A forested area accessed from the Lac le Jeune Road, most suited to snowshoeing in winter.

Driving Directions/Trailheads:

• Drive south on the Lac le Jeune Road.    Pass the Goose Lake Road and continue up the road to the top of the hill.  Turn into a parking area on the east side.
• There is no signage.
• The area is well-used in winter, but it is a user-maintained area so there is no snow clearing in the parking area (we bring a snow shovel with us).
• The Bush Lake “trails” start across the road at the gate.
• The Dogwood Marshes are on the east side of the road.

Trails:

• The Bush Lake North area was established as a cross country ski trail for the 1979 BC Winter Games, but when the Coquihalla Highway was started a few years later, the Stake Lake area was established instead and access to the west of Bush Lake was cut off.   Nevertheless, the area continued to be used by a few cross country skiers and now by snowshoers.
• None of the North Trails are signed, but I have put out some trail markers to create a loop route.
• More logging has hidden the established route, but the area is fairly open and users create tracks to establish a seasonal loop.
• The Bush Lake South area follows a double track south from Bush Lake over the hills.   Various side tracks can be combined for a loop or an out-and-back loop.
• User tracks also used the Bush Lake Drainage to connect the trailhead area.
• The first users on the Bush Lake Trails usually are experienced snowshoers who know routes so they set trails for those that follow.
• Fences block access to McConnell Lake from Bush Lake or from Dogwood Marshes.
• The Dogwood Marshes area gets snowshoed early and frequently with many tracks.
• There are no signs so most snowshoers just follow established tracks.
• There are some double tracks up the hill on the east side that are used as connecting routes.
• Dogwood Marshes is possibly the the best snowshoeing area near Kamloops.
• Bush Lakes can be hiked in summer too, but it can be difficult to navigate.

Some Bush Lake and Dogwood Marshes Images:

Bush Lake 009HDRr

Bush Lake Loop

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Bush North 004r

Bush North 003

Bush Lake 006wmr

Bush Lake 012r

Bush Lake painted 001r

Bush Lake Caltopo

Bush North 002

Bush Lake 001r

Bush Lake Off Trail 006dr__br_Detail

Bush Lake Off Trail 004

Bush Lake North Tracks

Bush Lake South Loop

Bush Lake Dec. 2017 008

Bush Lake South Loop 001

Dogwood Marshes 005paint

Dogwood Marshes 024paint

Dogwood Marshes 014paintr

Dogwood Marshes

Dogwood Marshes Again

More Information:

• On Bush Lake
• Bush Lake South Loop
• Bush Lake North Loop
• Early Tracks in the Dogood Marshes
• There are dozens of articles on all kinds of routes on the website.    Use the search bar for more information.