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.
The campground at Kentucky and Alleyne Lakes is a good spot for a quiet retreat near smaller lakes, with some pleasant trails and paddling opportunities. We paddled both Kentucky and Alleyne Lakes in the same day. There are launch spots on both lakes from the campground. the paddle around Kentucky Lake is 4km and the paddle around Alleyne Lake is … Continue reading…
July Mountain is a remote peak on the north end of the Coquihalla Summit area. It is accessed off the Coquihalla Highway at the Juliet Creek exit. A narrow gravel road goes uo the valley for 4 km before crossing the creek. Over the next 4 km, the road becomes rougher, more grown-in with alder, and there are a number … Continue reading…
Although we have kayaked most of the lake in the Kamloops area, we have not paddled the smaller lakes with our longer boats. These were saved for outings on a stand-up paddle board. The shoreline of McQueen Lake is about 3km around if we include all the shallow bays. There are a couple of launch spots just below the Isobel … Continue reading…
On rainy days, picking trails closer to home and not too far from the vehicle is a good idea. We still want to find scenic routes and we often return to the Mesa Trail when we have less time and the weather is marginal. We hiked from the trailhead just past the prison up to the Mesa Trail junction. Sure … Continue reading…
Mt. Kerr is the highest peak in the Marble Range at 7480 feet. It is a challenging route since it is a 22 km out-and back hike. The trailhead is the same one we use for Mt. Bowman or Wild Horse Ridge (links at the bottom). The approach is on a high-clearance track which follows the power line and ends … Continue reading…
Our route up to Hihium Lake was from the southwest, so we drove west on the Trans Canada Highway and then turned north onto the Deadman Valley Road. The narrow and sometimes Hihium FSR climbs steeply out of the valley onto the upper plateau, which has been heavily logged and planted. The road was reasonable and we noted signs for … Continue reading…
Tuktakamin Mountain stands at 5816 feet above the village of Falkland, Highway 97 goes around the base of the mountain on 2 sides and there are numerous communications towers on top. It is possible to drive to the top, but there is also a good loop trail that follows one ridge to the summit and another ridge down. The trailhead … Continue reading…
The paddle from Westsyde to McArthur Island is a leisurely 14 km downriver route. We launched from the end of Harrington Road near the Dunes and moved out into the river allowing the current to pull us downstream. In June the river is bank to bank with no sand bars. We could average 7km per hour without too much effort, … Continue reading…
Mad Dog Mountain is one of several peak in the Marble Range which has a trail to the summit. These limestone peaks have barren rugged karst formations on the summits, offering wonderful hiking opportunities. We parked on the Jesmond Road at Foundation Creek and followed the trail up the creek between Mad Dog and Lime Ridge. This trail has … Continue reading…
Green Lake has clear green water and a forested shoreline. It is a marl lake, a lime-rich mud-bottom and gravel post-glacial lake, common to a number of the larger BC Interior lakes. The Marble Range stands above the Cariboo to the west and silts and sediments rich in calcite and lime have worked their way into the lake basin by … Continue reading…
The Outer Inks Trails are mostly forested double tracks with a few single tracks added by dirt bikers on motorcycles. It is not an official trail system. The old double tracks on Crown Land were used by ranchers (grazing leases) and for forestry access. Recreational use has mainly been motorcycles and ATVs, but the trail system is also suitable for … Continue reading…
When the Dewdrop Trail was built, it connected the Dewdrop Range (grasslands and hills) with Red Plateau (forested uplands). The route climbs (lava flow) north-south oriented ridges to the top of the Escarpment. The trail continues along the rim of the Escarpment to various viewpoints. There was once a loop route back then which we had hiked, but decades of … Continue reading…
We paddle downriver from the Town of Chase to the Pritchard Bridge, a journey of 21 km down the South Thompson River.
Continue reading...There is a large chunk of rugged terrain on Crown Land east of Kamloops. A series of rocky bluffs and forested slopes rise one after the other to the north above the South Thompson River. There is no real access from Shuswap Road because of private homes, but a gravel road climbs up the power line on the east side … Continue reading…
The South Thompson River is a great paddling destination, breaking the distance from Chase to Kamloops into three 21 km sections. We launched our kayaks from the Pritchard Bridge (NW side) on a sunny morning and paddled downstream for 3 hours. During freshet, the river swells to cover all the gravel bars and so parts of the journey west feels … Continue reading…
Sometimes we just want an easy ride on the backroads to recover from days of hiking, biking, and paddling. On a warm day in June, we chose to bike to Badger Lake and back, a total of 21.5 km. There are a couple of hills at the start, but the whole route is relatively flat. The road surface is excellent … Continue reading…
