Hiking the Summit Trails in Mount Revelstoke National Park

CURRENT INFO

A map and reviews for the Upper Summit Trail and other Mount Revelstoke trails are available on the AllTrails website. The Mount Revelstoke National Park website with Parks Canada also has excellent information about all the various short hikes at the summit.

GOOD TO KNOW

• All visitors must pay the national park entrance fee or have a valid annual Parks Canada Discovery Pass to drive the Meadows in the Sky Parkway and visit the summit of Mount Revelstoke. Passes can be purchased at the entrance station for the Meadows in the Sky Parkway and in the visitor center at Snowforest Campground. Check the Mount Revelstoke National Park website for current information.
• The public parking lot is located below the summit. From here, you can hike the Upper Summit trail to reach the top, or take a shuttle bus. Shuttle bus schedules are posted at the parking lot, or check ahead of time at the visitor center.
• The Mount Revelstoke summit trails are open from roughly May through October.
• Toilets are available at the parking lot and near Balsam Lake.
• Our hike included the Upper Summit, Fire Lookout, Koo Koo Sint, Heather Lake, and First Footsteps Trails. Don’t worry too much about having a “plan” for these hikes. Because they are so short, it’s easy to add on extra trails or viewpoints as you like.
• The Nels’ Knickers Trail, while not located at the summit, is another great stop along the Meadows in the Sky Parkway. Walk a short downhill trail to an abandoned ski jump, where you can pose as Nels Nelson, the famed Canadian skier who broke ski jump records in the 1920s.
• Good signage is available at the trailhead and at many trail junctions.
• Watch for the Red Chairs, which offer iconic views, as well as the chance to rest your feet. Many of the trails also offer benches.
• Don’t eat the berries! No, they’re not poisonous, but berries in Mount Revelstoke Park are reserved for the bears, who need all they can eat to fatten up for winter.
• Always follow Leave No Trace principles.

HIGHLIGHTS

With gorgeous views of the Columbia River and Selkirk Mountains, a fun fire lookout to explore, and vibrant summer wildflowers, Mount Revelstoke is a joy to explore. The short, easy trails described here make it doable for many visitors who might not be up for a long hike. But if this scenery whets your appetite for more, take heart — Mount Revelstoke is also the starting point for several longer hikes, leading to more stunning alpine scenery.

THE KIDS’ TAKE

The short, easy hikes at the summit of Mount Revelstoke are great for all ages. Kids can try an art project at the Balsam Studio, watch for signs of smoke from the Summit Fire Lookout, and relax in a red chair with a view. While driving the Meadows in the Sky Parkway, be sure to stop by the Nels’ Knickers Trail. Here, a sculpture of ski jumper Nels Nelson’s knickers (yep, you heard right) allows you to pose at the site of one of his most famous jumps.

WHILE YOU’RE HERE

Mount Revelstoke National Park is conveniently close to the town of Revelstoke, an area rich with year-round recreational opportunities. Campers can stay in lovely Snowforest Campground, conveniently located within Mount Revelstoke National Park and only a ten-minute drive from town.

During our stay, we visited the Revelstoke Railway Museum, which offers a great introduction to the crucial role the railway played in the development of this region. Revelstoke also offers a number of good eateries. We recommend Dose Coffee, Terra Firma’s Kitchen, and (our favorite) La Baguette, which offers takeaway sandwiches as well as a restaurant and bakery.

Less than an hour’s drive from Mount Revelstoke, Canada’s Glacier National Park is another worthy stop. Not to be confused with the more famous U.S. park of the same name, much of Glacier National Park is only accessible via back country trails. However, there are a few easy stops along Trans Canada Highway 1 worth exploring. Our kids loved the short but very entertaining Rock Garden Trail. Further east, the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre offers a great look at the local flora and fauna, as well as the surprisingly fascinating world of avalanche control.

It was the first full day of our Canadian camping trip, and the weather could not have been better. After spending the morning exploring in town, we took the slow but scenic drive up the Meadows in the Sky Parkway to the summit of Mount Revelstoke. Each hairpin curve drew us closer to our goal.

