Your first question will probably be. “Where’s Desmond Lake?”
You have probably spotted it from the Coquihalla Highway as you climb the hill toward Surrey Summit. It lies below on the west side, a shallow, marshy lake on the Surrey Lake FSR. There is no launch and only marshy, muddy shoreline. A paddle around the shoreline is 2.2 km.
Much of the lake was shallow, but there were some marl shoals too, providing some clear water. Two loons fished on the lake in the deep area on the east side. Ducks and ducklings scuttled off as I paddled the shoreline.
It is probably rare for anyone to put a boat on this marshy lake:
I doubt I will paddle this one again, but I’m happy to have done it once…
When you have kayaked almost all of the lakes within a 2 hour drive and some of them a few times, we start to look for some new spots. Different launch spots on large lakes is one good choice, but another is to do some smaller lakes.
It often seems to be “overkill” to haul an 18 foot kayak into a small lake that is only 1 km around the shoreline. Sometimes the lake is a great spot so we can go around 2 or 3 times and at other times we can paddle the lake, then go for a hike.
Another opportunity is to paddle some lakes that have limited access. Some backroads are rough and sometimes overhanging branches are a problem for a roof-mounted kayak. A few lakes just have no easy shoreline launch areas. For these lakes we need to haul the kayak by hand. To this end, I purchased a foldable kayak, the Oru Inlet. It arrived in the box, ready to set up.
Straps and a carrying handle make it easy to carry. I bought a carrying bag too to sling it over my shoulder. It weighs 20 pounds.
The first time I unfolded it and set it up took about 20 minutes. The second time took 8 minutes. It can be done in 3-5 minutes.
I carried it around the yard and onto the back deck. It was light and easy to haul.
Some of the specs are:
3m long
30″ wide
20 pounds
capacity – 300 pounds
water type – flat water
It is not a boat to take out across Kamloops Lake. It is for the shoreline on any lake, except on windy days, and it is suitable for any small lake. I also purchased a spray skirt and flotation bags. I will use my regular paddle and light gear. I won’t get to test it out until spring, but in the meantime I can practice unfolding and refolding it. Watch for some posts in the spring as it get tested on the water.
As the last days of paddling in 2022 approached, I found a calm morning on the river paddling from Pioneer Park. A paddling jacket, gloves, and a sprayskirt made this outing fine (for now).
At this time of year I have the river to myself, except for a few ducks, geese, and other birds.
By the end of October morning temperatures were cooler so monitoring forecasts for wind speeds is important. Water temperatures take much longer to cool so as long as we dress appropriately, it is warm inside the kayak. There were fishermen on the water on this cool fall morning.
Paddling around the lake, going into all the bays, takes just under an hour.
The morning sun was low on the horizon, filling the eastern skies.
Click an image for a lightbox view.
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Paddling season is winding down now, but there prime fall days will resonate for weeks to come.
On a mid-October sunny morning, we paddled Scuitto Lake. The lake levels had dropped quite a lot since spring from both evaporation and draw-down, but it was still a fine place to fish or paddle.
Early in the morning there was only one boat on the lake. More fishermen arrived later. All of them seemed to have some success on this fall day.
There is one larger island and two smaller ones. One of the islands is completely below water in spring. Along part of the southwestern side of the lake are a number of standing stumps. In spring, swallows nest in holes in them.
Some of the stumps and roots would fit into a sculpture exhibit.
A page on Scuitto Lake will be developed over winter. For now, we can reflect back to lakes we have paddled this year.
When we hiked in the Six Mile Lakes area, we called Morgan Lake “The Slough.” Before it was dammed it was a long marsh. Now it is a popular fishing lake. We drove in from the Tunkwa Lake Road.
We parked at the west end of the lake (by the old Trans Canada Highway track, now submerged below the lake. there is a good hand launch there. When we arrived there was no one on the lake, a rare occurrence in nice weather.
We had first paddled Leighton Lake then stopped down to do Morgan Lake too. A paddle around the lake is only 2 km.
Another great day of paddling, the 86th day of 2022.
