The Duffey Lake Road: 100 km of hairpins, 15% grades and zero cell signal

The Sea-to-Sky is the famous one. The Duffey is the one car people actually talk about after. Highway 99 keeps going past Pemberton, climbs over the Cayoosh Summit, and drops you at Lillooet next to a lake so turquoise it looks edited.

But it's not a Sunday cruise. Read this first.

Know before you go

Straight from the BC Ministry of Transportation:

• 100 km, two lanes, no passing lanes, and curves as tight as 20 km/h.
• Grades up to 15%, and one of them runs for 5 km. There's a runaway lane and a brake check for a reason. Gear down.
• No fuel, food or cell service between Mount Currie and Lillooet. No rest areas, no EV charging. Fill up before.
• Avalanche paths with no-stopping signs, and the road can close with little notice.
• Single-lane bridges. Yield like you mean it.

The run

1. Mount Currie. Fill up. Seriously.
2. The 15% climb. Five kilometres of it. Your brakes will remember this on the way back down.
3. Joffre Lakes. The lower lake is a 5-minute walk from the lot. No parking on the highway shoulder, and in peak season you'll usually need a day-use pass.
4. Duffey Lake. About 35 km from Pemberton, nearly halfway. Grizzlies, black bears and mountain goats live here, so pull over only where it's allowed.
5. Cayoosh Creek. The descent: single-lane bridges, tight corners, and steep stretches of 11–13% near Lillooet.
6. Seton Lake. The payoff. That colour is real.

A bit of history

It was a logging road. It opened to the public in 1972, got paved in 1990–91 for $22.5 million, and became part of Highway 99 in 1992. Which explains a lot about those corners.

Verdict

The best "real" drive within a few hours of Vancouver. Do it in summer, do it early, fill up, and let the locals past.

Who's done it? Uphill or downhill, which direction is better?

— Troy, Burbles

Source: BC Ministry of Transportation, "Highway 99: Lillooet to Whistler" information sheet (2021). Also Wikipedia (BC Highway 99) and BC Parks (Joffre Lakes, Duffey Lake). Winter tires required Oct 1 to Mar 31. Photos via Wikimedia Commons: larsjuh (CC BY 2.0), Kkinsinger (CC0), Bernd Thaller (CC BY 2.0).