Kostal had a cabin by the lake which he used when collecting animals from his trapline on Kilpill Mountain.

Parks in 2013 and only the first 1.5 km (0.9 mi) from the campground as far as the Dragon's Tongue lava flow can still be used.

A rigorous access route is still possible by canoe up File Creek, then a cross-country hike over the lava flow.

The slopes which face away from the lake are covered with cedar and fir from top to bottom.

Geologists are still debating the age of the last eruption here, but it seems likely that Kostal is less than 3,000 years old and therefore the youngest volcano in Wells Gray Park.