Camp Highlights

Traverse an entire range within the Purcell Mountains
Explore pristine wilderness through alpine meadows and across broad ridges
Travel under the guidance of local ACMG-certified guides
Enjoy all meals provided by Peakeats and get half portered in to the halfway mark

Dates & price

July 23rd - 31st, 2022
$1, 695 + Tax / Person

Join us on This Unique Adventure Through the Purcells

The Dogtooth Range parallels the Columbia River to the east and is bordered by the Spillimacheen and Beaver rivers to the west. Although there are no built trails, the whole trip takes place above treeline on broad ridges and through endless alpine meadows. Ninety percent of this hike is along game trails, so the opportunities for wildlife sightings are very good.

Over the course of 9 days, the group will traverse the entirety of this spectacular range covering 60 km from 12 Mile Creek to Quartz Creek with 4500 m of elevation change (~8 km and 600-700 m elevation gain per day). While all meals are provided on this trip, you are responsible for carrying it with you. Fortunately, we are able to stash some of it at the (almost) halfway point near Gorman Lake to resupply.

All good traverses start at the finish. From Quartz Creek, once meals are distributed, and vehicles are secured with chicken wire (to keep the hungry porcupines at bay), a shuttle will take the group to 12 Mile Creek where the adventure begins. The first few days will follow the spine of the ridge, camping by small alpine lakes and giving continuous view of the Bugaboos and Vowells to the West and Rockies to the East. The next few days will lead the group through the McLean Creek basin and Canyon Creek, which comprises of three large alpine basins. Halfway, the group will make a pitstop at Gorman Lake to restock on food and fuel. The remainder of the traverse will pass Dawn Mountain and Moonraker Peak on the way to Grizzly Creek. Once again following the spine of the range, the group will descend to Quartz Lake, then follow Quartz Creek back to the vehicles.

Camp Objectives

Hike, hike and hike! The aim of this trip is to experience pristine wilderness in the way of ridges, alpine lakes, and a seemingly endless array of wildflowers.

Day by Day Adventure Itinerary

Day 1: Meet your group at the Bluebird Cafe in Golden, BC, then convoy to the Quartz Creek parking area. There, a shuttle will meet you to take the group to 12 Mile Creek, the trailhead for this trip. Once on the trail, the group will begin ascending towards the ridge, pitching camp along the way.
Days 2 - 8 (general itinerary):
0700: Make breakfast, clean up camp (remember to leave no trace!), and pack your bags for another day of hiking.
0830: Departure! Depending on the plan for the day, the group may do a day trip or keep traversing the range in search of the next campsite.
1630: Return to camp or set-up camp in a new location
1800: Dinner time!
1930: Free time to journal, read, share stories or play a card game.
Day 9: Pack up camp for the final time before making the final push back down to the vehicles at Quartz Creek.

Food, Accommodation and Guiding

Food

All meals will be provided by PeakEats based in Canmore, AB. You will need to pack your own bowl, mug, utensils, and favourite adventure treats (if you want). Prior to the trip, your guides will store half of the provided meals in a cache roughly halfway along the trek. Everyone is expected to help with cooking and clean up for the meals.

Since the group may camp in sparsely treed areas, we also have bear-proof food bags that can be borrowed as well.
The ACC will provide all fuel and stoves for cooking to make sure the group doesn't carrying in too much extra supplies.

Accommodation

The Dogtooth Range will be hosting your accommodation this trip. If you do not have access to a backpacking tent, we have 5 three-person tents that we can lend to participants. Please not that theses are regular length tents, so they may be a little short for taller folks. Contact the Mountain Adventures Coordinator if you would like to borrow one.

We will not be setting up tent partners for this trip. However, if you have concerns about the sleeping arrangements please let us know.

Guiding

This camp is guided by Association of Canadian Mountain Guides (ACMG) certified Hiking guides. Our maximum 6:1 guiding ratio will ensure that everyone gets the support they need to undertake this impressive trek.

Is this Camp For Me?

This camp is designed for novice multi-day hikers or strong day hikers.

While not there is nothing too technical about this traverse, it definitly warrants some prior experience in the backcountry. With nine back-to-back days of hiking and navigating scree sloopes, you should be an expereinced hiker and have a pretty good fitness level going into the camp. We definitely recommend that you do a few hikes during the leading up to this camp, unless you're looking for a greuling start to your season.

Please note that there should be four to five hours of hiking each day with approximately 8 to 10 km distance to travel. Some days there will be no elevation gain and our biggest day will be 750m. This traverse has been designed to provide lots of time to enjoy the landscape.

Your Guides

WILL WOODS

Will was born in Calgary, Alberta. He spent a large amount of time playing in the mountains with his family growing up and decided to turn his love of adventuring outside with people into a profession. Graduating from Mount Royal College in Calgary with a Bachelors of Applied Eco-Tourism and Outdoor Leadership in 2006, he is also a proud member of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, the Outdoor Council of Canada and the Canadian Avalanche Association. Over the past 20 years he has built and lead adventure trips for a variety of different guests, who all seem to catch Will’s passion for wild places. Will has been lucky enough to guide in some pretty unique places, like past the Arctic Circle on Baffin Island, down under in Australia and all over Western Canada.

Adventure Map

MORE INFORMATION

Please try to register online before calling. If you are having issues please try to have your emergency contact information and course questionnaire filled out before calling.

Email us
403 678 3200 ext. 213

COURSE DOCUMENTS

Gear List

Before registering, please review our Waivers and Liability page:

Trip Waivers and Liability Page

CANCELLATION POLICY AND TRAVEL INSURANCE

Please be sure to review our cancellation policy before registering for ACC Adventures:

Cancellation Policy
We sell Tugo® Travel Insurance suitable for both ACC Adventures and personal trips:

Travel Insurance

INCLUDED WITH YOUR CAMP FEE

9 days guiding by certified ACMG hiking guides at maximum 6:1 client to guide ratio
8 nights camping under the stars in the Purcell Wilderness
All meals from dinner on day 1 to lunch on day 9 provided
Half of trip food portered to halfway point on trail
Shuttle from end point to the trailhead on Day 1
All group gear (i.e. communication devices, first aid kit, etc.)

PARTICIPANTS MUST PROVIDE

Transportation to and from meeting place
Personal gear (see gear list)
Breakfast and lunch on day 1, dinner on day 9

ORGANIZING FANTASTIC ACC ADVENTURES FOR OVER 100 YEARS

Local Knowledge - based out of Canmore, AB, we know the Rockies region and the best local caterers, guides and porters
Dedicated resources - full-time office staff, ACMG guides and group equipment on-hand to ensure your trip runs smoothly
Not-for-profit - any money we make on camps and courses is reinvested into providing services for our members and the mountain community