Author Archives: Kamloops Kayak

Murkwater Paddling

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

In the Thomson – Nicola area there are many lakes and some of them are shallow, muddy, and alkaline, many not suitable for fishing.    We can kayak them, but the best season is spring while the water is clearer, before the lake turns over, and before aquatic plant growth and algae multiplies.    Some lakes turn a muddy-green and have a summer stink (skunkwater).   This often coincides with feeder streams and creek water dwindling and the water becomes stagnant.    The water warms up and naturally occurring nutrients (mostly phosphorous and nitrogen)also build up, feeding blue-green algae growth.   Lakes that are red by streams that go through farm areas can also carry fertilizer.    Any lake next to a highway can also be contaminated with road salts spread in summer and leached down into the lakes.

Trapp Lake is a good paddling lake in spring, but in June it turns a muddy green and by mid-summer is like kale soup.      By that time, the texture of the water, the smell, and the general sense of decay makes these types of lakes poor for paddling.   In early June I paddled the lake, and it was just starting to change, but won’t return until next spring.

No wind left the lake water mirror-like.    This is a scenic lake, but the highway noise detracts from the natural beauty.

I paddled half the lake on this day, about 6 km, taking about 70 minutes.

It is best to paddle Murkwater Lakes in the spring.    Some of the lakes to avoid in summer include Bleeker Lake, Mamit Lake, Napier Lake, Louis Lake, Inks Lake, and any lake that has low water levels from evaporation and dry inflow streams.

 

 

 

 

Stump Lake Recreation Site

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

Stump Lake is a fine lake to paddle, but with two caveats.     It is a windy lake so we need to check the wind forecasts in advance.    Second, there has been limited access to the lake to launch a boat.    The lake has risen, flooding some lakeside cabins and the main boat launch area on the west shore.    Since it is a popular fishing lake (kokanee), the one official ramp is always full.     there are three other informal access points, but they are also busy spots.    In the last few years I have used the roughest access point, hauling the kayak down to the rocky shoreline.    There was a Rec Site on the east side of the lake, but the access road was in poor shape and the site was run-down.    I landed my kayak in the little bay and checked it out and was disappointed.    But that has all changed now.    BC Rec Sites and Trails has rebuilt the site.   Access is from the south, at the start of the Peterhope Lake Road.    the road has been graded and re-fenced all the way to the campsite, where there are 16 campsites, a boat launch, washrooms, and parking.

I launched my kayak from the gravel shoreline and paddled south along the shoreline of the lake.

Stump Lake is a large lake so we paddle a loop route over part of the lake, changing the route each time.

Next time I will again choose this launch area and I will paddle north.   Recommended!

More information:

 

 

Walloper Lake Kayaking

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a grey May morning I drove up the Lac le Jeune Road to the Walloper Lake Recreation Site and launched into the lake for a circuit of the shoreline.     Conditions were calm at the start, but the forecast called for 20 km/h winds to start about 10:30, and after an hour of paddling,  the first gusts arrived (about 10:00), on my way back to the launch.   Overall it was a good paddle on the lake.    There were no other boats on the lake and I spotted loons, ducks, geese, swallows, a hatch of insects, and an osprey.    The high country is still emerging and some of the shrubs haven’t yet leafed out.    I have left the higher elevations lakes for later in May and into June.   This was the first of a number to be paddled in the area, including Stake Lake, McConnell Lake, Lodgepole Lake, Paska Lake, Face Lake, Tunkwa Lake, and Leighton Lake.   Some smaller lakes will probably be paddled to, depending on access.

A few images are shared here.    Click an image for a lightbox view and a caption.

 

 

 

Neskonlith Lake Kayaking

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a greyish late May morning I drove out to Neskonlith Lake for a paddle, followed by a nature hike.    Access to the lake is seasonally limited.    We can drive through the gate from May through October.    The road leads to camping sites and a boat launch on the north side of the lake.    When I launched there were no other boats on the lake, nor any vehicles at the launch parking area, but tehre were a few RVs in the designated camping spots along the lake.    All was quiet early in the morning.   Since it is 11 km to paddle the whole lake I usually paddle the west arm or the east arm, completing about half the lake each year.    On this day the lake was calm and quiet.    I paddled west and returned around a small rocky islet.

