New book covers great B.C. hikes and how to be an 'ethical hiker'

Hiking season is well underway across B.C. and the author of a new book wants trail users to take the high road.

In short, being an "ethical hiker."

"It's minimum impact. Simple things, like, staying on trails, not short cutting trails which causes extra erosion. Hiking in small groups rather than large ones, because then you have a lighter impact. Not throwing away garbage," Hui told On The Coast host Gloria Macarenko.

Hui's new book, 105 Hikes In and Around Southwestern British Columbia covers both popular and lesser known routes and trails of varying difficulty.

But Hui hopes also to encourage hikers to be mindful of the way they trek through the wilderness.

One concern of his is the overuse of some trails, like Quarry Rock, which was notably packed over the Victoria Day long weekend.

"It's pretty much a madhouse every weekend. You see a lot of trail erosion. The trail is pretty much worn out. It's slippery because it's lost a lot of its tread. It's really packed down. it gets muddy," Hui said.

"The experience is maybe less nature-y as much as people would want."

But, he says, for every Quarry Rock, there's always a place next door that's pretty much empty.

Hui's favourites include Mount Elsay behind Mount Seymour. There's also Goat Mountain, behind Grouse. And a new discovery of his: Conflict Lake in the Whistler area. He offered those as examples of hikes that avoid the crowds.

And with forest fire season approaching, he says hikers need to stay out of exclusion zones and not risk fires by smoking on paths.

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With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast