Author Archives: dsmith

Greenstone Mountain Park Hike

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On a sunny July day I drove up the Greenstone Mountain Road to the summit area to hike trails and routes in Greenstone Mountain Provincial Park.    It is reasonable to drive right to the top, but I prefer to park at a lower spot and do a loop route on tracks and trails.  I have done a hike in this area many times, but I prefer to vary the route each time.    On this day, I started up the main road, then turned off onto a rough single track trail mainly used by dirt bikes.    I used a mapping app (Maps.me) and a GPS-enabled mobile phone to navigate the trails. One part of the single track trail … Continue reading →

Gil’s Trail to Tod Lake

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The chairlift at Sun Peaks starts at 10:00 am and I was first on the chair to hike the upper trails on a sunny July day.    From mid-station I took the Gil’s Trail which winds around through the forest on the east side of the mountain crossing a number of steep downhill runs on the way to the north part of the mountain.  The trail is a single track which gradually gains altitude for 2.4 km. There are some open viewpoints as the trail crosses ski runs.    The views look to the east.    There are two reservoirs (used for snow-making) and one lake (Cahilty Lake) on the forested plateau. Gil’s Trail joins the main trail system at … Continue reading →

Kayaking Map

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An interactive Google Map showing many of the kayaking spots in the Greater Kamloops area (which I have paddled) is provided here.   Locations and images are included and links to posts/articles with more specific information on the spot are provided if a post is published on KamloopsTrails.com or RambleOn.ca.   As new posts and news are added, the map will also be updated. An embedded map is provided here:     The map can also be seen on Google maps at this link – Kayaking in the Kamloops Area   Some of these locations are suitable for all paddlers and some have more difficult access.    Comments are added,  where needed.   The map will continue to be updated each week.   … Continue reading →

Trophy Meadows and Tarns

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At the end of the first week of July, a hike to the Trophy Mountain meadows and tarns was the course for the day.    It takes about 2 hours to get to the end of the Trophy Mountain Road and the trailhead.   It was an early start and I was first on the trail, hiking through the forest for 2 km, then up through the meadows below Little Hill. From the Shepherd’s Hut I followed the ridge up past some small tarns to a rocky crest. Just past the crest the trail passes above Sheila Lake.    The backcountry campground there is located on the south end of the lake and there was no one camping on this day. … Continue reading →

Lac le Jeune Lookout Hike

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On a sunny and mild early July morning we started a hike from the Lac le Jeune Beach area in the campground and hiked the lakeshore trail, out through the gate to the road, then onto the Rossmoore Forest Service Road,  before going up old unnamed tracks up to the viewpoint on Lookout Hill.    there are several routes to the top, including the Vista Trail, a winter route.    For this day we followed unmarked/unsigned tracks up from the south and down the west side of the bluffs. From the top of the bluffs we had wide views to the south and west, including Lac le Jeune and Ridge Mountain. We followed an unsigned single track back down the … Continue reading →

Hamilton Corrals Hike

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For many years we have hiked the grassland hills of the Hamilton Corrals, a Commonage area between Hamilton Mountain and the Quilchena – Pennask Road.    We have hiked in spring, summer, and fall and had not yet put it into the schedule, but serendipity intervened and we hiked the west end of the trails on a pleasant early summer day.   We had planned to hike Mt. Thynne.    We drove south to Brookmere, them turned to climb the mountain There was a sign posted at the bottom of the forest service road that the road was closed because bridges were being replaced.     Since we knew there were several roads that approach the mountain, we drove up anyway and, … Continue reading →

Tod Mountain Summit

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Most of the snow had cleared off the trails on Tod Mountain by the third week of June.    The chairlift had opened in the middle of June and hikers had been exploring the trails above mid-station for a couple of weeks.   I was first on the chair on a mid-week morning and started my hike up the hill early.    I was not sure about trail conditions so I thought that I would continue to climb as far as was reasonable for the early season.   As it turned out, the first snow was below the summit at the junction between the Westridge Trail and the upper end of the West Bowl Trail.    The dale below the peak was … Continue reading →

Wounded Knee Hike

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For decades we have been driving south to hike the Lundbom Grasslands, usually in June.    Access is through Merritt and up Highway 5C to the turn to Lundbom Lake.    We parked near the lake then hiked a 9.4 km route out toward Hamilton Lake, then up the Cocobonk Trail.    At a signed junction we continued along the Wounded Knee Trail.    There are a number of trail junctions to choose from, but for this day we followed a known route, looping back to the Cocobonk Trail and then back to Lundbom Lake. Much of the route is in open grasslands, following old double tracks and newer single tracks through the hills to the northeast of Sugarloaf Mountain. … Continue reading →

Reinecker Creek Trails

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We drove out to Shuswap Lake and continued onto the Sunnybrae – Canoe Point Road out to Herald Provincial Park.    From the parking lot we hiked into Margaret Falls and back out to the start area, then hiked a loop route up the east side to a side trail above the falls, and then continued up Reinecker Creek to cross a bridge and return back down the east side.   This was a two hour hike, taking our time to enjoy the views and the spring wildflowers. The trail up to Margaret Falls is a flat route going up the gorge to the base of the falls. Margaret Falls falls 90 feet in tiers down into the creek. From the … Continue reading →

Exploring Mara Meadows Ecological Reserve

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There are no trails and no realistic access routes into Mara Meadows Ecological Reserve.    Until recently hikers could not enter the park/protected area without a permit.    Just this year, hikers may explore the reserve, but without established trails, fixed signage, or route information, we are left to figure it out on our own.    There are two backroads that can be used to get close to the central area, but from wherever you choose to park, you will have to navigate, following traces of tracks and trails to get to the central marsh area.    We hiked two routes from the west following old double tracks, then bushwhacking to the edge of the marsh, and back retracing our … Continue reading →