Firefighters urge hikers, bikers to stay out of trails near Squamish wildfire

Akshay Kulkarni · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 25, 2025 2:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: June 25

Firefighters are urging hikers and upland bikers not to participate trails closed owed to a wildfire conscionable northbound of Squamish, B.C., up of the Canada Day agelong weekend.

The Dryden Creek wildfire, which was discovered connected June 9, is considered nether power by the B.C. Wildfire Service, but a local authorities of emergency remains successful Squamish.

Fire suppression enactment is ongoing successful the area, and evacuation orders and alerts stay owed to the information of trees falling and rocks rolling loose.

That means trails person been closed astir the wildfire perimeter, including those westbound of Jack's Trail towards DeBeck's Hill successful Alice Lake Provincial Park.

Portions of the fashionable Wonderland and Rigs In Zen trails successful Squamish person besides been closed owed to the wildfire, and a campfire prohibition remains successful effect for the district.

Despite that, firefighters accidental they're seeing radical disobey way closures, which could beryllium to beryllium a risky decision.

"Especially past weekend, galore hikers and upland bikers accessed trails that were closed," said B.C. Wildfire occurrence accusation serviceman Jennifer Lohmeyer connected Tuesday.

"Some radical adjacent moved barriers that had been enactment successful spot to bespeak that the way was closed," she added.

Lohmeyer said that, adjacent though the Dryden Creek wildfire is considered nether control, firefighting crews stay successful the country performing high-risk activities.

"It is simply a nationalist information contented due to the fact that determination are imaginable for fire-weakened trees to fall," the occurrence accusation serviceman said. 

"There are rocks successful the country that are nary longer being held successful spot by histrion roots, truthful they could rotation downhill, and determination are a batch of steep slopes successful the area."

As of Tuesday night, the Dryden Creek wildfire covered an country of conscionable nether 60 hectares, successful adjacent proximity to a fig of hiking trails.

It is suspected to person been caused by quality activity, with RCMP investigating however it started.

Lohmeyer is reminding the nationalist to respect occurrence prohibitions and beryllium connected the lookout for wildfires this agelong weekend, and to study immoderate they spot utilizing the wildfire work app.

"Natural assets officers and B.C. Parks unit volition beryllium providing enactment to guarantee the [trail] closures for nationalist information and to forestall interference with firefighting," Lohmeyer said.