On the first day of July I hiked along the edge of the McQueen Lake area to the Grasslands Community Trail, then looped back through the upper grasslands around Clay Lake, then followed an old double track on to the flank of Clapperton Hill, and back through the grasslands – open forest to the start. The whole route was around … Continue reading…
We hiked trails near Isobel Lake on a warm summer morning. The goal was to hike a loop route and include Eagle Eye Lookout on top of the hill south of the lake. We hiked around the west side through the forest, then on open double tracks, and finally a single track to the top of the hill. Along the … Continue reading…
Just after the Summer Solstice we drove up the Trophy Mountain Road and hiked the trail to the meadows. The forest was dry, but the meadows above were wet and bit muddy, but is was good hiking all the way past the old shepherd’s hut. The route up the ridge was in good shape. We hiked along the ridge past … Continue reading…
There are several route choices for Coal Hill. On a drizzly, grey morning I chose to start from Aberdeen and work my way to the top of the hill using trails and some cross-country sections, avoiding fences, and leaving no trace. The route was through douglas fir forest and up sagebrush grassland slopes. The steady climb is about 2.2 km … Continue reading…
Sunrise Mountain is located on the west side of Barnhartvale, rising steeply above the homes off Todd Road. Access is from the end of Lane. A single-track trail climbs up a north-south ridge to the summit. Along the way are a number of viewpoints. The day was a grey one, a combination of unsettled weather and forest fire smoke. The … Continue reading…
On a June day I drove to Shuswap Lake and then turned north onto the Adams Lake Road. The Flumes Trails are located just past the Bear-Loakin Road turn off. The Upper Flumes Trails climb the hill by Bear (Hiuihill) Creek west upstream toward Skmana Lake. The Lower Flumes Trails follow Bear Creek downstream to the Adams River. From one … Continue reading…
On a hot day in June we hiked up to the caves on Savona Mountain. We parked at the start of the Savona Mountain Road since the forest service road had been washed away. The hike is usually about 6 km return, but the extra hike on the road added another kilometer. After the forest fire on the mountain, much … Continue reading…
Jag Hill is the prominent ridge/hill on the southeast corner of the Red Plateau Escarpment. Ragged cliffs with spires and an arch stand above the Dewdrop Range. Access is from the Tranquille – Criss Creek Road. On this day I followed a single track used to get to Garden of the Trolls, then veered off to the rocky slopes below … Continue reading…
We stayed on Denman Island to hike and explore, but we also took a day trip over to Hornby Island to hike Helliwell Provincial Park and Tribune Bay Provincial Park. Our hike in Helliwell was a loop route that wound through old-growth forest to the St. John’s Point. All photos by the author. Click an image for a lightbox view. … Continue reading…
We hiked from Lac du Bois up onto Opax Mountain, and on to the western side where cliffs overlook the Tranquille River Canyon. Usually we do this as an out-and-back hike, a great 15 km hike. Recently Al Budreau, the author of Kamloops Backcountry Hikes, has developed a trail from the viewpoint down to the end of Hanging Valley. He … Continue reading…
A good hike in spring is the route to the top of Buse Hill. The trail starts on the Robbins Range Road and climbs to the top of the steep bluffs looking east. Buse Protected Area (BC Parks) includes Buse Lake and Buse Hill. We hiked up the main double track for 2 km to the viewpoint, then explored some … Continue reading…
Every year we drive backroads to hike into Painted Bluffs Provincial Park. There are no trails, but there are sections of single tracks and some old grown-over double tracks that can be used, but the route involves going over hills and through gullies a rugged traverse bearing east to the edge of the park. We started on a known … Continue reading…
On a hot and smoky day we hiked on the Greenstone Trails. the trailhead is on the northeast corner of the mountain on the Greenstone Mountain Road. There is a network of trails there, a combination of old double tracks and single tracks used by mountain bikers. On a weekday morning, we were the only ones on the trails, hiking … Continue reading…
On a hot day we got an early start to hike a loop route in the hills. We followed Al Budreau (Kamloops Backcountry Hikes) who had developed a trail up and over Jag Hill. Al led us up the steep trail on the southeast side of Jag Hill, starting on the Tranquille Criss Creek Road. We hiked over the top … Continue reading…
For 45 years I have been hiking up Mara Mountain. There are several ways up, but the best one is from the northeast with the trailhead at the Pruden Pass Road. the route climbs through grassland and open forest steeply up to a benchland pond, then steeply up to a shoulder of the mountain. A trail can be picked up … Continue reading…
Over the winter I purchased a folding kayak so that I could use a backpack to hike to hard-to-get-to-lakes with a kayak. The first lake for this adventure was Island Lake, a grasslands lake in the middle grasslands of Lac du Bois Protected Area. With the backpack on, i hiked from the trailhead to the lake on a faint single … Continue reading…