We visited South Pender Island and stayed on Drummond Bay at the south end of the island, only 1.5 km from the U.S. border in Boundary Pass. A crescent gravel beach fronted a rocky bay. Several rocky islets were popular with birds and seals. Rocky headlands book-ended the bay. Observing wildlife was an all-day experience.Bald eagles fished on the waters … Continue reading…
Once the weather improves and the lakes open up, we bring our kayaks out to the lakes to explore the shorelines and waterways, to see wildlife, and to enjoy the from-the-lake views. We have done over 100 lakes in our area now so in spring we usually start with a few that are close to town. This year we chose … Continue reading…
The delta lands at the head of Kamloops Lake are covered in water now, but in early spring there were large sand/silt islands with shallow channels to explore. We launched out of Cooney Bay, then went across the lake to the south shore, working our way back into shallow channels, landing on sandy islands. At the end of the flooding … Continue reading…
The Gulf Islands area has many opportunities for kayaking, using one of the islands as a starting point and paddling the bays, harbours, coastlines, and channels. We have paddled out of Saturna, Galiano, Cortez, and Salt Spring Islands, and recently out of the Pender Islands. With a short term decision to go to South Pender Island without our kayaks … Continue reading…
At the upper end of the Lac du Bois Grasslands at 983m (3225 feet) elevation the area turns to forests, ponds, lakes, marshes, backroads, hills, and a few trails. To the south of McQueen Lake are the Nature Conservancy of Canada Lac du Bois Conservancy lands, accessible on foot to hikers and snowshoers. To the north are forested hills, a … Continue reading…
Even though snows still linger, we can start paddling on the river. Although the Pioneer Park boat launch is still closed, we can get our boat down to the river with a little extra work. Since the water is cold, we used a wetsuit and stayed close to the shoreline. The south-facing shoreline was clear of snow but the north-facing … Continue reading…
While paddling on Harper Lake, I spotted some movement at the remote west end of the lake. As I approached closer I could see two cubs in the open as well as the longer/larger mother partially hidden in the forest. Cougar cubs stay up to 2 years with their mother before they are driven off to fend for themselves. These … Continue reading…
We launched our kayaks in Comox Lake with the intention of paddling down the lake far enough to see the end of the glacier-fed lake, but strong winds came up so we ended up paddling a loop around the east end of the lake only. We parked adjacent to the campground and launched from the beach into the protected bay. … Continue reading…
On the west side of Stake Lake is an osprey nest at the top of a broken-top fir tree. Eggs were laid by the mating pair and then were incubated for about 40 days. The chicks hatched then nested for 50 – 60 days this summer and each time I returned to kayak the lake, I checked their progress. From … Continue reading…
Heffley Lake is one of our finest lakes to paddle and it can be a busy spot in summer so we usually paddle there in spring or fall. There is a good boat lunch on the east end suitable to cartop boats or kayaks, but the parking area is limited so it can be full on a weekend in summer. … Continue reading…
For fishermen or paddlers, Jacko Lake is one of the first lakes to be ice-free in spring and one of the last lakes to freeze over in late fall. It is surrounded by grasslands at 917m elevation (3000 feet). A paddle around the shoreline is about 4.4 km, an hour of paddling. Lakes above this are all surrounded by high … Continue reading…
We try to paddle Paul Lake each year in the spring and fall when there are few, if any, boats on the lake. On this last mid-October day the winds were calm for a quiet outing on the cooler waters of the lake. The lakeshore had receded quite dramatically with the whole lake surface down 3 – 4 feet. The … Continue reading…
Skimikin Lake lies in a valley between Turtle Valley and the end of the Salmon Arm of Shuswap Lake. It is a well-used recreational area with a fine BC Rec Site and numerous trails. For paddlers, there are several launch spots at the Rec Site. The lake is divided into two parts by a narrow point. In fall the water … Continue reading…
By October it is rare to see another boat on either the South or North Thompson Rivers. The boat launches remain open but we are more likely to see dog walkers than power boats. We continue to launch our kayak onto the river to paddle various routes on the river. Downstream is always easier but requires vehicle support so most … Continue reading…
The Puntledge River flows out of Comox Lake and continues right through the City of Courtenay, flowing into Comox Harbour. Kayakers can launch their boats at a public boat launch at the end of 20th Street in Courtenay Airpark. From there, paddlers can either go upstream for a ways or they can paddle downstream through the saltwater estuary to … Continue reading…
Phillips Lake lies on the Skimikin Lake Road between Turtle Valley and Skimikin. the fastest approach from Kamloops is to drive on Highway 1 East to Squilax and turn onto the Squilax – Turtle Valley Road. Follow the valley toward Skimikin then turn onto Ptarmigan Road. A good parking area and boat launch is located on the northwest side of … Continue reading…
