McLure to Kamloops River Run

Each year, we paddle the 36 km route down the North Thompson River from the McLure Ferry to Westsyde Road. It is different experience each time, depending on the volume of water in the river. Before the spring melt, the river has extensive sand and gravel bars and the water moves more slowly. During freshet, the river is wide and moves quickly. Side channels are also full of water and there is a lot of movement in the river – eddies, rapids, whirlpools, and waves. The Heffley Rapids are imposing, making for an exciting ride.

This time, we paddled the river on September 1st and the sandbars and gravelbars were emerging. The river was still moving along at a good speed and we were able to maintain about 9km/hour with steady paddling. We found that the river travels about 2km/hour faster on the outside of curves (using a deck-mounted GPS) and that river always had one side that ran faster. We launched from the Ferry on Westsyde Road and stayed in the faster water as much as could.

Most of the river is just steady paddling, but there are a few obstacles to go around and some minor rapids. We always stop and land at a small beach just past Jamieson Creek and jus before the Heffley Rapids. We hiked over to the edge of the rapids this last time and planned a route, which worked very well. We went through only 3 sections of rapids by going down a side channel to the right. The left side has a long series of rapids and in higher water, there will be about 8 sections to get through. This is not a route for novices. Good boat-management and a variety of paddle strokes are needed.

The last section past Rayleigh to Westsyde seems slower, but the river is wider and flows about the same speed. Most kayaks will be fine for running the river, but the longer boats go faster, are more seaworthy in rougher water, and a rudder helps to avoid obstacles with both paddling and steering.