Leg Burners—Evac Route (Squamish, BC)

For those lucky enough to call Squamish (or the Sea-to-Sky corridor home, the local zone is home to some stellar trail running and touring in winter.

Stats

Metric	Sea to Sky Gondola Base to Summit Lodge
Trailhead	30m (98.5 feet)
Summit	880m (2887 feet)
Distance, one way	3 kilometers (1.86 miles)
Vertical gain	921m (3021 feet)
Average grade, whole climb	29%
Descent options	Download S2SGDescend S2SG Access RoadReverse the route (not recommended)
Season	Nearly year round (microspikes in winter)
Cost	Free to run down.$19 CAD to download once$219 CAD for annual pass (inc. ski access)
Water	Several creeks along the way.
Speed Record Women	Kalie McCrystal 41:24
Speed Record Men	Alex Ricard – 34:53

The Route

Link: S2SG Trail Info Page

The Evac Route began as the primary trail for workers building the Sea to Sky Gondola. Over time, it evolved into “The Climb” and is now an officially sanctioned trail. Note: park at the gondola base. A parking pass is required but is free to annual pass holders. The trailhead has a large arch designating the start. 

From the trailhead, The Climb immediately splits from the Sea to Summit trail. Watch for another trailhead sign indicating The Climb. From here it heads steeply into the forest and is rather unrelenting. An early ladder is a good indicator if you should continue on (may be a waterfall if it’s raining). The Climb crosses the Sea to Summit at roughly ⅓ distance. The trails join briefly, then take the left fork.

At about ¾ distance, you rejoin Sea to Summit again and stay on this for the remainder of the trail. This upper section may be quite snowy in mid-winter (2+ meters), and so microspikes are wise. 

Several variations on The Climb exist (Kelly’s Connector), so check out the online maps and do some exploring. Descend by taking the S2SG (download passes can be purchased up top). An annual pass gets you lots of benefits so just go for it, then come back skiing in the winter! It’s also possible to run down the service road behind the gondola (good downhill training). Reversing the trail isn’t recommended, as it’s quite steep and not very pleasant to run.

Editor’s Note: If you are in the area over the summer months and looking for more trail/mountain running ideas, this link from SkiUphill (a sweet gear retailer in Squamish) should have you covered.