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Drive: Lemon Creek FSR
From Silverton: 34.6 km (21.5 miles) south
From Playmor Junction (Hwy 6 and 3A between Castlegar and Nelson): Drive 38.9 km (24.2 miles) north.
0.0 Drive the Lemon Creek Forest Service Road (just south of Lemon Creek) east up the valley.
4.7 km (2.9 miles) bear right and complete a reverse S curve. Then the road rises to about 150m above the south side of Lemon Creek, and descends to much nearer the creek the rest of the way to the trail, always on the S side for 16 km. (At the end, if you cross Lemon Creek on a bridge, you have gone too far.)
16km Park. TH Lemon Creek Trail. Nilsik Creek Trail at 2.4km (hard to follow). Sapphire Lakes 9.6km and Kaslo Lake 3.2km more over Lemon Pass.
LEMON CREEK TRAIL
16 km (10 miles) to a signed trailhead next to Lemon Creek. At
Park off the road and begin up an old road for about 1 km. The old original trail is at the road’s end; giant cedars and hemlocks on a gentle trail.
The trail steepens and leads to an old cabin. Beyond, cairns and faded ribbons mark the way; ascend meadows to Sapphire Lakes (9.6 km, 6 miles) at Lemon Pass. Kaslo Lake is 3.2 km more. Glory Basin is to the south (take south branch before the lakes). There is a small campground just north of lower Sapphire Lake (crowded).
The old Nilsik Creek trail is 2.4 km (1.5 miles) from the car, which leads to the col between Sunset and Outlook Mountains. It is overgrown and hard to follow in places. Cross the log bridge over Nilsik Creek (on Lemon Creek trail). Beyond, a huge cedar (2 blazes) on the left, and a smaller cedar (1 blaze) on the right mark its beginning. Detour around deadfall to the left.
From the city of Nelson, it is shorter to drive Duhamel Creek. Eight km (5 miles, at Willow Point, Six Mile Lakes Road) east of the big steel bridge on Highway 3A, drive 17 km (10.6 miles; high clearance, four wheel drive) north. At 9 km (5.6 miles) cross to the east side of Duhamel Creek and go over a very long pass with lakes to join the Lemon Creek road before the trailhead.