Overview
Divide Lake is the second campsite accessible from the Grizzly Lake Trailhead in Tombstone Territorial Park, Yukon. The distance from Grizzly Lake campsite is only 5.6km, but there is a considerable elevation gain of 400m in the first km of this trek. Like all backcountry campsites in Tombstone Territorial Park, reservations must be made in advance. Divide Lake campsite cannot be booked as the first-day reservation since Yukon Parks determined the trail is too far and difficult (total 15.6km and 1300m elevation) for hikers to achieve in one day. It is possible to call the Tombstone Information Center to obtain special permission though!
The Trail
Starting from Grizzly Lake, you will backtrack a little to the cairn that is labeled "Glissade Pass." At this point, walk along the scree slowly up to the ridge. This climb may look intimidating as the gradient is consistent and steep, at around 45-60%, however it is very short at only 1km. Most hikers will reach the apex in 40 minutes. The terrain can be tricky in some areas as there is no flat foothold, so tightening up your boots is highly recommended to prevent blisters from heel slip. The grass and mud can also get very slippery if it is raining or recently rained. As you near the top, be careful so as to not tip over since gusts of wind can blow over the ridge, strong enough to blow you backwards especially with a heavy pack on your back.
The view from the top of the ridge is absolutely stunning; there are small lakes/ponds (unfortunately, those are not Divide and Talus Lakes as you need to walk around the corner to the left to see them) surrounded by alpine meadows. When I visited the park at the end of August, the colours were absolutely breathtaking. In the distance is a flat-topped mountain whose name I do not know. Although beautiful, I was not able to stay at the top long since the wind cut through my jackets, cooling me down more than I would've liked.
The descent on the other side is steeper than the ascent that you just climbed; the terrain is also much looser and less forgiving. Because I was wearing boots, I was able to slide down the scree (small, loose rocks) like I was skiing. However, I paid special attention not to destroy any established footholds so that hikers can climb back up. The gradient on this descent can be as steep as 100%: where for every meter you travel forward, you are also descending one meter. If there are hikers below you, please be careful to not dislodge any large rocks which may roll down and hit others. The descent only took me around 20 minutes until I reached dirt trail at the bottom of the rock slide path.
Congrats! You have crossed the hardest part of the entire Grizzly, Divide, Talus Lake trail. Just keep in mind you will have to summit the ridge again when you are leaving Divide lake for the parking lot or Grizzly Lake in the future. The rest of the trail is relatively simple and easy, mostly flat traverse through alpine meadows. A slight left turn is the only major directional change until you reach the campsite. There are some sections of slight elevation, but overall nothing more than 100m and nothing steeper than 30% gradient. It takes around 2 hours to reach Divide Lake from the bottom of Glissade Pass.
As for drinking water, there are two major sources on this trail. The first water source you will have since leaving Grizzly Lake is a creek right at the bottom of Glissade Pass. I brought 500ml of water with me to cross Glissade Pass: only what I need to drink along the way so as to not have additional weight. After this creek, water will not be available until you reach some small runoffs right next to the Divide Lake campsite. Of course, the campsite is situated right beside Divide Lake, so water will not be an issue while you're at camp.
The Campsite
Divide Lake has the smallest campsite out of the three backcountry locations in the Park. There are approximately ten tent pads, one cook shelter with rocks as chairs, two grey water barrels, one outhouse and only one bear cache with four compartments. I also found this campsite to have the longest walk to the lake from the shelter: a whopping 20 meters! (joke).
I found the most beautiful lookout at this lake to be beside the outhouse. Because of its raised position, it offers a great angle looking straight down a meadow valley. The sunrise shines directly down this valley if you are up to the task of waking up at 6:30am.
If late nights are more "your thing," Divide Lake offers the best angle for astrophotography. The wall of Divide Mountain provides the perfect foreground for stars. Alternatively, you can hike a few hundred meters past the campsite to set up along the water looking at a ampitheater-like mountain formation. Rachel, a professional photographer I met on the trip, highly recommended this location to me but I passed out in my sleeping bag and was not able to capture any photos from the location.
Divide Lake is beautiful and offers a great place to stop, but Talus lake is definitely the prettiest destination; if you are tight on time, I would even recommend skipping Divide Lake to hike straight to Talus Lake since it is only 4km away through a flat valley. That will be the next blog post!
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