When rain is forecast we sometimes can paddle early, before the rain and wind starts. On this June day, I was on Paul Lake early and paddled up wind to the end of the lake. A mother loon had 2 babies on its back when I paddled up the lakeshore, but when I got closer, the two little ones …Continue reading…
When the weather is doubtful for paddling, we head up the Lac le Jeune Road and pick a lake on the route. Inks Lake, Jacko Lake, MConnell Lake, Lodgepole Lake, Stake Lake, Lac le Jeune, Walloper Lake, and Paska Lake offer multiple choices if rain or wind is an issue. At prime times, Jacko and McConnell are not as good …Continue reading…
When rain is forecast for the day, we can sometimes launch a kayak early and paddle for an hour or more before the weather sets in. On a grey, drizzly morning I launched my boat into Tranquille Bay and encountered a steady wind from the west so I opted to paddle in the lee of trees and small islands. On …Continue reading…
Its hard to find a good place to paddle on a windy day. I find that a smaller lake down in a bowl is a good choice and McConnell Lake fit that description. The Park can be a busy place but if I arrive early enough, I may find that I am the only one on the lake. The winds …Continue reading…
Heffley Lake is one of our best paddling lakes, but with some limits. It is a popular spot and on weekends the motorized “fleet” arrives on the lake late morning with their noise, wakes, and disturbance, so its best to just avoid those times. The boat launch area can also be full at prime times. We paddled the lake on …Continue reading…
The water is cold in March , but with the right gear we can paddle on the rivers as soon as the ice melts. We need to avoid windy days because the cold winds make progress difficult and uncomfortable, but when the conditions are right, paddling is a perfect late winter – early spring activity. We launch from the beach …Continue reading…
As the air temperatures drop so does the water temperature in the rivers, but more slowly. The water in the river is still okay for paddling in November, but we wait for a mild day with no wind. I paddled upstream for a couple of kilometers getting a good workout, then turned around an enjoy a more leisurely paddle downstream. …Continue reading…
By the middle of October there are very few paddlers on the lake or the rivers of the area. Although the water takes a long time to become cold, colder temperatures and winds must be deal with. Mornings tend to be cold and winds start up by late morning so there is a window of opportunity to fit in a …Continue reading…
On a windy day paddling is more difficult so I sometimes opt for a small, sheltered lake in the hills. McConnell Lake lies in a bit of a bowl surrounded by trees, more protected from the winds. It is a small lake so two loops (one in each direction) provides 5.2 km of paddling, one hour of exercise on a …Continue reading…
In October Jacko Lake was a busy spot. We counted 20 vehicles in teh parking lot/boat launch. We paddled around the lake staying close to the shoreline to stay out of the way of anglers. After paddling we climbed over some of the hills to enjoy the sunshine and check out the views. We were mindful of the mine property …Continue reading…
As fall approached, there were still a few more paddling outings to be done on the high country lakes. McConnell Lake is a good choice on a windy day because the smaller lake sits in a bowl surrounded by trees, Stake Lake is also okay in the wind, but will require more diligent paddling. By this time of the yar, …Continue reading…
On a warm summer day, I went into the Roche Lakes area to paddle a lake and hike into a different lake. The turn to the West Roche Lake campsite is the same turn that branches off to the Horseshoe Lake Rec Site. There is a boat launch at the small camping area on the shores of the lake. …Continue reading…
We try to do a different lake 9or river( each time we paddle so we get to about half of the lakes in the area each year. In most years we paddle Pinantan Lake once. It is a quiet paddle with only electric motors allowed on the lake and not many fishermen. We usually launch from the small community …Continue reading…
Tunkwa Lake is a busy place all summer. The campgrounds are full or very busy, many fishing boats are on the lake, and the off-road group is active in the area. But, with such an open area and multiple places to launch a boat, paddlers can get on to the lake and stay out of everyone’s way. Fishermen don’t …Continue reading…
We have a handful of lakes we return to paddle, favorites and reliable paddling areas. Jacko Lake is one of them. It is the first to clear of ice and it is a good paddle from April through November. On a summer day I headed up for a short outing, going around the shoreline for a 4.7 km paddle. …Continue reading…
We try to travel to many lakes to do our paddling each year. With about 100 lakes accessible to kayak, we move around as much as we can. We paddle the river in the early and late season, but as soon as the ice is off the lakes (usually Kamloops Lake first, then Jacko and Six Mile), we paddle many …Continue reading…