Leighton Lake is located in Tunkwa Lake Provincial Park. It is a popular fishing and camping destination in the warmer months. The North Campground is used by off-road enthusiasts who use the backroads and ATV tracks of the area. In mid-fall, though, it was a quiet spot.
On this day, I paddled once around the lake, then headed down the Tunkwa Lake Road and then paddled Morgan Lake. Fall is a good time to paddle the lake. It can be a busy spot for most of the fishing season.
On a fall day, I launched from the beach at the Pritchard Bridge and paddled out into the river.
I paddled upstream and the downstream flow was quite manageable for steady progress. I paddled up to Pritchard Provincial Park, a marine strip park along the South Thompson River.
I paddled past the park, around a rocky bluff and some farmland shoreline. On the way back, landed on the shoreline in the park and walked the beach.
With the salmon run starting, there were many birds on the river – crows, eagles, geese, and gulls were active on the rivershore. There is foot access to the two sections of parklands along the river (north and south of the bridge) and we are planning to walk these sections in late winter when the beaches clear of snow.
This will be a paddle I will return to do each year, in the spring or fall, when the flow of the river allows reasonable paddling.
Bush Creek Campground is part of Adams Lake Provincial Park. There is a good boat launch and a wide gravel beach. Paddlers can paddle along the shoreline north or south or cross the lake and explore the shoreline. Adams Lake is a large lake which can provide many days of paddling.
On the last day of September I paddled north along the shoreline and back, but there were some fine beaches to explore along the way.
The western shoreline has an interesting shoreline to explore. Agate Bay was visible 10 km north. The water was crystal clear and the lake was quiet.
A few cliffs extend down into the lake. The sun was shining over the ridge as I paddled back to the park.
The park can be a busy spot in the summer, but in the fall it was a fine destination for a day’s paddle.
The low-elevation grassland lakes of the Interior get long days of sunshine and hot conditions and it is common to have algae multiply in these spots. Trapp Lake was like pea soup near the end of September, but I paddled the lake anyway.
Though the lake was green and uninviting, the scenery around the lake was wonderful, and on a calm day, the reflections were perfect.
Most of the experience was captured in video:
Trapp has a number of pros (scenic, close to town, easy access, larger lake) and cons (highway noise and algae), but I enjoy paddling the lake, and in the future I will do that in the spring and skip late summer and early fall.
A Trapp Lake information page will be developed over the winter.
On a September day I drove to Falkland, then up the Chase Creek Road to Pillar Lake. There is a BC Rec Site on the east side of the lake with a gravel boat launch.
At the start of the paddle there was no wind. The Pillar Lake Resort is located on the hillside above the lake for about 200m, but there are no other homes along the lake.
The lake is narrow, but it is a nice relatively quiet spot to paddle. The distance around the shoreline is about 4.6 km.
After paddling I secured the kayak, I hiked up the trail to The Pillar above:
This year I have been doing more paddle and hike combinations. On a mid-September day I paddled twice around Stake Lake, then hiked 6.5 km on the trails.
Calm conditions and scattered clouds resulted in lots of reflections and steady paddling around the lake. Click or tap an image for a lightbox view.
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The hike was on double tracks to the northeast end of McConnell Hill, then a little-known track, to an area I have usually called The Basalt Amphitheater:
More paddle-and-hike outings are planned before the end of the season.
Once the logs were cleared from the path to Cooney Bay I put my kayak on wheels and launched the boat on the river. The goal was to paddle upstream to the sand-silt islands where the pelicans were. Paddling upstream was okay, but there is a lot of very shallow water so it was hard to get close to the pelicans on the other side of the river. I got close enough for a few shots with a telephoto lens, but it is very hard to hold the longer lens steady for the distances required, so only a handful of shots were clear enough to share.
Click an image for a lightbox view.
After the upstream paddle, I floated downstream to Cooney Bay and paddled a loop route on Kamloops Lake.
The launch area was very muddy and the path to the shoreline was narrow and it wound through many logs (pulling an 18 foot kayak), but once on the lake, the paddling was excellent.
It is probably rare for anyone to put a boat on this marshy lake:
