Around 50 outdoor enthusiasts picked up shovels and ice axes on Saturday, March 7, in an effort to dig out a major section of Daisy Lake Road.
"We cleared what we think will be about 20 car spots," said Haley Foladare, huts coordinator for the VOC. "So yes, we think it was a success."
At the start of February, the province installed no-parking signs at the beginning section of Daisy Lake Road, which is typically plowed by the province.
In past years, backcountry enthusiasts parked alongside this part of the road, then trekked up the unplowed section to access the Rubble Creek trailhead.
By shoveling out part of the unplowed section, the volunteers say they will improve access to the park.
Foladare said that there were a number of Alpine Club of Canada volunteers involved and that the event was fun and social.
"We got to kind of catch up with one another, which is nice. And then I got to chat with some community members that I hadn't really connected with before. So that was really cool," she said.
That said, removing the snow was no easy task. "It was very, very icy," she said. "It was like blocks of ice."
In the end, she is hopeful that the undertaking will lead to a permanent solution to the accessibility issues at the trailhead.
"Access to this area is important. It would be cool if BC Parks plowed the road or at least a small section of it," she said.
In a statement to Pique, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said that the event was unsanctioned.
"The event is located within the Rubble Creek Landslide Hazard Zone and not sanctioned by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure in the interest of public safety," it read. "It is our understanding that the proposed UBC VOC event will be held on the part of Daisy Lake Road that sits on a parcel owned by BC Hydro.
"The ministry closed this section of the road to parking because vehicles were obstructing the plows in wintertime, and the Rubble Creek Landslide Hazard Zone (warning signs posted in each direction on Highway 99) requires that people move through the hazard area into the safe zone within a 30 minute window. For these reasons, MOTI installed 'no parking' signs in August 2019."