There were a few pairs of nesting geese on the island and in one sheltered bay.   There were ducks and loons on the lake and swallows and an osprey flying over the lake.   this is a lake I paddle each year, one of about 100 in our area.   A few images are shared here.    Click an image for a lightbox view and a caption.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Six Mile Paddle and Hike

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a greyish spring day I drove from the TransCanada Highway up the rough Six Mile backroad to Pat Lake.     I kayaked around the lake twice (about one hour of paddling), then secured the boat and hiked up into the hills.    Pat Lake is a popular fishing lakes, especially in the early season since it is one of the first ice-off fishing lakes.    The lake is surrounded by rocky hills in a grasslands zone.      Six Mile Hill stands above the lakes to the north, overlooking Kamloops Lake.    The lake has good access for launching a boat and parking and it is a scenic spot, but it is a smaller lake.

There was a couple of fishing boats on the lake, but I kept out of their way by paddling the shoreline, once in each direction.

There were ducks on the lake, an insect hatch, a killdeer, and many swallows swooping across the lake.   It is a quiet and peaceful spot.

After paddling around the lake twice, I hiked to the top of Six Mile Hill and back in an eclectic loop route.    Another fine day of paddling and hiking…

More information on Pat Lake – link.

 

 

 

Upper Pinantan Lake

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

I paddle Pinantan Lake every year, launching from the end of Cridge Road.      I usually paddle around the lakeshore (4 km) and in some years I paddle and portage up to the upper lake (sometimes called Little Pinantan Lake).    The route starts by paddling along the north shore of the lake to the northeast corner.    From there a marsh channel can be paddled in spring.     There is a beaver dam part way up and this year there was a second barrier too.

Before the dam we can paddle over to a grassy (and muddy) shoreline area, get out, then haul the kayak by hand past the barrier, then relaunch again.    In the marsh it is not easy to get out and get back in again (twice).

I launched back into the upper channel and entered the upper lake, a scenic small lake bordered by bullrushes and cattails.    There were ducks, blackbirds, and marsh wrens .    Grasslands and forested slopes surround the lake.    I paddled once around the lake, then came back down the channel, did the portage, then paddled back into the main lake.

The route to the upper lake is a bit of an adventure and the small lake is a lovely spot.    I hope to return to the main lake to paddle once more, probably in summer.

More information on Pinantan Lake.

 

 

 

Kayaking Venables Lake

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On the May long weekend I drove through Cache Creek and down the Trans Canada Highway towards Spences Bridge.     I then turned onto the (signed) South Venables Valley Road.    It is paved for about half the distance to the valley.   After that it is good gravel.    I continued up the valley until I came to a hand launch spot about halfway up the lake.    Although the forecast had been for light winds, there was a strong breeze out of the south, so when I launched the kayak, I paddled south for a 3.8 km circuit around Venables Lake.   This is an out-of-the-way lake that sees few paddlers or fishermen.

Both ends of the lake have shallow water, but there was enough water in the lake to allow a full paddle of the lake.

A few images are shared here.    Click an image for a lightbox view and a caption.

 

 

After paddling the lake, I drove north, then turned down the North Venables Road for a loop route.    the south road is better, but the north Road is a slower drive.    After reching the highway I pulled off at Red Hill to find flowering bitterroots, now emerging on the dry rocky hills.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edith AM

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

With wind and rain forecast for the day, starting about 9 am, I decided to head out to Edith Lake early.     I was on the water by 7:15 and enjoyed cool, but calm conditions.    At the time of the morning, there were no other boats yet on the lake.     Along the way were loons, geese, ducks (mallards, goldeneyes, and grebes), blackbirds, meadowlarks, swallows, rising fish, and killdeer.     A circuit of the lake, including all the back bays takes under an hour, but if we continuously paddle, it makes a good workout to start the day.

The main part of the lake sees a lot of fishing boats, but boats do not venture to the back bays much.   These are surrounded by grassland hills and are shallow near the end.    As I paddled back to the boat launch, more fishermen were arriving.

