There is a chain of marshes in the space between Stake Lake and the Coquihalla Highway that are fun to explore in winter. Access is via a cattleguard entrance off Lac le Jeune Road. A double track goes west and branches connect to the South Bush Lake area too. On this sunny winter day, I headed out onto the ponds … Continue reading…
We started going up to the Ridge Lakes in about 1980 to do some early cross country skiing at 4820 – 5000 ft. We would put our skis on our shoulders and hike up to the snow. In mid-season we would ski from the Lac le Jeune Cross Country Trails (gone now) up to the trail next to the ski … Continue reading…
The Dogwood Marshes area is an informal snowshoeing area right next to the Bush Lake parking area on Lac le Jeune Road. There is a gate to go through and then user-established trails wind down the hill to the red-ossier dogwood and willow shrub marshes below. there are a few marshes and ponds above on the east and south side … Continue reading…
Most of the snowshoeing routes on the South Side of Bush Lake follow old double tracks over the ridges. Most of them end in a landing so connecting sections usually means following opens spots. Recently the area has been logged so there are new double tracks an large open areas too that extend right down to the marshes across from … Continue reading…
The original Bush Lake Trails were built for the first 1979 BC Winter Games. I remember talking to Art Hooper, the Sport Chair for cross country skiing. I was sport chair for both squash and racquetball and I attended Sport meetings with the other chairs and Director Pat O’Brian, then ran the events during the Games. Art got help from … Continue reading…
The Lodgepole Lake area is one of our favorite destinations for winter snowshoeing. The road is usually kept clear right to the Rec Site at the lake at 1415 m elevation (4652 ft). All routes from the lake are set by snowshoers or snowmobiles. The Chuwhels Mountain FSR is the main corridor, but many branch roads go off either … Continue reading…
All of the routes in the Bush Lake area are informal tracks that require some navigation. Longer routes can be snowshoed by linking one track with another, going over ridges or through the forest. The double marshes on the southwest end of the area between the Coquihalla Highway and the Lac le Jeune Road can be accessed through a gate … Continue reading…
The Dogwood Marshes area is not a formal or organized snowshoeing area. We use the parking area established originally for the Bush Lake Trails (across the road), but we enter the area through a gate in the grazing fence and drop down to the open area of the (red ossier dogwood) marshes below. There are no signed trailheads nor any … Continue reading…
The Bush Lake Trails were developed as cross country trails for the (first) 1979 BC Winter Games in 1979. We did all of our nordic skiing on the trails, but when the Coquihalla Highway was under construction, it cut the trails into two areas with no connection and instead the government established the Stake Lake system nearby. the old trails … Continue reading…
The trail to Silvertip Falls is off the Spahats Creek Road. Take the Trophy Mountain Road, but stay right at 4.3 km and continue on for another 2.5 km. Where the road crosses Silvertip Creek is the Silvertip Falls Recreation site (just before the bridge). A short, rough road then leads up to 2 primitive campsites and the hiking trail … Continue reading…
In late winter as the temperatures started to warm up, the snow melted slowly in the hills. I ventured up into the hills overlooking Tranquille River, following double tracks, single tracks, and some cross country sections through the sagebrush and the snow. From the Mara Trail start, I followed the old wagon track that connects Tranquille to Pruden Pass … Continue reading…
The trails on the west side of the Pineview Trails system are in the Ironmask Hills and can be accessed from a parking area off the Lac le Jeune Road. The trails have been designated for fat tire bikes and snowshoes. Snowshoes help to pack down the trail for bikes without creating holes so this is a good partnership. The … Continue reading…
Although I enjoyed this snowshoe outing into the forest east of Timber Lake, it is not going to make anyone’s recommended lists. The intent (in late winter) was to drive over to the Timber Lake area and hike up into the hills above on routes we have snowshoed before. there had been no winter logging in the area so the … Continue reading…
The upper (north) edge of the Lac du Bois Grasslands Conservancy is one of our best snowshoeing areas in winter. There are short sections of trails which can be connected up, but the snows blanket the area, obscuring both single and double tracks, so following snowshoe tracks may be easier. We chose to follow an old forested track between Clay … Continue reading…
In winter the Lodgepole Lake FSR is kept plowed to the Rec Site on Lodgepole Lake at 1339m (4721 feet). This is a good spot to venture out for winter snowshoeing, using logging roads and access tracks to cutblocks, skid tracks, marshes and ponds, OHV trails, and open cutblocks, linked together to create a loop route. Other snowshoers may have … Continue reading…
When winter snows blanket the hills we head to to various locations to snowshoe. Well-established locations like Stake Lake, Sun Peaks, and Bush Lake/Dogwood Marshes are often our first choice, but then we go to secondary routes when conditions are right. We first starting exploring Hill Hill decades ago, running and hiking the old double tracks on the north and … Continue reading…
