Trip 263 - September 2, 2022 (Friday)

Baba Canyon Hike

North of Fort Nelson BC / Near Toad River BC

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Baba Canyon Trailhead Location: Off BC Highway 97 (Alaska Hwy), approximately 150 km North of Fort Nelson and 41 km South of Toad River.

Liked: Numerous impressive mountain views, several fine small waterfalls, haphazard stone formations in the creek bed, no bugs.

Of Note: No cell signal, limited tree coverage, a very treacherous trail frequently composed of small and large boulders, several creek crossings required (wading may be necessary in high water), (semi-)experienced and well equipped hikers only, hiking poles and boots are essential.

Northern BC Backroad Mapbook (3rd edition) Approximate Trailhead Coordinates: Page 80 (Steamboat) B5.

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Baba Canyon is located off BC Highway 97 (Alaska Highway), approximately 150 km North of Fort Nelson and 41 km South of Toad River. The parking lot for Baba Canyon is pretty much right across from the parking lot for MacDonald Creek trailhead of Wokkpash Loop Trail, covered in the previous trip report. The hike is straightforward - go up MacDonald Creek for about 2.75 km to a split, where you take a left drainage and then hike as much or as little as you want after that. We stopped at the 2.65 km mark after the split (for a total distance of 5.4 km one way), but it is possible to hike much further, as well as climb the nearby mountains. Throughout, there are impressive mountain views, a variety of haphazard stone formations in the creek bed, and several fine small waterfalls.

This hike is better done late in the season, as high water level in McDonald Creek would force you to wade more than you might want. That said, the waterfalls would certainly be more impressive the more water there is in the creek. There is a path here and there on the side of the creek, but crossing the creek is required several times. We managed to do stone-hopping this late in the season, but get ready for substantial wading, should you desire to get to the best views of the hike.

As there are numerous opportunities to get hurt in Baba Canyon due to a whole lot of loose stones large and small, as well as frequent slippery nature of the surface, this hike is suitable for folks with at least some hiking experience, and with all the necessary hiking equipment.

*All trail distances are based on a GPS odometer and are approximate.

27. At 400 meters after the creek drainage split.

Baba Canyon

28. Waterfall #3 arrives at 500 meters. Wet stones indicate how large this waterfall can get when the water flow is right.

Baba Canyon Waterfall

29. At 620 meters, there is this interesting flat stone "platform".

Baba Canyon Hike

30. A mini-canyon inside Baba Canyon starts at 730 meters after the split.

Hiking Baba Canyon

31-32. The mini-canyon is about 50 meters-long, and leads to waterfall #4. There is no way to climb up there, so backtracking is in order.

Baba Canyon BC

Baba Canyon North of Fort Nelson British Columbia

33. Having backtracked, here is a view of waterfall #4 from above.

BC Hiking - Baba Canyon

34. Baba Canyon at 780 meters from the split.

BC Hiking - Baba Canyon

35. At the 1.00 km mark, all those fine mountains appear in their full glory. The first two.

Baba Canyon Hike

36. The third one, on the right.

Hiking Baba Canyon

37. Now a panorama.

Baba Canyon - British Columbia - Canada

Here is our video of the views from this location.

38. The views did not get better from the 1.00 km mark until we finished the hike 2.65 km from the split. So, this might be a good place to go back, unless you want to go even further than we did and see what's out there. In the meanwhile, we are at 1.32 km from the drainage split.

Baba Canyon British Columbia

39. Now at 1.94 km.

British Columbia Hiking - Baba Canyon

40. Baba Canyon Route 2.47 km from the drainage split. All those fine mountains are to the right of where we are.

Hike in Canada - British Columbia - Baba Canyon

41. A bit further.

Baba Canyon Hike in Northern British Columbia

42. And here is where we ended our hike, 2.65 km from the MacDonald Creek drainage split (and 5.4 km from the trailhead). It is possible to hike much further, and also to climb the nearby peaks. There is certainly much more to this hike than what we have seen.