Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'

Griffin Lake Peak, at 2157', ranks as one of my favorite summer hikes in Ontario. Ever since, I had wondered if a winter climb of the peak would be feasibly possible given its remoteness from maintained roadways. As it turned out, because the peak lies within the Turkey Lakes study area the government plows the roads within a couple miles of the summer trailhead!

In the summer this is a 3-mile round trip hike, which more than doubles in the snow season to a bit over seven. I figured this would be just on the edge of what I'd be comfortable doing but, remembering the rather leisurely hike I did in the fall didn't figure I'd have any trouble with it. Unfortunately, I sadly underestimated the vertical required and the depth of the early season snow pack. The result was one of the most brutal winter hikes I've ever been on. The scenery was amazing, as expected, but the effort was, arguably, not quite worth the payoff. A hike to remember, for certain, but not one I'm likely to repeat...

Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 47.037960, -84.388921

Route Type: Out-and-back Difficulty: EXTREME (due to winter conditions)

Hike Length: 7.5 miles Hike Duration: 4:30

Trailhead Temp: 15'F Trail Traffic: None!

Min. Elevation: 1,150' Max. Elevation: 2,152'

Total Vertical Gain: 1,000' Avg. Elevation Gain / Mile: 133'

Griffin Lake Peak, ON (12-16-10)

Griffin Lake Peak Winter Hike Route Map
The approximate track of my winter hike up Griffin Lake Peak...
Mile 38 Road Winter 'Trailhead' -- 1,170'
The hike begins here...12 miles from the highway the plowed road ended...we liked the looks of the snowmobile tracks though, it'd make easier walking...
Mile 38 Road -- 1,200'
About a half mile in we'd take a right onto the trail road which would lead up to the summertime trailhead...
Mile 38 Road -- 1,240'
I remembered this spot from my previous visit...there's actually a tiny creek running through the middle of the picture that I had to ford with my pickup the last time through...
Mile 38 Road -- 1,300'
This was the first major climb, and to my memory, the worst part of the hike...I would be quite wrong...
Mile 38 Road -- 1,450'
About a mile from the trailhead, the high ridge that we'd eventually be traveling along came into view...our first hint that we still likely had a decent amount of climbing to do...
Mile 38 Road -- 1,560'
A mile and a half in we reached the summertime trailhead...from here we'd be leaving the nicely packed snowmobile trail and start breaking our own path through the snow...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 1,600'
The snow was DEEP...real deep...and it's only December!
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 1,700'
It took about 15 minutes for breaking trail to get quite old...I appreciated having a partner on this hike to trade off being the point man, though I doubt he shared the sentiment...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 1,760'
A brief bit of sunlight and blue sky...about all we'd get for the entire hike...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 1,800'
The surroundings on the way up were monotonous, yet quite beautiful...too bad it was lost on us as the deep snow pack was quickly kicking our butts...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 1,900'
Snow arch...dunno, just thought it looked cool...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,000'
Topping out along the ridge, we began to encounter a new nemesis...if you look close you can see drifts crossing the trail in parallel waves...what you can't tell is how the top of each drift was semi-solid, holding you for a second then collapsing under your weight...between the drifts was just soft, deep snow allowing you to sink before stepping up onto and then collapsing into the next drift...it was brutal, just brutal...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,030'
It always amazes me how conifers can handle such huge snow loads and survive...this ones almost folded over on itself, and winters' only just started!
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,060'
There is hope!!! This clearing marks the 'false summit' that had briefly fooled me upon my first visit here...after more than a few doubts passing this spot meant we just might make it...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,070'
I thought, for about half a second to climb up to the clearing to see if I could see anything...I couldn't summon the energy to care, however...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,080'
I seem to remember this little clearing being a small marshy area...likely where I pictured the moose track in my other album...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,100'
It might of been all in our heads, but the snow seemed to be getting deeper the higher we climbed...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,110'
Snow-flocked spruce...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,130'
Our destination FINALLY comes into view...after a good two hours of breaking trail we were too tired to be real excited...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
The true summit, and the views we came here for, sits in the shadow of this old fire tower on the north end of the summit clearing...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Looking north and east Griffin Lake Peak's namesake sits quietly among the snow-covered hills...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Griffin Lake, over a thousand vertical feet below...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Batchawana Mountain sits to the north...no plowed roads lead anywhere near Griffin Lake's neighbor so it is unlikely I'll ever visit it during the winter...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
The sweeping 180-degree panorama looking north and east from the summit of Griffin Lake Peak...Griffin Lake sits in the center with Batchawana Mountain rising to the left, Lake Superior can be seen just barely intruding on the far left above the cable...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Summit Video...sorry about the rambling nature of the commentary, I was EXHAUSTED and almost did the vid as an afterthought...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Snow-flocked spruces partially block the view to the south...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Walking over to the other side of the fire tower, the rest of the summit view opens up...the summit ridge we just struggled up is visible, as well as the small lake we passed over TWO HOURS before!
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
The western panorama...Lake Superior blends in with the horizon in this photo but the big lake was plainly visible in the distance from the summit...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
A little closer look back along our route...my best estimate is that we began our hike somewhere to the far side of the high hill in the center...looked farther than a mere three miles to me...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
I was quite happy to have made it but, tired as I was, this was a much of a smile as I could muster...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
Someone tore down all the cairns! On my last visit there were a number of little statue-cairns on the summit but this time there were just a few scattered rocks and this...
Griffin Lake Peak - 2,152'
One last look to the west...
Griffin Lake Peak Trail -- 2,150'
After all this the hike was only half done...our minds were focused on one thing at this point, getting down, so at this point the camera was stowed. I was thrilled to be one of the very few who have visited Griffin in the winter but this was the kind of hike that is likely to be more enjoyable in retrospect...