Park overview
Tucked amidst the rugged Hart Ranges of the Rocky Mountains, Pine Le Moray Park provides scenic splendor and a welcome retreat for visitors travelling the Hart Highway.
The camping area is located adjacent to Heart Lake and is a picturesque and tranquil location. Try your luck for rainbow or brook trout as you paddle the smooth water or take a wilderness hike to the alpine.
Advisories
Special notes
- Heart Lake campground is user-maintained and cooperatively managed by a community, society or other partner. There are no services and facilities may differ from those offered in other BC Parks.
- Please take your garbage with you when you leave
- Only self-propelled and electric motored boats are allowed on Heart Lake. Gas-powered boats are not permitted.
- There are no drinking water facilities in the park. Please bring your own water.
Camping
This park offers vehicle-accessible campsites on a first come, first served basis. Campsite reservations are not accepted.
The campground is generally open on the Wednesday before the May long weekend to mid September. This is may change with earlier opening dates or later closing dates depending on weather.
Please note: This campground is cooperatively managed by a community, society or other partner. Services and facilities may differ from those offered in other BC Parks. Your co-operation in maintaining the facilities is greatly appreciated.
Wilderness camping is allowed, but no facilities are provided.
Facilities
Staff does not provide firewood. Campers may bring their own wood. The cutting of trees within the park is strictly prohibited.
To preserve vegetation and ground cover, please don’t gather firewood from the area around your campsite or elsewhere in the park (this is a ticketable offence under the Park Act). Dead wood is an important habitat element for many plants and animals and it adds organic matter to the soil. Limited burning hours or campfire bans may be implemented.
This park has a day-use and picnic area at Heart Lake.
Activities
There are no developed trails in this park. Please be experienced and safe when adventuring into the wilderness areas.
Swimming is available at Heart Lake. There are no lifeguards on duty.
There are opportunities for canoeing or kayaking in this park.
There are opportunities for canoeing or kayaking in this park.
Heart Lake is stocked with rainbow and brook trout. Anyone fishing or angling in British Columbia must have an appropriate licence. Only self propelled and electric motored boats are allowed on Heart Lake. Gas-powered boats are prohibited.
There are wildlife viewing opportunities in this park.
Pets and domestic animals must be on a leash at all times and are not allowed in beach areas or park buildings. You are responsible for their behaviour and must dispose of their excrement. Backcountry areas are not suitable for dogs or other pets due to the potential for problems with bears and other wildlife.
Cycling is permitted. Helmets are mandatory in British Columbia.
Please note that bicycles with electric assist motors (e-bikes) are not allowed on the trails within Pine Le Moray Park. E-bikes are restricted to park roads and areas where motorized use is permitted. The only exception to this policy will be for authorized and identified trail maintenance bikes conducting work on behalf of BC Parks.
Horseback riding is permitted. Horses are not permitted in the campground and day-use area of Heart lake.
The park is open to hunting. All hunters to the area should refer to the current BC Hunting and Trapping Regulations Synopsis for more information.
This park has winter recreation opportunities, including snowmobiling in portions of the park. The southwest portion of the park is closed to snowmobiling year-round, and a seasonal closure (January 15 to September 30) is in effect in the southeast corner of the park.
Snowmobile Closures in the Northern Rockies [PDF] shows where snomobiling is allowed in the park. Please respect these boundaries.
Refer to BC Motor Vehicle Prohibitions website for more information on snowmobile closures in Pine Le Moray Park and the Northern Rockies.
Pine Le Moray Park is located on the east and west slopes of the continental divide, 70km southwest of Chetwynd and 50km northeast of McLeod Lake. The park’s northern and northwestern boundary is adjacent to Highway 97 near Pine Pass. The park can also be accessed via a forest service road on the east side along Le Moray Creek.
Park and activity maps
- Park Map [PDF]
- Snomobile Closures in the Northern Rockies [PDF] (including Pine Le Moray Park)
Learn more about this park
Park details
- Date established: June 29, 2000
- Size: 43,245 hectares
Nature and culture
History
Between the years 1943 and 1945, surveyors laid out the route for what we now know as Highway 97, or the Hart Highway. During the fall of 1945 construction on the highway began. In 1950 Mount Le Moray Lodge was built in the Pine Pass.The lodge mainly catered to the travelling public and to the construction crews building, maintaining and eventually paving Highway 97.
The improvements of this Highway greatly facilitated access into BC’s north country. Eventually, with increasing use, the pine pass area of the Highway became a popular destination for skiing, snowmobiling, fishing, hunting, and camping. To accommodate some of the visitors to the area, a Forest Recreation site was established at Hart Lake.
The popularity of the area for recreation and wildlife led to the area being designated for park and protected area status within the Dawson Creek LRMP in 2000 and the Mackenzie LRMP in 2001.
Cultural Heritage
Area of traditional use by First Nations of the Treaty 8 Tribal Association.
Conservation
The park and protected area protects the upper watersheds of Link Creek, Mountain Creek and Pine River. These areas contain representation of the wet, cool Engelmann spruce and sub-alpine fir biogeoclimatic zone, found within the Hart Ranges of the Rocky Mountains. Karst topography and significant alpine habitats are also preserved in this park.
Wildlife
Caribou, moose, grizzly bear, black bear and wolverine all reside in or around the park. The Pine River and Link and Mountain Creeks contain several fish species such as bull trout, rainbow trout, arctic grayling, mountain whitefish and slimy sculpin.
Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples
BC Parks honours Indigenous Peoples’ connection to the land and respects the importance of their diverse teachings, traditions, and practices within these territories. This park webpage may not adequately represent the full history of this park and the connection of Indigenous Peoples to this land. We are working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to update our websites so that they better reflect the history and cultures of these special places.