I started exploring this area in 1976 and I continue to follow tracks and routes wherever they lead, with the aid of map, compass, GPSr and camera. After many dead-ends, but also many discoveries, I chose to share this information. Getting out 12 months each year, I continue to explore trails, tracks, routes, and waterways of the Kamloops area and beyond.
For most of the summer we follow established trails up ridges and to high points. When fall arrives, the higher points may be snowed in and backroads and trails to high points can become muddy and difficult to access. In the valley bottom and in the hills that surround us, access lasts longer so we often turn to these trails … Continue reading…
We camped at Radium and hiked in the area for a few days. One of the routes we wanted to do was the well-established trail to Lake of the Hanging Glacier. From Radium, we worked our way on backroads to the Horsethief Creek Road, a good backroad that goes 50 km west into the Purcell Range. The signed trailhead is … Continue reading…
The area around Six Mile Hill is grazing land, but the lakes and tracks in the hills are also used by anglers and hikers. We came into Pat Lake from the east, parking by the shoreline area used by fishermen. There are no designated trails in the area but we know some routes that combine double tracks, single tracks, … Continue reading…
The Hoodoos Trail is now a trail in the Nature Trust of B.C., located nor far from Fairmont, B.C. A short hike goes from the trailhead to a viewpoint, then a short loop can be walked before returning. A rim trail, though, has been in place for much longer. It skirts the edge of the bluffs and goes … Continue reading…
The Pedley Pass Trail is one of the best hikes in the East Kootenays area. By driving backroads to 1980 m (6500 feet) into the Stanford Range the trail quickly climbs into subalpine meadows and larch forests. From Highway 93 near Invermere, we took the Windermere Loop Road and then turned onto the Wesroc Mine Road passing the gypsum mine … Continue reading…
Horsethief Falls is found in the Purcell Ranges, more than 50 km up Horsethief Creek. It is in a remote spot, hidden in a canyon so it is not well-known. There is no trail to the base of the falls and the faint trail to the top of the falls is unmarked and a bit of a scramble. While hiking … Continue reading…
Skoatl Point is a dark, barren volcanic core rising above the Bonaparte Plateau. It is in a remote forested area surrounded by many lakes frequented by anglers and hunters. It is the only maintained trail in Bonaparte Provincial Park. Access is via the Jamieson Creek Road (for 25.5 km), then west on the Windy Lake Road. The trailhead … Continue reading…
One of the lakes we return to paddle each year is Badger Lake. Access to the lake is either past Knouff Lake (7 km) on a bumpy back road, or up the Orchard Lake Road (13 km) from Highway 5 North. The road goes up the east side of Badger Lake to a B.C. Rec Site. There is now a … Continue reading…
Mt. Bowman is the premier hike in Marble Range Provincial Park. Access from Clinton is via the Kelly Lake Road, then a right turn onto the Jesmond Road. At 21 km north on the Jesmond Road, an unsigned side road winds to the trailhead area. Alternately, there is an access route through the Circle H Mountain Lodge, requiring permission. We … Continue reading…
We try to add new lakes and rivers to our paddling experiences every year, but those make for long days of travel, so we often return to some of the same lakes each year. McGillivray Lake is a spot that we paddle every year. It takes about an hour to get there with 6 km on a gravel road from … Continue reading…
Painted Bluffs Provincial Park lies on the north side of Kamloops Lake east of Copper Creek. Access by land is difficult, but it can be done from the Copper Creek Road just below the Sabiston Creek Road junction (link). We have been in to Painted Bluffs five times in the last 2 years, with the last time by kayak from … Continue reading…
On a late summer sunny day, I drove all the way up the Deadman Valley and paddled Vidette Lake. It is a 56 km drive up the gravel road from the Trans Canada Highway. Because it is a scenic route with many places to explore, I return most years, choosing different lakes and different hikes each time. We have previously … Continue reading…
Deadman River plunges over lava cliffs into the Deadman River Canyon in the hills to the east of Vidette Lake. We usually drive along the road through the hills for 5 km, then we park on a side road, approaching the brink of the falls from the north. at the viewpoint is a precarious drop-off with no guardrails, and … Continue reading…
Tsintsunko Lake Provincial Park is a 333 hectare park on the Bonaparte Plateau at an elevation of 1603 m (5260 feet). The B.C. Parks lands are along the eastern side of the lake and adjacent interconnected wetlands. The area to the west has been extensively logged. Access is on a combination of Forest Service Roads (Jamieson Creek Road > Deadman … Continue reading…
We paddle Scuitto and Campbell Lake each and every year, but we try to schedule Campbell Lake for late August or September to paddle with the pelicans and sandhill cranes. Campbell Lake is at the end of the Scuitto Forest Service Road, a 14 km bumpy backroad. There is a BC Recreation Site on the south shore of … Continue reading…
Sylvia and Goodwin Falls are located on the Mahood River, 3.5 km up from the confluence of the Mahood and Clearwater Rivers. Access is by the Clearwater River Road. This is a long drive along a winding bumpy road on the west side of the river starting in Clearwater. Some of the road is not in great … Continue reading…
