Ashlu Mine is a historic gold mining area that was primarily active in the 1930s. Most of the operation has been reclaimed by the coastal rainforest, but what remains has a cool history and some old rugged ruins and concrete foundations to explore.
The area is remote, deeply forested, and getting there can be difficult without navigating active and deactivated logging roads.
History:
Ashlu Mine, was mostly active between the years 1932 and 1939. During its peak operation, the high-grade quartz veins yielded approximately 15,000 ounces of gold and 17,000 ounces of silver, along with minor amounts of copper.
The original claims were staked and prospected in 1923 by Fred Pykett and associates. Further development was slow until the mid-1930s when a 50-ton mill was constructed on-site and the mine went into full production. The closure of the mine around 1939 was largely caused by the depletion of the known high-grade ore shoots and the shifting economic landscape leading up to WWII. While minor exploration happened in the following decades, it never returned to full-scale production.
The Hike:
The hike in is relatively short but involves pushing through thick coastal bush, steep slopes, and rocky, washed-out terrain.
The hike follows old, overgrown mining tracks branching off the main logging roads. Because the area has seen decades of logging activity and heavy rainfall, most of the original trails are completely overgrown or wiped out. Do your best to follow the most logical path up the hillside. When you lose the trail in the dense underbrush, keep pushing ahead while looking for old remnants like rusted cables, heavy iron pipes, and moss-covered timber.
Building:
The structures you can find are the remnants of the old mill and the original camp buildings. Because of the wet climate and heavy winter snowfalls, the wooden buildings are almost entirely gone, leaving behind collapsed timber, deep moss, and concrete foundations.
You can still find the heavy concrete footings built directly into the steep hillside where the processing equipment once sat, along with scattered, heavily rusted machinery and the remains of old ore carts.
Mine Shafts:
The BC Minfile records detail several adits (horizontal tunnels) driven into the mountainside to follow the quartz veins. Depending on the overgrowth, you may spot some of the old portals, but many have caved in over the last 80 years or are completely hidden by thick moss and fallen trees.
Getting There:
Drive up the Squamish Valley Road, which turns into the Squamish River Forest Service Road (FSR). Cross the bridge over the river onto the Ashlu Main FSR. Drive up the Ashlu road until you reach the vicinity of the historic mine site near Ashlu Creek. Find a safe pullout to park your vehicle and begin your bushwhack in.