The summit was a popular place, with a line of parked cars snaking their way down the road from the parking lot. Fortunately, arriving in the afternoon worked to our advantage, and we snagged a recently vacated spot in the lot.

I was a little turned around at first. Where was the trail? Fortunately, a helpful sign pointed the way. Since it was peak summer season, a park ranger was also stationed at the parking lot to provide information.

We followed the short trail to Balsam Lake. Another parking lot is located here, conveniently close to the Balsam Studio and Balsam Lake. This small lake is really more of a pond. Each spring as the snow melts, water fills the shallow rift between the trees. Over summer, the water slowly evaporates and is absorbed into the ground, until nothing but a small puddle remains each fall. Then the winter snows return, and the cycle begins again.

Before heading to check out Balsam Lake, we stopped by the Balsam Studio, where a sign offered visitors the chance to give wildflower painting a try. T was immediately drawn in by this appealing invitation, especially when he saw they offered coloring sheets featuring the local wildlife.

While T happily painted in the studio, J and I took a walk around Balsam Lake. The east shore was blanketed with huckleberry bushes laden with plump, ripe berries. What luck! We filled out hands with the choicest specimens, and hurried back to the studio to share our good fortune.

Alas, our huckleberry dreams were dashed when the ranger at the studio overheard us sharing our bounty.

“Actually, it’s illegal to pick berries in the national park,” she told us gently. “It’s because of the bears. They’re fattening up for winter, and we need to save the berries for them.”

Oh. Stunned and a little disappointed, J went outside to dump his uneaten berries on the ground in hopes that a local critter might find them. But it’s true — the bears need those berries. I have since learned that black bears can eat up to 30,000 berries in one single day. 30,000! It isn’t always easy to find so many berries, so I’m willing to do my part and forego the berry picking. But man, those were some tasty huckleberries!

After we managed to pry T away from the watercolors, we headed up the trail toward the summit. A road also leads to the summit, but is closed to regular car traffic. It’s another option for walkers who prefer a paved surface to a natural dirt trail, and a shuttle bus runs intermittently throughout the day.

At the summit, the main attractions are the quaint fire lookout and the expansive views overlooking the Columbia River. A network of short trails crisscrosses this area, but it’s hard to get lost. The kids were immediately taken by the fire lookout, which offers the chance to try out the old equipment. Thankfully, we didn’t spot any wildfires today.

We admired the view and enjoyed a relaxing few minutes in the red chairs (a common sight in the Canadian national parks wherever you find a great viewpoint). From here, we followed the signs for the Koo Koo Sint Trail, a short loop offering more mountain vistas and trees. Koo Koo Sint, meaning “Stargazer”, was the name some First Nations people gave to David Thompson, a Canadian surveyor and cartographer of the early 1800s.

Speaking of First Nations, all too often we forget that long before these national parks existed, the indigenous people of what is now Canada and the U.S. called these lands home. Sadly, even the creation of these parks often came at the expense of the people who were here first. Little by little, the parks are beginning to work more with indigenous groups to improve education and awareness of this history.

At Mount Revelstoke National Park, one sign of these efforts is the First Footsteps Trail. Located across the small parking lot from the fire lookout, this short path features kid-friendly signs explaining the importance of various plants to the First Nations people of this region. It also showcases art honoring the people who originally called this beautiful place home.

Although the First Footsteps trail is short, the path is a bit rocky and rough in one area. While not particularly difficult, I mention this to note that this isn’t a fully accessible trail. Those with limited mobility can still check out the art near the beginning and end of the loop.

After hiking the First Footsteps Trail, we decided to return to the parking lot via the road rather than the trail. It’s a gentle downhill walk, with the peaks of the Selkirk Mountains appearing just above the tree tops. On a hot day, the trail is the shadier option. Fortunately, by now it was late afternoon and the heat of the day was subsiding.

We returned to a half empty parking lot, and no sign of the line of cars that marked our arrival. As we wound back down Mount Revelstoke along the Meadows in the Sky Parkway, the trees grew taller and the mountains disappeared form view. After a stop to explore the Nels’ Knickers Trail (so much fun!), we arrived at Snowforest Campground. It was the perfect place to end a beautiful day spent exploring Mount Revelstoke National Park.