serious issue that causes conflict between locals, home owners, and climbers!
VAN CAMPING / WILD CAMPING
Within District Boundaries
The
District of Squamish PROHIBITS camping within the municipal boundary. This includes sleeping in a vehicle anywhere within District boundaries. A
bylaw gives the District the power to issue tickets for contraventions.
Camping on urban / residential streets is prohibited under pre-existing bylaws.
The “hot spots” that have been of most concern are below.
· The whole of the Mamquam Forest Service Road under the North Walls of the Chief between the junction with the 99 and junction with the Stawamus/Indian Arm Forest Service Road (as a salmon run and sensitive riparian area, camping close to the Stawamus River is especially inappropriate)
· The Powerhouse Springs Road including the parking area for the Fern Hill cliff
· The dirt road to the kitesurfing “Spit.”
Outside of District Boundaries
If you explore forest roads in crown land outside the municipal boundaries, it may be possible to find discreet roadside sites suitable for tents or van camping. However, the provincial authorities do have
some restrictions ;
· Stays are limited to 14 days.
· Campers should follow
Leave No Trace principles. HUMAN WASTE is a major issue.
· Strictly observe any
current fire bans.
DESIGNATED CAMPGROUNDS
Please see the
District of Squamish website for a comprehensive list of designated campgrounds.
Recommended affordable camping:
- At the Chief:
Stawamus Chief Provincial Park Campground BC parks site, spots start at $10.00 CAD/person. No reservations.
- 7 minutes north:
Mamquam River Campground A non-profit site, spots start at $15.00cad/night for a drive-in site. Reservations recommended, not required.
- 20 minutes north:
Chek Canyon Recreation Site A public site; no fees, no reservations and world class sport-climbing. No running water. The road is steep and rough but 4x4 not required
Avg: 3.8 from 12
votes
Access Issue: Camping
Details
Continue with onX Maps
Sign in with Facebook
Bend, OR
Also: above the first pitch we went slightly right and up to a bolt (that is not marked on the topo) before continuing up the crack instead of left to the wide crack. This variation was easy and created less rope drag.
Finally, the start of the Feather pitch is thin before clipping the bolt and reaching the locks. I recommend that the belayer lower their stance a ways to give the leader room to climb (and/or fall).
Final, 10d pitch felt tough, but that might just be my lack of slab skills. Really cool, fun route! Aug 14, 2010
SW Colorado
Very easy to rap with a single 70 (probably even a 60) by using the Bella Coola/Dean Channel anchors just lookers left of the topout. 4 raps this way I believe? Jul 10, 2018
Golden, CO
I'll echo Philip's comment about the start of the feather pitch: getting to the bolt is pretty thin/cruxy. To avoid falling on to my belayer, I aided up on an rp (#3 or #4 dmm brass) clipped the bolt, then lowered back to the belay and fired the moves on TR.
The nuts on the anchor below the Feather pitch were loose so bring a wrench. Jul 7, 2019
Vancouver, BC