Della Falls, Alberni Valley

Directions: This multi-day hike is located just outside of Port Alberni, on Great Central Lake across from the more popular Sprout Lake. Although more popular, in my opinion that doesn’t mean more beautiful. Great Central is a vast body of water hosting a lot to explore. At points you could easily go the day without being bothered and of course there’s the Dorothy Creek “natural water slides”. There are few access points to the lake, all of which are up Great Central Road, a characteristic, run-down, roller coaster like road.

To reach the trailhead you will have to cross this lake. A few options are presented, the one and only ferry across which will run you back over 100 big ones, you could have a buddy drop you in a powerboat or float plane or, if you’re fortunate enough, BYOB; bring your own boat. The boat launch is located at Great Central Marina, about 35km from the trail head dock. If you’re up for a more exciting expedition and have a vehicle capable of logging roads, it’s possible to canoe 20 km up from Scout Beach. If you do this be prepared and check the wind forecast. The lake can get choppy, the mountains surrounding Great Central act as a tunnel, in consequence the wind funnels through with significant force and gusts may pass without notice.

The trail head is located at the northern tip of the lake amongst a section of submerged forest. Arrive at the government dock. It’s a small wooden dock, partly submerged in the center. There is space for four small boats, though in that situation it would feel cramped. BC Parks uses this dock to access and maintain the trail regularly during peak season.

Trail: Walking up the ramp into the forest immediately in front of you is a place to park your canoe, a map area with visitor information, and the first set of campsites. The site is complete with outhouses and bear proof food cache. This is definitely the most glamorous, organized and the largest of campsites. What is also immediate is the presence of bugs. As you gain elevation it gets better, but the mozzies will still stick with you the entire trip through spring and summer especially through muddies bogs near Great Central. Bug spray is very recommended. Bears and other predatory wild life also frequent the area. Bear scatt or wolf tracks are common sights, so bring protection at your discretion and stay alert. To the left is the start of your long journey to Della Falls.

The ground is very uneven for most of the trail; it becomes steep in parts and wet muddy conditions even in summer. Satellite reception can be spotty. Cellular reception is nonexistent for most of the lake and the entirety of the hike. As an overnighter, this adventure can be considered moderately difficult due to the length, major windfall potential and various short scrambles. Backpacking equipment is required, bring a means of filtering water and lots of food. There are lots of fresh running water along the way; I like to use a life straw to drink from streams on hikes like this instead of carrying a heavy water bag.

The trail is very straightforward and has no side tracks to mislead you. Wind falls, and uneven, loose terrain is expected. From the scouts’ camp, the trail starts by leading you through a diversely mixed deciduous-coniferous forest with sporadic bogs, then transitions into mostly conifer stands. It is abundant with berries. With an edible plant book one can find a plethora of delectable treats in the late summer. The forest is laden with blueberries, thimble berries, bunch of berries and more. Over your journey, the trail regularly brings you alongside and across Drink Water Creek, on one section pulling yourself across the creek while seated on a sturdy metal cart that is set up to a system of pulleys, wires and ropes. Here at the cableway, there is also a small campsite and food cache. While I was up there they were building a new wooden platform at this site.

Your journey starts with a fairly flat gradient made up of a gnarly forest floor occasionally interrupted by a bog, streams, or group of fallen trees. At roughly the 7km mark, it gradually gets steeper and steeper until leveling out at the base of the falls. From this mark on search valiantly through the tree line, you may receive some far off glimpses of the falls. Just as I was getting tired, with my backpack feeling heavy, it was all the motivation I needed to get my buttocks in gear and trudge forward.

