Mara Mountain NE Route

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In early June we drove the bumpy Pruden Pass Road, then hiked up to the top of Mara Mountain from the northeast side.   We have been doing this hike in spring every year for decades.    There are several routes up the mountain, but this route starts at a higher elevation and is less arduous.    There is no established trail, and the first section is mostly just winding up the open grassland and forest slopes.    After passing a small dry pond, we picked up a known trail over the shoulder of the mountain, then down through a gully, and up and out to the top of the south face of the mountain.

Some of the route is up grassland slopes and some is through open ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, and juniper forests.   A single track winds to the viewpoint.

MaraAt the edge of the lava cliffs viewpoint facing south, there are wide views, including up the Thompson River Valley.

Mara Mountain is also a good spot to look down to Tranquille and out Kamloops Lake to the southwest.

The hike takes about 3 hours (7.5 km) and has a number of steep sections. Hikers have to navigate the route since the lower part of the trail is grown-over and invisible in places.     It is a quiet and remote area.     We hiked out-and-back and enjoyed returning to the Mara NE route once more.

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Greenstone Trails

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At the end of May I went up the Greenstone Mountain Road to hike a series of single-track trails.   I parked at the 5 km mark on the Forest Service Road then followed trails to the west, then up through the rocky hills in a counter-clockwise loop.    Although there are some old double tracks in the area, most of the single tracks were built by the mountain biking community.    There are some hand-made signs here and there, but for the most part, hikers need to navigate on their own, making choices at each junction.   I have hiked the trails a number of times and I use a mapping/GPS app (Maps.me) if I come to an unknown junction.    … Continue reading →

Buse Hill Hike

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On a mid-May morning we drove to Barnhartvale, then out the Robbins Range Road to the trailhead to Buse Hill.   Buse Hill has volcanic ridges with steep north-facing cliffs overlooking Buse Lake.  There is a BC Parks Protected Area for the ridge and the cliffs down to the lake.   A double track climbs the grassland slopes to a series of viewpoints.    Most visitors go to the viewpoint and back, but we wanted to hike over to the Buse Pillar and then loop back. We hiked a steep single track down into the forest, then followed an unsigned trail to the west end of the ridge to a spot directly above the pillar.   On the return hike, we followed an … Continue reading →

Majerus Falls Trail

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We have hiked the trail in Wells Gray Provincial Park up the Murtle River to Majerus Falls twice.    There are seven waterfalls on the Murtle River, starting with McDougall Falls near the outlet to Murtle Lake, then a series of waterfalls on the 36 km journey down to the Clearwater River – Meadow Falls, Horseshoe Falls, Majerus Falls, Dawson Falls, the Mushbowl, and finally Helmcken Falls.   McDougall Falls is accessed from the west end of Murtle Lake.    Meadow Falls is rarely hiked to since it means a very long day with lots of deadfall and grown-over tracks.    Horseshoe Falls is about 4 km past Majerus Falls, but that is a 28 km return hike with sections of … Continue reading →

Clearwater River Trail

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On a pleasant spring day, I drove north to Clearwater, then up the wells Gray Road for 4.3 km to a trailhead for the Clearwater River Trail.    This had been an informal parking area for the trail to Triple Decker Falls and beyond, but it is now an official trail with BC Rec Sites and Trails.   There is now a good parking area, signage, and evidence of trail maintenance.    The trail descends from the Clearwater River Road down toward the Clearwater River and continues on to Dutch Lake, but for this day I hiked down to Triple Decker Falls, then to the Osprey Lookout, and to Candle Creek Falls, then I hiked back up the hill to the … Continue reading →

Copper Island

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On a sunny and calm May morning we drove east to Shuswap Lake Provincial Park at Scotch Creek.    We parked at the boat launch area and got our kayaks ready for launching into the lake.    The crossing to Copper Island was about 2 km.    We paddled to the east side of the island where there are a few gravel landing spots.    We secured our boats and put on our hiking shoes.    The Copper Island Trail is a loop route of abut 2 km.    About half of the trail is along the top of bluffs with fine views in each direction.   After the hike, we had lunch on the beach, then we loaded up and … Continue reading →

Sugarloaf and the Lundbom Grasslands

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At the start of May, I drove south to Merritt, then down Highway 5A Princeton for 9km to the Lundbom Lake Road.    This gravel road goes through grassland hills to Rec Sites on Marquart Lake and Lundbom Lake.   We  can park near the lake and pick from a number of double tracks and single track trails through the Lundbom Commonage Area.    A number of mountain bike trails usually start off the double tracks, including the one I hiked on this day.    I hiked northwest toward Hamilton Lake, then up a steep double track to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain. The top is accessed by a short scramble up a series of ledges.    From the top we … Continue reading →

Stein River Trail

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On a warm day in late April we drive down the TransCanada Highway to Lytton.   We crossed the Fraser River on the reaction ferry and drove up the gravel road to the Stein River Road and entered Stein Valley Nlaka’pamux Heritage Park.  We have hiked this trail many times and in recent times, every spring.    we have also backpacked the trail and run the trail.    We keep returning to enjoy the remote route in the backcountry.   The First Nations people of the area view it as a spiritual area and we also have a bond with the valley.     There are cultural and archeological sites on the route which need to be respected.     The campsites along the route … Continue reading →

Reinecker Creek and Margaret Falls

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On a warm spring day we hiked on three trails off the Sunnybrae to Canoe Point Road along the north side of the Salmon Arm of Shuswap Lake.  First we stopped at Sunnybrae Provincial Park to hike the Sunnybrae Cliffs Trail. Then we drove 7 km north to Herald Provincial Park to hike first to Margaret Falls, then on a loop route around Reinecker Creek.  We also hiked a side route to a hidden waterfall before crossing the creek and hiking back on the west side.     All three hikes are too short to hike only one of them, but all three trails makes a fuller hiking day. If you want to hike the trail to Margaret Falls, go early … Continue reading →

Kalamalka Lake Hike

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On a warm spring day we drove to Vernon and followed a series of roads to the Cosens Bay Trailhead.    We hiked the Coming Round the Mountain Trail in a clockwise loop, but we also took a series of other trails in a large 11 km loop.    On the western shoulder of the hill we came to a junction.     The main trail wound down to the shoreline of Cosens Bay.    We chose to follow a single track trail over the shoulder which was fine for a while, but it came to the edge of sheer bluffs, then a faint rough track wound its way down the very rocky, steep, and slippery slopes.    In our group, … Continue reading →