How to get up Mt Benson

[VanIsle]

Hi all.. first post here.

I am a photographer, and I want to get up Mt.Benson for some panoramic views (feel free to suggest other good panorama locations as well)

I have done some google searches, and reviewed some of the pictures and maps shown in this forum. I am still a bit confused.

My goal is to find the quickest routes to views and the top, as I will be carrying heavy camera gear and a tripod. Also I have limited free time.

It seems there are 3 main ways up to the top
a) from morell sanctuary
b) from west end of westwood lake - cross the power lines path
c) from benson view road, off kilpatrick,off jingle pot. apparently this trail meets up with the trail you would start from westwood lake.

So it seems to me the fastest (please tell me if there is faster) way up would be to park at the end of benson view road, and take the trail that will start by http://www.clubtread.org/mtbenson.htm witchcraft lake
However as mentioned in this link, and in another thread here, it seems that extensive logging have made the trail not doable

So please clarify for me the best way to get to panoramic mt. benson views (maps would be even better).

Thanks in advance,

Jeremy

[riverrat]

Hrm, I can understand how you'd be confused. (Welcome!)
I think you don't have to worry much about the logging having obscured the path; that was mostly a concern about a year and a half ago, when the trails had not been re-established by hikers.
I'm sure you'd be fine going up from Witchcraft; in fact, you'd avoid a lot of the clearcuts, if I'm not mistaken (haven't actually gone up that way myself).
The route from Westwood Lake is definitely the most well-trod.
If you're feeling especially fit and ambitious, you might consider taking the third way, and visiting the south-east (highest) peak of Westwood Ridge.

As for other places with panoramic views:
If you haven't already, you should check out Roberts Roost. It has lots of great views:




There is also a spot on Newcastle Island that allows for a great vista:
It's a seaside meadow out past the campsites, where the channel between Newcastle and Protection emerges into the open sea. But it's not the sea I'm pointing you toward. Turn around and look down the channel, right into downtown:

[VanIsle]

Thanks for the reply riverrat.

Great pictures! Are the first two both from Roberts Roost? How do I get there?

Re: Mt. Benson , you say the south-east peak is the highest.. does that mean if I take the trail up from Westwood lake, I wont actually make it to the highest part of Mt. Benson? Maybe I am a bit confused. Where is the trail to this third way you mention?

Thanks again,

Jeremy

[riverrat]

Re: Mt. Benson , you say the south-east peak is the highest.. does that mean if I take the trail up from Westwood lake, I wont actually make it to the highest part of Mt. Benson? Maybe I am a bit confused. Where is the trail to this third way you mention?

Yikes, this is complicated!
No, it is Westwood Ridge whose highest peak is the southeast one.
As for getting up the third route, you have to interpret this bad Paint map I made (the route is marked in red):


The trail in question is the one on the left that says "to Mt Benson Summit". Note! it's an old old road, kinda hard to find. Use the gravel pit (it's filled with pretty, poisonous water) as your point of reference; the trailhead is only about 10m to the west of it.

And to answer your question about the first two photos: Only the first one was actually taken on Roberts Roost, while the second one was taken from a bluff higher on the mountain, though it's very similar to the eastern view from the Roost - just higher.

[VanIsle]

Thanks again.

I saw that map on your other thread... do you know if its still a bad idea to go there (re: DND summer operations)

[Laurie]

Here is link to a map of Mount Benson hiking trails that I found online. I've never explored the mountain so I'm not sure how accurate it is. What's your opinion? (those of you who know their way around Mt Benson).
(MOD edit: removed dead link)

[fitz]

I'm itching to hike up there - VanIsle.. or anyone else, PM me and lets go! I have a quite a good idea of how to get up there, but haven't done it yet.

[riverrat]

I've never explored the mountain so I'm not sure how accurate it is. What's your opinion? (those of you who know their way around Mt Benson).

Awesome map! Very accurate, which is kinda bad - it makes it look really daunting, like there are a million different ways to get lost - but really, it's pretty easy to find the right way - in real life, some trails look more traveled than others.

Gordie's trail looks intriguing! If you can drive to the trailhead, you shave about 600m off your ascent, compared to starting from Westwood Lake.

The way I go now - it's not on the map.








Anyone know where the first of these three woulda been taken from?

[Laurie]

I was walking at Morrell today and found where the trail to Robert's Roost and Mt Benson starts from the powerline. How long does it take to walk from Morrell to Westwood Ridges and then down to Westwood lake at the other end?

[riverrat]

How long does it take to walk from Morrell to Westwood Ridges and then down to Westwood lake at the other end?

It's 40-50 minutes to the top of the ridge, then about 20-30 minutes over to the other end of the ridges, then 15-25 minutes down to the lake.
So you could probably make it an hour and a half, but you could easily make it a 3 hour hike. There are some seriously awesome views from up there. You haven't seen Nanaimo if you haven't seen it from above.
Hey wait - this is a thread about Benson! Oh well, the Westwood Ridges threads don't really need this info.