Mt Crawford is one of those hikes you’d prepare for a full day of hiking if you didn’t know any better. Climbing to a 2350m summit has got to be a long trek.
Well, it’s actually only 4.7km round trip and there’s just no way to say it’s not worth doing when you get such amazing views after a short scramble.
From Crawford Bay, BC, it takes around 45 minutes to reach the Mt Crawford and Plaid Lake trailhead. For the most part the road is very easy to follow, and is well marked with signs to Plaid Lake.
You will need a high-clearance vehicle to get up to this one. There are lots of washout spots and some large bumps. This road is like the one to the Thompson Rim Trail in Creston, BC, as it gains a lot of the elevation for you.
The trail begins by going through the trees with a steady incline as you make your way to the ridge. Only the first 800m to kilometre is in tree cover. After this, you are either walking on a ridge, or scrambling up a mountain.
The ridge trail itself is a very unique trail that follows the rocky edge around to Mt Crawford. Kootenay Lake is visible the whole time once you clear the tree-line.
The trail to Plaid Lake veers off to the left, drops, and loops around the base of Mt Crawford. We did not hike to Plaid Lake because of how much snow was still on the trail.
From the Plaid Lake Trail cut-off, the trail up Mt Crawford kind of disappears and the quick scramble begins. It’s about 1-km to the peak when you start scrambling up the steep section.
Once at the top, follow the ridge up to the peak on the right.
From here, you can see Kootenay Lake even better. The ferry route is in perfect sight. Looking the other direction you can see Plaid Lake lying far below you, and rocky peaks all around. You can see both Sphinx Mountain to the south and Mt Loki to the North if you look hard enough.
There’s not much room at the top of the peak, and as much as you know it’s all stable, the rocks all seem lose. You get great views, and the full adrenaline-rushed mountain experience on Mt Crawford.
The way down is much faster, and it shouldn’t take you more than 2.5hours round-trip depending on the weather.
If you’re coming off the ferry and have a free afternoon, or are looking for an easy, but worthwhile day-hike, a quick scramble up Mt Crawford should be at the top of your list.
A great, easy scramble that gives any hiker a little bit more of a challenge, but isn’t too long it gets stressful. Mt Crawford is an easy scramble for the best views you can get of Kootenay Lake. But, maybe not so easy on your vehicle.
Details
Distance: 4.7km round-trip
Elevation gain: 750m approx.
Max Elevation: 2350m
Estimated time: 2.5 hours
Kootenay Hiker 
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