5 Stunning Summit Hikes Above Rossland

Climb some the most famous peaks in the Kootenays, including the highest mountain in the Rossland range!

Hiking Moderate, Difficult, Severe

Description

You can't drive into Rossland and not be inspired to go for a hike; the town is surrounded by forests and summits which are just begging to be climbed. In this guidebook, we'll describe five hikes, all of which lead you up into the beautiful highlands of the Rossland range. If these sound a little too tough for you, check out our guidebook to some easier Rossland hikes here.

Assuming you're up for a challenge, this is your guidebook. One of the hikes - the stroll up Columbia Kootenay Mountain - is short, but the other four trips here are all long, requiring at least a few hours of your time. We've got the famous trip up Red Mountain, Rossland's local ski hill, and - a couple of kilometres away - the scramble up Mount Roberts. In addition, we've got the gorgeous, long journey up Rainbow Ridge and, finally, the epic trip to the summit of Old Glory, the highest peak in the entire Rossland range.

The variety you'll find across these five hikes is remarkable, and you can expect to encounter everything from dense forests to high, alpine-esque tundra when doing them. As well as the terrain, there are also fabulous wildflowers visible from many of these hikes and, of course, the vast views for which this region is so celebrated. There's no question that the finest views of all can be found from the famous old fire lookout on the summit of Old Glory - a storied building with some fascinating history. Taking a few minutes to read about it in the parking lot before setting off is time well spent, as is the time you spend in it - admiring the view and pondering its history.

None of the routes here are high mountain alpine climbs, but if lofty, non-glaciated hikes in one of BC's most famous ranges is your thing - then welcome to Rossland!