Mount Hanover

Date: August 10, 2024

Distance: 21.08km

Elevation gain: 2012m

Mount Hanover, one of the peaks described in The Glorious Mountains of Vancouver's North Shore, is one of the more obscure summits on the Howe Sound Crest. It's very visible from its neighbour Mount Brunswick, and the Howe Sound Crest Trail passes below it, but it's rarely visited. Reaching the peak requires some off-trail navigation and a class 3/4 scramble up one of two gullies, with the westernmost (left) generally being considered easier.

I took a spontaneous trip to Hanover to take advantage of the good weather and lack of thunderstorms. I followed the standard route to Hat Pass from Lins Bay (the Mount Brunswick trail). I decided to do something different and brought a bike all the way up to the 1000m mark. I got some confused looks on the way up but it paid off on the way down.

The ascent was mostly uneventful. After reaching Hat Pass, there are two main routes to the base of Hanover: you could descend the Deeks Creek valley, or continue down the HSCT and head eastward around 1350m. I chose the second option and soon hit a well-flagged trail.

From there, I traversed below some cliffs and waterfalls to reach the boulder field at the base of the gullies. I took the left gully, with lots of fun class 3/4 scrambling moves. The most difficult section was the first major scramble step. A fixed rope has been installed here. There were a few more scramble sections past that, then the upper half of the gulley flattens out. The summit had an interesting perspective on Brunswick and nearby mountains.

The descent went quickly, especially when I started biking. It's a nice feeling to lose over 900m of elevation in 45 minutes. To make things more interesting, my back brake stopped working halfway down and the front tire started to deflate. This led to several exciting moments on the loose gravel.

On the way down, I passed a SAR truck heading up the logging road. As I reached the parking lot at the school, a SAR helicopter landed in the nearby field. (I later heard that the victim survived).