Sunken Lake Falls Trail

In true investigative reporting style, our family decided to set out to test the Sunken Lake Falls Trail so we could share with you another hike in the Valley. 

It turned out to be quite the adventure. 

 

About the Hike

I had seen someone post some pictures this summer from the Sunken Lake Falls, and so I set about to do some research to find out more about this trail. 

One site says: 

4km moderate walking trail, approximately 1 hour to complete. Best time to do: Spring, Summer or Fall (Autumn)

How hard could it be?

5 kids. 5 adults. 2 dogs. We set out to explore. 

The Trail 

The trail is not moderate. It’s really an ATV/snowmobile track through the woods, so it is quite rugged to walk on, and very wet in places. 

You definitely need to do a tick check after walking though the grass and woodlands! 

Maps

This trail is impossible to do without a GPS or a really good map. Luckily, my husband has a fantastic hiking app on his phone that showed us exactly where the trail was, because in some spots, we weren’t sure! 

The free app is called OsmAnd. He says it takes a bit to set up, but is really easy to use once you do. Want to ask him some questions about it? Email info@valleyfamilyfun.ca. 

• Works totally offline (no roaming charges when you are abroad) but also has a (fast) online option

There is a great map on this TripUGo site that outlines the dotted lines of the hiking trail. 

We cannot stress enough, that you must have something like this on your phone to track you while you are doing this trail. 

Sunken Lakes Fall

Thanks to our tracker device, we found the off shoot to the Sunken Lake Falls. The entrance to this point-to-point trail is actually marked by pink ribbons. 

Follow that, and you will come to the top of the cliff. 

The Falls are straight down, 200m. You CANNOT see the falls from the top of this cliff. 

Walk a bit further along the path, and you will see the steep trail (with rope on trees) down to the stream.

At the bottom of the slope the trail turns south and follows the stream to a pool and the falls.

Because we had smaller children, and it was the end of the summer, so the water wasn’t running as rapidly at this time of year, we decided not to go down to the falls. 

We returned to the main “road” and continued on the loop. 

Our Journey

By continuing on, we looped around, and ended up following gravel roads back to the car.

This was 6km. 2.5 hours. 

The trail was TOUGH for the first time. Hard to see the path, swampy, and broken bridges. 

There was a lot of coyote and bear poop along the road, so if that bothers you, best to stay away. And, a lot of shot gun shells, so DO NOT walk this trail in hunting season, either. 

Once we completed the first “side of the loop” and turned the corner to loop back, we were on a gravel road for at least an hour. 

It was hot. There was no shade, and frankly, nothing of interest at all to look at. 

The kids and I started composing a list of “1 million and 1 reasons NOT to do this hike”. It kept us going. 

Avid Hikers

As my husband says, if he had a rucksack, the GPS and the dog, this is a great hike he would have done by himself. There are lots more trails and loops through the woods that go beyond what we did. 

The Scouts also use this trail as it is near their Sunken Lake Camp. They have maps on their website, too, but don’t mention the loop. 

Location

If you do want to attempt this trail, the head of the trail is on Sunken Lake Road. Drive to the end when you see the yellow caution sign and the road divides. 

 

If you are looking for a family-friendly hike, this is NOT the one for you. Best leave this trails to the Scouts, avid hikers and hunters!