Edith is one of my go-to lakes for a shorter paddle so I try to keep a good pace as a workout, but I also enjoy the quiet, rural setting of this close-to-home lake.

 

 

Pass Lake Kayaking

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a grey and drizzly morning I drove up through the Lac du Bois Grasslands and continued to Pass Lake  at 19km.    I drove down the short access road to the Pass Lake Recreation Site.     There are two boat launches and lots of parking.    I launched into the lake and paddled twice around the shoreline, a 5 km outing.    there were a few fly fishermen on the lake, but it was still a quiet spot.    There were loons, including a nesting one on the shoreline, an eagle, ducks, geese, red-winged blackbirds, marsh wrens, a painted turtle, and a fresh hatch on the lake

 

The lake was calm for the first third, then wind and rain passed through the area, and it calmed down for the final part of the second loop on the lake.

This lake is a good lake to paddle in the spring, one I will continue to kayak for the years to come.    More information – Pass Lake

 

 

 

 

 

Pre-Noise Paddle

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

When we go out to paddle, we are hoping for a quiet outing.    Some lakes are noisy spots.     The more homes on a lake, the more likely we will encounter noise, particularly power machinery.    Some of the noise comes with power boats.    Some comes with loud people, unnecessarily.     One of the spots we are cautious of is Paul Lake.     Because the lake is surrounded by steep slopes, the acoustics amplify noise across across the lake.     The best way to avoid the noise pollution problem is to go early in the morning, or a weekday morning, or off season.    We usually paddle the lake three times each year so we purposely plan for the best times.  On a sunny morning with no wind, I launched my boat early and paddled the east end of the lake, a 5 km route.

 

By a beaver lodge there was a bear and an eagle on watch.    There may have been beaver kits in the lodge.   I have spotted a beaver swimming in the lake in past years.   At the east end of the lake, there were western painted turtles sunning on wet logs.     Loons were diving and there were ducks all over.     Blackbirds and marsh wrens were heard and seen in shallow, marshy bays.

There was one fishermen with a wharf boat who thought he should bring a music device and play his music while fishing.     I could hear it right across the lake.    When we left he turned on his noisy engine and slowly crossed the lake, filling the whole valley with jarring decibels of pollution.   Most of the paddle along the south shore was quiet, with only the calls of birds.

 

A few more boats were arriving as I paddled back across the lake.    I was done before the din.

I will return for one more paddle of Paul Lake, probably in the fall when quiet is restored to this potentially-tranquil spot.

 

Peterhope Lake Kayaking

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a mild May morning I drove south on Highway 5A south past Stump Lake, then turned up the Peterhope Lake Road bearing east.    The road is paved for about 6.5 km then a gravel road arrives at the lake.     A BC Rec Site is just off the road with two boat launches.    I launched at the first one and parked, then launched into the lake for a circuit around the shoreline, including a route up a back channel to a small hidden lake.    The paddle takes about 75 minutes with steady paddling.    The winds were light at the start, but on the way back stronger gusts came out of the north.

There were a few people fishing on the lake, but it is a large enough lake for everyone.     There were ducks, loons, geese and goslings, a bald eagle, an osprey, marsh wrens, blackbirds, and swallows on the lake or by the shore.    A few images are shared here.    Click an image for a lightbox view   .

 

 

More Information:

 

 

 

Bleeker Lake Kayaking

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a mild spring day in early May I drove gravel roads to the Roche Lake area, then turned onto the Bleeker Lake Forest Service Road to the BC Rec Site on the north side of the lake.      On a Sunday morning the Rec Site was full and there were three other informal sites nearby also being used, but when I launched the kayak, there were no other boats on the lake.      A paddle around the shoreline is about 4.5 km and it took me one hour of steady paddling.

Bleeker lake has shallow areas on either end of the lake, but it can all be paddled in spring.   With intermittent inflow, the lake drops significantly in summer, partly from evaporation and partly from draw-down (a dammed lake).    Large sections of the lake become choked with aquatic vegetation in summer.   The lake has also had recent winter kill, but there is an aeration system in the lake to support the fishery.    On this day there were many ducks on the lake, a loon, and a bald eagle watching for a lunch meal.

