Spectrum Lake

Spectrum Lake is located within Monashee Provincial Park. This hike is the perfect first time backpacking trip. From the parking lot to Spectrum Lake, the trail is 6km with 270 metres of elevation gain. The return trip is 6km with 100 metres of elevation gain. The trail is well maintained. It takes about 1.5 to 2 hours.

Spectrum Lake is nestled among beautiful mountains. The campsites are spread around the shore. There is a group camping area and individual campsites. The campsites include a wooden platform for your tent and some sites have an dirt pad. There are outhouses, a pole to hang your food, picnic tables at each site, and some sites have a gazebo. The outhouses do not have toilet paper so we brought our own.

The Hike

The Spectrum Lake parking lot is the primary entry point for Monashee Provincial Park. There is a nearby outhouse at the trail head. There is plenty of space to park cars. Spectrum Lake is a popular destination so arrive early. To reach the parking lot, please refer to the Monashee Provincial Park website for up to date info: https://bcparks.ca/monashee-park/#maps-and-location

From the parking lot, we saw a sign at the entrance. The trail began to the left of the sign...

Not far from the trail head, we encountered a bridge over Spectrum Creek.

Spectrum Creek

On the trail, we saw large cedar trees.

There is plenty of devil's club nearby too. Fortunately, the trail is well maintained so we didn't have to hike through it. However, it is a preview for those who venture off trail in the valleys beyond Monashee Provincial Park.

The board walk is quite pleasant.

The trail continues along a well marked path. There are a number of bridges crossing small creeks. These are perfect places to refill water bottles.

Beautiful small waterfalls...

Once at the lake, we had a wooden tent platform, a gazebo, picnic table and fire pit. The outhouses were up the hill behind our site. The pole to hang food is further along the trail to the left in this photo.

Not far from our site, there is a dock. Plenty of space to relax. The water is shallow to start but it gets deep quickly. It would be perfect for a swim in warmer weather.

Final Thoughts

Spectrum Lake is the perfect destination for a first time backpacker. For experienced backpackers, it's a great first hike of the season to 'shake out' your gear. For those who want to stay a couple nights at Spectrum Lake, you can venture further to Little Peters Lake or Big Peters Lake. If you're a fast hiker, I would recommend camping at Spectrum Lake. Then, day hike or run to the summit of Mount Fosthall.