McBride & Robson Valley / Full trip pack
Groeneveld Trail
- Round trip
- 10 km
- Elevation gain
- Not established Cumulative ascent for this outing has not been established.
- Walking time
- About 5 hours return to timberline
- Difficulty
- Unconfirmed
return to timberline from McNaughton Road gravel pit; 5 km each way; higher alpine exploration additional
A steep historic sheep-drive route from the Robson Valley toward alpine meadows and views of the surrounding mountain ranges.
1. Getting there and parking
Turn north off Highway 16 onto McNaughton Road, roughly 23 km east of McBride. When approaching westbound from Valemount past Dunster, the road-name sequence is Lee, Read, then McNaughton on the right. Follow McNaughton straight to the gravel pit at its end. The community-forest steward places the current trail start at the back of that pit and says to use the flagging to locate it. This is the preferred documented access; the older Green Guide’s Stone Arch shared approach describes a different, historically damaged crossing.
- From Highway 16 between McBride and Dunster, take McNaughton Road north toward the mountains.
- Continue straight to the gravel pit at the road end, then locate the flagged trail entrance at its back.
Parking: The trail starts behind the gravel pit at the end of McNaughton Road; the steward warns that the first entrance can be hard to locate.
2. Walking the route
From the flagged start behind the McNaughton Road gravel pit, follow the established ascent along the historic sheep-drive route. The steward describes approximately 5 km of climbing to around 1,798 m at timberline, then a marked continuation into the alpine. Plan roughly five hours for the return to timberline according to that guide, with additional time for any higher objective. The alpine allows longer exploration, but it is no longer a single prescribed trail: select a turnaround and retain the return line into the forest. A historical distance to Groeneveld Peak does not define the shorter timberline outing or establish a current summit route.
- Climb the established forest trail for about 5 km to timberline, approximately 1,798 m above sea level.
- The marked continuation reaches higher alpine terrain; wandering beyond timberline is additional travel, rather than a mapped loop back to the start.
The return
Retrace the same trail. The steward suggests about 5 hours return to timberline; that estimate does not cover extended alpine exploration.
3. Route map
Government reference trail
Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – British Columbia. · Line source · Open Government Licence – British Columbia
Partial elevation profile
Partial elevation profile
This chart covers only part of the route. It does not establish the full hike or a return journey.
4.17 km along source section 1 of 1, in its mapped direction.
Approximate 90 m terrain model along this mapped section. Separate sections are not joined. This chart does not measure total trail ascent or establish current access; use the guide’s published outing measurements.
Copernicus GLO-90 terrain elevations via Open-Meteo (CC BY4.0); linework: Open Government Licence – British Columbia
Copernicus DEM 2021 GLO-90 via Open-Meteo. Linework source: https://delivery.maps.gov.bc.ca/arcgis/rest/services/whse/bcgw_pub_whse_forest_tenure/MapServer/9. Sampled and rounded for display.
Source: https://open-meteo.com/en/licence
Licence: CC BY4.0 elevation data; Open Government Licence – British Columbia linework · https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Profile source checked: 2026-10-18
Published locations
Numbered points match the map. Use the role beside each point. A summit or park reference point is not a parking location.
| Place and role | Coordinates | Source and notes |
|---|---|---|
| Groeneveld Trail historical published trailhead / parking area (2010) | 53.182467 -119.900562 | Natural Stone Arch / Groeneveld trailhead: 53 10.948 N, 119 54.0337 W (degrees and decimal minutes), PDF page 1.
The guide explicitly shares the initial approach between these two trails. Current road condition and bridge access not confirmed. The tourism-hosted guide identifies itself as a research copy and says access, trails and amenities have not been updated. Coordinate provenance is verified; current access is not. Source date: 2010 https://mcbridetourism.ca/wp-content/uploads/McBrides-Green-Guide.pdf |
5. Camping, facilities and seasons
Season and access
The upper route enters bear habitat and exposed mountain terrain. Snow and cloud can obscure the marked alpine approach; the community-forest page does not specify a maintained winter variation.
Practical details checked 2026-10-17.
Your trip notes
________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________