This is a lake I paddle each spring, but I do not return for a second day of paddling in summer or fall.    I will be back in May of 2025 (but I may go past Bleeker to brave the rough road into Hosli Lake).

A few images from the day’s paddling are shared here.    Click an image for a lightbox view.

 

 

More Information – Bleeker Lake

 

Paddling Repulse Bay

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

While staying on Denman Island on the seacliffs above Repulse Bay, I hauled a sit-on-top kayak down the steep stairway down to the rocky beach and launched into the bay, paddling a circuit in the rocky bay.   The advantage of a plastic sit-on-top kayak is that it can take the bumps on the haul down the slope, across the rocks, launching, and landing.    On the other hand we get wet and the boat is not easy to paddle in a straight line.    But for a shorter paddle on a spring day on cold water, it was okay.

There was a 15 km/h wind but it was manageable for bay-paddling.

On the next day the sea was calm and I chose to use an inflatable SUP because it was easier to haul down and back up.    Repulse Bay is full of large rocks so I did not inset the tail fin and I chose to kneel and sit.     If I struck a boulder, I didn’t want to pitch into the cold water.

I paddled these two days but then the winds and rain made paddling more unpleasant.    I hiked past 3 lakes on the island that looked fine for paddling.    Next time I will bring a fold-up kayak for the lakes or a full kayak for both fresh water and salt water kayaking.

Kayaking Louis Lake

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

Louis Lake lies between Mt. Fleet and Louis Ridge, but also between the Paul Lake – Pinantan Road and Paul Lake Provincial Park.    Much of the lake is shallow so any paddling on the lake is best done in the spring when the lake has been recharged.    We can hand launch near the Waste Transfer Station.    the shore is marshy, but there are some clear spots that can be used.

On a breezy April morning I launched the kayak into 15 km winds from the west.    I paddled around the end of the lake, then up the southern shore, trying to stay within the lee of the ridge above.The north-aspect shore is treed and shaded.     There are no trails on those steep slopes.    Except for a few ducks, geese, and some forest birds, it is a quiet paddle, going clockwise around the lake.     The western end of the lake is shallow and marshy, but we can paddle the whole lake in spring.    Coming back on the north side shoreline, the wind was at my back making for easy paddling.

Paddling the whole lake was 4.1 km, a shorter paddle for a busy day.    Louis Lake is a once-a-year paddle, usually done on a windy day when the larger lakes are not suitable for kayaking.    I have quite a few lakes like this one, visited once a year as part of the paddling rotation.

Copper Island Kayak

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

On a calm day with mild temperatures I drove out to Scotch Creek Provincial Park paddled from the boat launch area over to Copper Island

I kayaked around the south side of the island and then landed on the east side landing area.

I secured the boat and the gear, put on a pair of hiking shoes and then hiked the 2.6 km Copper Island Trail.

The double loop route was 7.25 km.    This is a very nice outing on a calm day in spring.    I don’t recommend starting in the afternoon on a busy summer day.

More Information:

  • Copper Island hike – link
  • Copper Island YouTube video – link

 

West End of Paul Lake

Kamloops Kayak Posted on by

By the second week of April. many of the lower lakes become  ice-free and have good vehicle access.     On a calm and mild morning I drove to the west end of Paul Lake on the Harper Mountain Road.     I hand launched into the lake and paddled up the north shore of the lake toward Gibraltar Rock. 

I paddled about 3.1 km up the shoreline to an area near the beach boat launch and then turned around and paddled back on the same shore.    On the south side of the lake, there are homes, docks, and noise, and the north side has trees, bluffs, and ducks.

Gibraltar Rock juts out into the lake, similar to paddling around Battle Bluff.    When the wind is out of the west, the area from the bluff to the beach is usually calmer, lying in the lee of the winds.   

There were winds for the middle part of the 6.2 km paddle, but the winds died coming back to the start.  

This was the first day of paddling on Paul Lake.    I usually paddle about three times, but I also paddle nearby Louis Lake and later on to Pinantan Lake and Hyas Lake.    This was the 11th day of paddling in 2024.    I try to paddle Mondays and Fridays and sometimes other days, but conditions (wind and smoke) dictate which days are paddle days and which days are for hiking.

 

More Information – Paul Lake