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 … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →
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.
Continue reading →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 … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →
In mid-October the weather was fine, but the mornings were cool. The sun was up for a paddle on McConnell Lake. Twice around the lake took 60 minutes on this 87th day of paddling in 2022:
Continue reading →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. … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →
On a fall day, the river was calm, the sun was shining, and the downriver flow had slowed down to allow easy paddling. I paddled downriver to the highway bridge area and back up, another section of the South Thompson River worth kayaking
Continue reading →Stake Lake is a favorite lake for a return paddle each season. It takes about 52 minutes to go around the lake twice. On some of those days, after paddling, a hike on the trails follows, a double benefit.
Continue reading →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 … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →
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, … Continue reading →
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. The hike was on double tracks to … Continue reading →
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 … Continue reading →