When we drive down the Coquihalla Highway to the Coast, we pass the old tollbooth area in the Coquihalla Summit area and on clear days we can look across the Coquihalla Canyon  to the south and enjoy the views of a rocky range of peaks.   The Bedded Range (part of the Hozameen Range) parallels the Coquihalla River.   Coquihalla Mountain is the highest and largest peak of the range, 9 km due south from the Falls Creek turn-off.     The access to the peaks of the Bedded Range is up Illal Creek from the east.

To get to the trailhead, turn off at the Britton Creek/Coquihalla Lakes exit and follow the road south past the lodge and down the Tulameen Forest Service Road for 19 km.   Just past the 19 km marker is a bridge across Illal Creek.   Right away is a turn onto the deactivated Illal Creek Road.   this overgrown, narrow rough road has 30 waterbars in 3 km and requires high clearance, but 4WD would help for a couple of the rougher sections.   Hikers could also walk the road, but that would add 6 km to the day’s hike.   The road ends in a landing.   The trailhead is on the right, following an old skid track.   The first section is a bit overgrown, but once the trail enters the cedar-hemlock forest, the trail is a good one.

 

After about 2.3  km of hiking in the forest, the first patches of subalpine slopes provide improving views across the Illal Creek Valley over to Spiral Peak and the reddish blueberry slopes in the upper valley.

 

As the trail climbs out of the trees, Jim Kelly Peak (2107m) dominates the skyline.

 

The trail reaches the alpine meadows at about 4 km.   Illal Peak (2020m) rises above the meadows due north.

Some patches of stunted krummholz trees stand in the rocky meadows.

 

Streams run down the meadows from perennial snowfields in the upper meadows.   This would be  fine spot to camp.

 

The subalpine meadows shrubs were full of color, but even the ground cover vegetation in the alpine zone was a blend of yellows, greens, oranges, and reds.

 

Coquihalla Mountain (2157 m) is a series of rocky peaks and ridges on the west side of the meadows.

 

The u-shaped valleys north of Coquihalla Mountain can be viewed from  the Coquihalla Highway between Falls Creek and Zopkios Ridge.

 

Needle Peak (2051 m) and Markhor Peak rise above the Coquihalla Canyon  7 km to the northwest.

 

A high pass between Jim Kelly Peak and Coquihalla Mountain provides some views to Tulameen Mountain and beyond to Mount Outram and the Cascade Range.

 

The hike into the meadows and back is about 11 km, depending on whether you can drive to the trailhead or not and also on how much exploration you choose to do in the alpine terrain.   Both Jim Kelly and Coquihalla Mountain would require scrambling.   Jim Kelly is a Class 3 scramble and a quick ascent.   Coquihalla Mountain has some Class 4 scramble sections and some exposure on the three summits.   Most hikers will choose to go up Illal Peak instead, a 2 km return hike.   Backpacking into the area would be an excellent choice, exploring the meadows, ridges, and peaks of the area.

 

After some exploration of the meadows, we returned by the same trail, descending 618m (20227 feet) in about 5 km.

 

Illal Meadows has been on our list for some time so we were pleased to get up there to enjoy the fall colors and the impressive scenery.   We will return to backpack, to ascend Jim Kelly and Illal Peak, and to enjoy camping in the alpine meadows.

More Information:

There are numerous articles on hikes in the Coquihalla Summit area.   Use the search bar(on the upper right of the webpage)  to find the ones that interest you.    A partial list of these includes Needle Peak, Flatiron, Yak Peak, Guanaco Peak, Zoa, Zupjok, Falls Lake, Little Douglas Lake, Iago Peak, and July Peak.