Category Archives: Hikes

Hiking every day.

Stein River Hike

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We drove south to the Fraser River, then into Stein Valley Nlaka’Pamux Heritage Park to hike up the Stein River Trail for an out-and-back route which turned out to be 3.5 hours on the trail, with about 2.5 hours of moving time.    It was a sunny and pleasant day for a beautiful hike.   For the whole distance we had views of the rushing river,  while signs of spring greeted us along the way – wildflowers, pollinators, birds, flowering shrubs, and new growth.    The river was impressive, not yet in freshet, but still full from bank to bank, churning downstream. Lytton is still being rebuilt after the wildfires of 2021.    We drove through Lytton and took the exit … Continue reading →

Barnes Lake Trails Hike

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We hiked the Barnes Lake horse-and-hiker-trails in Barnhartvale on a mid-April sunny day.    We started at the Gardiner Road entrance and went through the gate and onto the trails in the sagebrush grasslands, hiking a counter-clockwise 9.25 km loop on double and single tracks.   The trails were quiet but we watched for signs of spring, spotting wildflowers and birds along the way. The lower elevation areas have open grasslands and open forests. We went past Killdeer Pond, reduced in size after another drought year.    From there, we followed the trails on a moderate climb into the douglas fir forests. Half of the hike was in glaciated (undulating) terrain through douglas fir and lodgepole pine forests on the upper … Continue reading →

Stump Lake Kayak and Hike

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On a sunny morning in the second week of April, I drove south on Highway 5A past Stump Lake, then took the turn to the signed Peterhope Lake Road, and turned a short ways up onto the 4.5 km gravel road to the Stump Lake Rec Site on the east side of the lake.   There is a campground, a boat launch area, and lots of parking.    Stump Lake is a popular fishing lake and on this morning there were a dozen boats launched from the Rec Site and quite a few from the lake access points on the west side, but it’s a big lake so there is room for everyone. Each time I paddle Stump Lake I try … Continue reading →

Mara Canyon Hike

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On a sunny early April day, we used the official trailhead off West Ord Road and hiked a loop route, up Mara Canyon and then up onto Cinnamon Ridge, then back down the ridge on a single track, winding down steep slopes to the start.   The two halves of the hike are very different.    Going up the canyon is in a deep, narrow canyon and involves some light scrambling.   The canyon opens up under the rockface of Mara Mountain.   A steep ascent in open terrain gains us the top of the ridge. From the upper end of Cinnamon Ridge we can see beyond the canyon to the cinnamon-colored ridges and beyond to Kamloops Lake to the southwest. The route … Continue reading →

Six Mile Lakes Hike

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On a sunny spring day we drove west and then up the bumpy road (the old highway bypass) above Tobiano to the Six Mile Lakes area, parking on the east end of Pat Lake.    The ice was off the lake and it was busy with fishermen happy to be back after the winter.   We hiked around Pat Lake, then on single tracks and double tracks through the hills, past ponds. working our way over to Morgan Lake.   We chose to leave the more established tracks and instead followed a faint single track around the lake, and then joined double tracks back to the start, a 7.1 km hike. The first part of the hike was on a single track … Continue reading →

Uplands Trails Ramble

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On the first of April I started a 6.25 km hike from the end of McLeod Drive (at the junction of McLeod Rd. and Uplands Rd. in Barnhartvale).    Trails start at the gas pipeline track and they fan out across the sagebrush grassland benchland, through gullies, and up into the hills.    For this day, the hike was a series of single track trails through the grasslands above the gullies, out to viewpoints,  and then back to cross the heads of gullies for more loops.    The final loop went down one of the larger gullies, then back up onto another benchland.    The solo hike took about 1.75 hours.   The hike started through a north-slope open forest … Continue reading →

Dewdrop Ridge Ramble

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In the third week of March we returned to the Dewdrop Range to hike a loop route over Dewdrop Ridge.    We started on the Frederick Road at the first pull-off on the right.   A single track trail goes across the low damp area and then winds up the ridge, and becomes the Bluebird Trail.    At about 0.6 km from the start, an unsigned junction is reached.   An old double track bears south (left turn) and climbs to the top of the ridge.  At the southern rim a trail goes east and west. Views from the Rim Trail extend to Battle Bluff, Kamloops Lake, and to the east the Thompson River Estuary. We hiked east for better views of … Continue reading →

Cinnamon Ridge Hike

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Near the Spring Equinox I crossed the tracks at Ord Road (just past the golf course) and drove down the bumpy dirt road to the parking area at the official trailhead for Cinnamon Ridge (also referred to as Mara Canyon or The Hoodoos).    I hiked up the trail to the junction, and then turned right following the switchbacks up the steep slopes as it angles around the rocky hill to the northeast. Looking north, Mara Mountain rises above the Mara outlier trails.    The Mara Canyon Trail winds up between the two steep rocky hills.     The Cinnamon Ridge Trail winds around the east side of the hills. The trail is steep, climbing 440 m (1444 ft.) in 2 … Continue reading →

Exploring the Charlotte Alplands

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The Charlotte Alplands are located in a remote area of the Chilcotin Plateau.      We drove (580 km) to Nimpo Lake.    The next day we boarded a float plane and went southwest, flying over Charlotte Lake.    We landed on Fish Lake.    We packed our gear (supported by a horse pack outfitter) to the Frog Lakes and set up a base camp.    We hiked for a few days through the hills with support from a guide,  and we enjoyed meals provided by a camp cook. The Alplands have the highest concentration of alpine lakes in British Columbia.  To the west are the glacier-covered peaks in the Monarch Range in  Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.   To the south is … Continue reading →

Outer Dewdrop Range Hike

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Conditions in the lower valley have dried out and those routes can now be hiked, but many of the hills surrounding the valley are still muddy or icy.    The exceptions are the Batchelor Range and the Dewdrop Range.    Those areas are south-facing and open to accelerated drying from the sun, warm conditions, and warmer winds.    The Dewdrop Range is a benchland with rocky bluffs overlooking Kamloops Lake, and the steep rocky Red Plateau Escarpment above.   Much of the Dewdrop Range is open sagebrush grassland with open pine trees in protected areas.   A few gullies and north slopes have more trees, but on the whole it is open enough to be fine for hiking by mid-March (later for … Continue reading →