Mount Wells Regional Park is in the Goldstream neighborhood of Langford, B.C. There are two view points from the summit both with excellent views to the east toward Victoria, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Mt Baker in Washington State. Mount McDonald lies to the immediate west of Mt Wells and is part of the Sooke Hills Wilderness Park. The park is about one hundred and twenty three hectares of steep terrain with second growth Douglas fir trees. The main trail in the park is well trodden trail and about one and half kilometers long. This dirt and rock path leads to the three hundred and fifty two meter summit of Mt Wells. The trail starts at the parking area on Humpback Road near the Humpback Reservoir. The Sooke Flowline, an old one and half meter diameter water pipe is along the route and there are a couple of sets of staircases with about seven steps a piece. Once you are east of Humpback Road the trail is challenging. There are several steep sections through the ferns, salal and ocean spray plants that grow in the Douglas fir and Garry oak forest. The trail over the exposed granite rocks, in the upper section on the northwest side of the mountain, is bordered with metal and chain fencing to help protect the slopes from errant hikers. The summit has some grass covered areas that grow on a thin layer of soil; trod with care. Arbutus trees and a few manzanita shrubs can also be found along the slopes. There are camas, shooting stars and stain flowers growing in the spring time, as well as, if you tread with care, prairie lupines. The smaller knoll near the summit of Mount Wells is at about two hundred and ninety meters while the peak for the mountain is another three hundred meters southward. Mount Wells can also be accessed the trail from Raven View Park. Several parks like Cressida, Harlequin, Amy Pond and Turner’s Bog are near by as are several smaller green spaces in the Goldstream neighborhood.
Geographic location N48° 26’52” W123°33’17”
Mt Wells Regional Park can be reached from the Trans Canada Highway also called Hwy1. Turn at West Shore Parkway and turn right onto Amy Road which merges to become Sooke Lake Road. Continue along SLR to reach Humpback Road. Follow Humpback Road past the junction with Irwin Road and look for the parking lot on the left. Humpback Road is rather narrow and winds through the area to connect with Sooke Road. There is limited roadside parking this area.
The Capital Regional District website has information and a map for Mount Wells and several good guide books contain information about this large park.
Walks in Your Backyard 