Stl'lhalem Sintl' Trailhead (AKA ‘Pseudo Lot’) & Related Trail Maintenance Update
Trailhead/Parking Lot Extension opens Friday, April 19th
Since the Fall of 2018, SORCA has identified the need to expand the ‘Pseudo Lot’ to divert cars off the increasingly busy Garibaldi Park road. The lot is on crown land within Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw Xay Temixw, the territory of the Squamish Nation. SORCA secured multiple funding streams, including through Squamish Lillooet Regional District’s (SLRD) Community Works Fund and, in 2022, received Sec 56 approval from Rec Sites and Trails BC (RSTBC) to build the facility. SORCA solicited the support of Chartwell Resource Group to design, solicit bids and oversee the project. Once the budget and the design were approved by SORCA, the Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure (MOTI) and RSTBC, work commenced on March 11, 2024. SORCA would like to extend a special thank you to Surerus Murphy Joint Venture (SMJV) for providing an 11th-hour in-kind contribution of capping and other materials and labour. This contribution will result in a much-improved facility with significantly lower ongoing maintenance. The new trailhead increases the parking capacity from roughly 21 to 105 vehicles as well as moves the start of the climb trail away from the road and slows down the exit of Pseudo-Tsuga into the parking area. Construction images can be found here.
This expansion project could not have been accomplished without the significant financial and/or in-kind contributions from the following groups:
Squamish Lillooet Regional District
SMJV
Chartwell Resource Group
CVC (Coast Valley Contracting)
Silverback Treeworks
SORCA volunteers and staff who went over and above to secure permissions, funding and ensure that the project came to fruition
The complete signage package for the parking lot will not be installed for few days. We ask that all users be patient until the comprehensive signage package is in place. The new layout is as follows:
Related Trail Work
i) Pseudo 3 Bridge and Trail Work
With Pseudo 3’s mandatory closure during the parking lot construction, the trail crew strategically planned to work on a bridge railing repair and drainage and berm maintenance to the portion of the trail after Flat Alley.
Unfortunately, upon an inspection of the bridge requiring the railing repair, it was discovered that one of the stringers was cracked compromising its structural integrity and necessitated immediate bridge decommissioning and replacement. It should be noted that trail feature inspections are integral to SORCA’s partnership agreement with the land manager, RSTBC. Given the tight timeline, SORCA’s Trail Committee hired a contractor to replace the structure. The contractor selected to replace the bridge best met the criteria of SORCA’s Contractor Selection Policy for this project, including their ability to replace in the required timeframe (before the parking lot was complete), a demonstrated willingness to work collaboratively with SORCA’s trail crew, competitive pricing, adherence to all the elements in our Ethical Code of Conduct and an exemplary reference from the land manager. The bridge was completed on 4-11-24. The trail crew, along with one other trail contractor, have now completed the minor touch-ups to the lower portion of Pseudo 3 and are delighted to report that the trail will be open as of Friday, April 19th. Riders will also note that the trail now ends 30m before reaching the parking lot to help reduce speeds and the chances of vehicle / mtb collisions.
ii) Stl'lhalem Sintl' climb trail
Riders should also take note that the original start of the Stl'lhalem Sintl' climb trail has moved 50m to the east of the old entrance. The Ministry of Transportation requested this adjustment to discourage riders from converging on or near Garibaldi Park Road.