You will know you’re getting close to the falls as the scenery changes dramatically. Nearing the base of the falls, the trees transition into a healthy old growth forest. Throughout the forest here it is easy to find relics left by industrialists of the past. The area around Della was popular to trappers, prospectors and loggers alike. The evidence of this activity is still very much around. Closer to the beginning of this transition, the trail diverges and abruptly heads upwards to one side. This trail leads to a picturesque lake still frozen and packed with snow, as I am writing this in July 2022. The lake usually is melted by this time, but 2022 has been an unusually cold and wet summer. It is known as Love Lake, nestled high up on Mount Septimus. Along its path is a jaw dropping bird’s-eye view of Della’s beauty and her surrounding peaks. Keep travelling the lower path shortly after meeting back up with Drinkwater Creek.

There are campsites stretching out along the east side of the creek. Cross a bridge and some more secluded spots are scattered throughout the forest on the other side. Weave through some old red nursery stumps and continue up the trail, all the while being shaded by a canopy of giant trees. Pass through an opening full of diverse gorgeous foliage, up a rocky creek bed and over a wooden boardwalk with an exceptional view. From here, the falls are not far. There is one last official campsite with a food cache and a designated pit toilet. It feels quaint, accompanied by rustic logging equipment and a cooking or lounging area made from timber rounds. You will start to feel the misty breeze radiating from the falls. Follow her stimulating roar, congratulations you have made it! Enjoy her glory. For me at least it was an exuberant journey full of challenges to a well-deserved prize. I am sure for you it will be just as magical. The might is inspiring, and I spent much of my time beneath it, contemplating, meditating and writing this entry.

Joe Drink Water: In 1899 Joe, son and brother in a popular family of pioneers, the Drinkwaters, was apparently dared by a geologist to travel by foot from Bedwell Sound to Port Alberni. The trek had to follow a certain route, over a certain Big Interior Mountain and end by crossing Great Central Lake. Joe accepted the challenge, and made the trek from the beach, through river valleys and up then down mountain sides. It was on this journey he discovered Della Falls and soon after claimed it for his wife Della Fayette who he had married that year.

Although his dad Isaac had already been a prominent man in the Alberni Valley, Joe secured his name in history as being the first to document “Canada’s highest waterfall”. He traveled from Tofino by canoe, up Bedwell Valley, scaled up the Big Interior Mountain and down to the lake where he stopped, taking curious notice of the surrounding rock formations. He then scrambled down the cliff side near the two-stage drop at the top of the falls. Joe “pulled his socks up”, probably his trousers too and followed Drinkwater Creek, through the thick temperate rainforest down to Great Central, crossing by canoe and subduing the challenge. What a time to be alive, hey?!

Joe had found the falls from the top down, but his interest in Della did not come descend with him. Over the next 15 years, Joe would spend most of his time in the area, bringing Della, the woman, with him, setting up infrastructure, building himself a cabin beneath the falls and a gold mining operation above it. Today, there are still artifacts from his mine around the lake, and artifacts from the prospectors and loggers who called this area home over the last century.

Della Falls and Lake: According to the Canadian government and most Canadians; Della Falls is the highest waterfall in Canada. Although no there’s no doubt she is mightier, there is a taller, much slimmer fall that dries up periodically, this fall is known as James Bruce Falls in Princess Louisa Inlet on the west coast of British Columbia. Either way, Della is among the most magnificent in the world.

In the winter Della’s mighty stream freezes solid and has been used by some as a challenging route for ice climbing. Similarly, but maybe not as daring, folks can also enjoy advanced snow shoeing and backcountry winter camping within the park. Other than climbing the ice, getting to Della Lake is still possible for an able-bodied person to attempt. There is no “set route” and information found on the journey was hard to come by. From what I’ve heard, it involves a hard scramble up the mountain, grabbing bush and earth. According to my research and not experience, as of writing this, a 50m whack through thick bush to the left of the falls is a rope and flagged trail, a trail I plan to conquer one day in the future.

Della Lake spills over the side of Big Interior Mountain and becomes Della Falls. Before this, it is filled by the melting glaciers which surround it. Reaching these glaciers can be done via the Bedwell Lake Trail in the Comox Valley. The trail leads across Big Interior’s Apex and eventually to 9 Peaks an iconic spine-like mountain within Vancouver Island’s Interior Mountain Range.