Mount Mark

A rope assisted hike with a view overlooking Horne Lake and the Georgia Straight!

• When – All times of year. Icy in the winter, loose and dry in the summer.
• Where – Central island (Horne Lake).
• Why – Point of interest (view point of Horne Lake, Georgia Straight, Alberni inlet).
• How – Hiking (Out and back 5.5km 3 hours each way).
• Difficulty – Hard (scrambling, rope climbs, loose rock, uneven terrain, 826 M elevation gain).
• Cost – Walking is free, driving to the trail head is not.

Location / Directions

• From the Inland Island Hwy (Hwy 19) turn southwest onto Horne Lake Rd (Exit #75)
• Continue for 4.6 Km then turn right onto Horn Lake Caves rd
• Continue for 7.6 Km to Horne Lake Caves Provincial Park.
• Continue straight on Horne Lake Caves Provincial Park from 500m until you reach a pull off with a yellow gate.
• Find parking by the yellow gate where the trail starts.

• Parking/trail head – 49.348140, -124.745955
• Trail head of Horne Lake Hustle (sing) – 49.354474, -124.749402
• Mount Mark Lookout – 49.361411, – 124.742737
• Mount Mark Summit – 49.363885, – 124.734163
• Google map link: https://goo.gl/maps/3dkTBUZ6v19hSCkC9

The trail

Mount Mark or the affectionately known Horne Lake Hustle is a steep grind with meany rope assist’s, loose rocks and, beautiful views of Horne Lake, Parksville, The Georgia Straight, The Alberni Inlet as well as other peak’s through the Beaufort Mountain Range.

Climbing to the top comes with its challenges on Mount Mark. The old lime stone is described as “rotten rock”. Hand and foot holds come loose, break, or crumble when grabbed or stepped on and can then tumble down in the path of others. Close attention is required while scrambling up areas and staying alert for falling debris or calling out about debris you may dislodge yourself.

With so meany rope assists and scrambles, is a good idea to bring a pair of gloves that will be durable enough. A pair of leather yard gloves that you wouldn’t feel to bad about abusing is great on the round trip.

From the parking area at the yellow gate follow the old logging road for 3.13 km to the Horne Lake Hustle sign and beginning of the single track trail. The logging road itself has a steep incline for 2/3ds, then levels out, becoming easier, rising and dropping in shorter sections with a few washed out areas to navigate and keeping left at the fork in the road for the last 3rd to reach the sign where the road dead-ends. This is a good spot for a water break and dig out gloves to have at the ready.

The single track trail marked by hiker place flagging tap, starts directly behind the Horne Lake Hustle sign. This section of trail heads into more heavily wooded area and gains the most elevation in the shortest distance at around 400m up in 1 Km, there are meany rope assists, the first of which is only 25 to 30 meeter from the sign. the trail is unmaintained, loose, and has debris to navigate at times. Conditions can become slippery in the dry months from all the dust and icy over the winter. Careful footing is required, especially around cliffs or one of the many lookouts.

The Mount Mark lookout located about 3/4th of the way up, is the best place to enjoy the scenery. The view over looks Horne Lake with glimpses of Parksville and the Georgia Straight to the east. Followed by the Alberni Inlet and Arrowsmith to the south, the lookout is also the beginning of subalpine.

From that point forward the terrain requires less effort or brakes to rest as the last 140m of elevation gain is spread out over the last 750m of the hike to the summit. This section has one rope assist down into a shallow ravine and is split between wooded areas and steep rock face then ending at a plateau sounded by trees where the summit marker is located.

There is not much for scenery at the summit but the hike up and down make up well enough with its views.

The hike back down can should be taken slowly and it more time consuming that most hikes because of how steep the terrain is. Caution should be taken! When reaching rope assists or steep obstacles is is advised to turn around and back down them to prevent falls. Again close attention should be payed to footing, dislodging or falling debris and rock. Make sure to call out if any large rocks tumble down hill.

NOTE: In the colder months of the year, snow and accumulates and hangs around become ice especially near the summit. While not necessary micro spikes are a good idea to help give traction on some of the steeper sections.

Extras

Gear taken: First-aid kit, Leather gloves, Micro spikes, Water (2L), Backpack, Rain jacket, Snacks

Gear used: Everything listed above.

Cell reception: Yes