A group concerned about BC Parks’ plan to build a ranger cabin in South Chilcotin Mountains Park (SCMP) this month is looking to take their dispute to court.
It’s not so much BC Parks’ longstanding plans to build a cabin on Spruce Lake that has property owners and other “Friends of Spruce Lake” worried, said Whistler homeowner Dennis Perry, but BC Parks’ chosen location along the northeastern edge of the lake, coupled with what Perry describes as BC Parks officials’ failure to consult with stakeholders.
Located near Gold Bridge, about 200 kilometres north of Whistler, Spruce Lake has been referred to as the “jewel” of the rugged SCMP. The area is home to wildlife like grizzly bears and California bighorn sheep, as well as a small campground and a handful of cabins built decades ago on the north and west sides of the lake.
The lake is typically accessed by foot, mountain bike, helicopter or float plane, but riding pack horses in has always been the traditional way for Perry’s family.
Perry has been heading to Spruce Lake to visit one of those cabins for more than half a century. “My father was a veterinarian and he hunted up there on horseback in the ’50s … and took me up there when I was 15,” he explained. “In the 1950s there were three cabins on the lake, and if you don’t count Chilcotin Holidays’ outfitter camp, there are still only three cabins on the lake.”
SCMP "is an ecologically significant area with high recreational values. Human traffic to the park is increasing and with that comes increased impacts to wildlife, ecosystems, and the trails and facilities in the park," a spokesperson for B.C.'s Ministry of Environment told Pique in an email. "An increased staff presence ensures BC Parks can better monitor these impacts, protect the ecological values, and keep park users safe."
Like most parks in the province, SCMP has seen a steady increase of use in the last few years, the spokesperson added. "Mountain bikers are currently the largest user group. We don’t have any concrete visitor numbers, but our observations indicate that between 2018 and 2020, we saw a 120% increase in mountain bikers, and a 500% increase in hikers. Horseback riders, once the largest user group, appears to be flat or in a slow decline. It remains to be seen if this is a pandemic surge or if these growth levels will be consistent."
BC Parks has intended to build a cabin at the site since 2009, when trees were cleared to accommodate a helipad. A then-representative for BC Parks promised at the time to discuss any ranger cabin construction with lake residents prior to finalizing project plans; while the South Chilcotin Mountains and Big Creek Park Management Plan also includes mention of BC Parks’ commitment to “meet collectively with stakeholders on a regular basis.”
Despite these assurances, cabin owners didn’t hear anything about the ranger station until BC Parks staff informed lake residents in February of this year that the agency intended to move forward with cabin construction near the existing helipad this year, according to Perry.
A ranger station at the proposed site on the lake’s eastern shore would deface “one of B.C.’s most beautiful wilderness lake viewscapes forever,” Perry said.
'I don't want to see the lake that I've loved for 60 years destroyed'
Chief among Perry and his fellow property owners’ concerns are the potential for the new cabin to harm both Spruce Lake’s sensitive ecosystem and lake residents’ enjoyment of their properties. With the proposed site located about a 500-metre walk from the campground and float plane dock and the two privately-owned cabins located in between the ranger station and the campground, the ranger station would also be difficult to access, particularly without crossing private property, claims Perry.
He said the two-storey A-frame, which BC Parks describes as having a footprint of about 8.5 metres x eight metres and will stand approximately nine metres tall, will be the largest structure on the lake.
In a “Frequently Asked Questions” document posted on the SCMP website, BC Parks said the ranger station is being constructed in anticipation of future user growth in the park. The cabin also has to comply with provincial labour and employment policies, which requires employer-provided accommodation to offer private rooms for staff. “For this reason, there are four small, private bedrooms in the upper loft,” the document explains.
Lake residents and other stakeholders have been in touch with BC Parks staff in recent months to propose alternate sites for the ranger station that they say would be more appropriate and less disruptive, but Perry said those suggestions have not been seriously considered.
According to BC Parks’ FAQ document, the chosen site “balances proximity to the floatplane dock, campground, and commercial operator camps while maintaining enough distance not to disturb the occupants there and provide separation for BC Parks staff,” is accessible by an existing trail and is “of relatively low value ecologically, recreationally, and archaeologically.”
BC Parks says the site was selected in accordance with the agency’s rigorous internal environmental impact assessment process, and in consultation with wildlife experts who recommended decreasing human presence in grizzly bear habitat along the north and northwest shore of the lake.
In response to cabin owners concerned about the cabin’s impact on the views and wilderness character of the lake, the document claims the site is “not visible from any of the cabins, campgrounds, or commercial operators on Spruce Lake,” but admits it “may be seen from the dock of the ‘midpoint’ cabin on the west side of the lake.”
The Ministry of Environment spokesperson said BC Parks has carefully considered the concerns raised by the property owners and has taken reasonable steps to address stakeholders' concerns and mitigate impacts associated with the project.
"BC Parks will continue to have open and ongoing dialogue with the public about this work," they added.
"While BC Parks appreciates and has responded to the concerns of the local cabin owners, BC Parks is mandated to manage its parks and facilities on behalf of all British Columbians and this project is important to public safety and the sound management of the park in the face of its growing popularity."
The ranger station will be constructed with "the minimum of additional disturbance on the site that has been deemed the most appropriate for its intended use," according to the Ministry of Environment.
Perry, alongside Kevan Bracewell from Chilcotin Holidays and Phil Branca—“the last living legend in the whole Bridge River Valley,” who has been visiting Spruce Lake since the 1940s, according to Perry—joined BC Parks’ regional director and other representatives on Tuesday, May 31 for a site tour at Spruce Lake.
Perry said BC Parks representatives told him during the tour switching sites at this point in the process would require an additional archaeological survey, which could take another three years to complete.
“I think the whole exercise was simply for them to be able to say, ‘Oh, we consulted,’” said Perry. “We know that's not consulting, because it was after the fact.”
Armed with “around nine or 10” affidavits, Perry said the Friends of Spruce Lake group is now in the process of applying for a judicial review, asking for the court to review BC Parks’ administrative decision hopefully “within the next couple of weeks,” he explained.
“From a big picture standpoint, I don't want to see the lake that I've loved for 60 years destroyed. I'd love to see it stay the way it is forever. And this [ranger station] changes things forever … it's an encroachment and, you know, where does it stop?
“Frankly, I feel violated.”
