Mount Garibaldi: Your Complete Guide

When looking at potential climbing routes in the Squamish region for my BC trip, I stumbled across Mount Garibaldi.

the mountain itself looks gnarly and rugged. On top of this, Garibaldi is a stratovolcano that stands at 2,678 meters (8,781 feet) tall and is surrounded by the most pristine peaks in the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains.

Learning about the mountain’s rugged beauty, steep ascent and 360 views, I knew I had to try and tackle this peak on my May BC trip. Little did I know, this mountain would be more challenging than expected due to unpredictable circumstances…

Day 1 - The Long and Winding Road

We decided to follow the north-east climbing route for Mount Garibaldi, which is roughly 40 km and 2700m (8858 FT) of elevation gain.

After stopping at Climb On in Squamish to rent some crampons and an ice axe for my brother, we began on the trail at around 9:30 am, hoping to reach Brohm Ridge at a reasonable time. We kicked off from the Cat Lake recreation site, which we estimated would set us up for roughly a 17 km day.

With the sun shining and the trail empty, day 1 was off to a good start. By lunch, we were moving at a steady pace, and had reached a series of tough switchbacks on the logging road.

Eventually, we came across snow covering the logging road. from here on, the rest of the trek was on snow.

Our route for garibaldi

We didn’t see anyone else climbing Mount Garibaldi the whole first day, but we did chat with some local snowmobile club members, who happened to be grooming the snow along the logging road using their snowcat machine.

The majority of the trek is along this same logging road, and at times it feels long.

With 4x4 and some clearance, you can easily drive further up rather than parking at Cat Lake. there are plenty of cleared spots to park your vehicle along the road.

Snowcat passing us by as mount garibaldi looms in the background.

By about 1 pm when we came across the Brohm Ridge chalet, we were gassed. Between the snowy trail and steep elevation gain in the second half of the day, we were wiped. Fortunately, we only had a few kilometres to go before we called it a day. 

By around 3:30 pm and 17.5 km in, we reached what we deemed an acceptable base camp for the night. After setting up our basecamp overlooking Mount Garibaldi, we hoped it would set us up for an easy enough approach along brohm ridge and a successful summit on day 2. 

Day 2 - Summit Day

Running on 3 hours of sleep and not nearly enough water, we began our approach to the base of Garibaldi at 5:30 am. When we checked the forecast on Friday evening, our spirits were high given the anticipated weather.

Our basecamp on brohm ridge overlooking mount garibaldi. the weather held up during the evening of our first day.

We quickly realized that the approach would be longer and more strenuous than we had initially hoped. The morning was a slog through soft snow, trekking up and down countless large dune-like snow bowls.

we eventually reached the base of Mount Garibaldi at around 8:30 am. 

about three-quarters of the way there, we realized that a summit attempt may not be in the cards given sudden weather changes.

Our dreams of sunshine and good climbing conditions were dashed when thick clouds rolled in and began showering us with a lovely mix of snow and rain.

the snow and rain paired with white-out conditions made low visibility a real issue, forcing us to turn around when we reached Warren Glacier, just to the left of Mount Garibaldi’s base. 

standing on warren glacier shortly before turning around. behind us is mount garibaldi, which was almost completely hidden by the whiteout

On our way out, licking our wounds about the failed climb and dreading the 20-something kilometre trek out, we met up with the same two snowmobile club members who passed us on our way up. 

Fortunately for us, they offered us a ride down from the cabin on the back of their snowcat. Given the now pouring rain, we eagerly accepted. 

Tips For Success on Mount Garibaldi

All in all the failed summit attempt was a bummer, but the trek itself was gorgeous. A few things to note, especially if you plan to do Mount Garibaldi in the early season, water sources are limited (we neglected this aspect). Be prepared to melt snow and/or carry in extra water. 

clouds beginning to cover mount garibaldi. The approach can be seen on the left, featuring large bowls and hills.

One of the advantages of climbing in the early season is that you are likely to see fewer crevasses open. 

For your approach, be sure to camp on Brohm Ridge as close to the base of Garibaldi as possible to avoid a long approach. Our GPS read as 17.5km when we decided to set up base camp and I recommend starting closer to Garibaldi if you can manage it. 

This is not a beginner route for hiking, as AllTrails describes, it is an intense mountaineering route that requires knowledge of snow/glacier travel and proper gear. The local snowmobilers told us they regularly have to retrieve lost or underprepared hikers from this route. 

Navigation was not very difficult given that you are following an obvious road for most of the trek.

be sure to pick an approach route and stick to it when on Brohm Ridge, to avoid having to re-route or deal with massive elevation gains and drops. 

behind me is the stunning 360 view of the coastal mountains during our approach day.

Lastly, be prepared for shifts in weather, long days of travelling on snow and most importantly, do not attempt to summit if conditions are bad.

A good day in the mountains is a safe one. Happy climbing!