Twin Lake

In June, I drove out towards Drayton Valley to try my luck at Twin Lake, just a little east of Winfield.  The County of Wetaskiwin runs a campground here. Day-use is free and the lake has no power boats. There was good cell coverage pretty much everywhere.

When you pull in, you can park right by the water (I was within 20 feet) and there is a sand/gravel launch, a dock, picnic tables, garbage cans, and pit toilets. I'm not sure what the deal is on potable water here. There is also a kayakomat rental unit.

The water was crystal clear and the lake has a very boreal vibe. Basically fir trees down to the waterline.

There is a better swimming beach to the east but access is steep.

The lake is only about 1km long so you can paddle the perimeter in both directions in about an hour. The more interesting parts are the creeks at each end. The creek at the east end is the inflow and is shallow but you can go a little ways. The beaver dam that is a couple of hundred feet upstream had been breached somehow so I bum scooted over the shallow part and then kept going. It got progessively shallower quite quickly so I gave up.

I did see two loons and I scared up a heron who was fishing when I came around the corner.

The west of the lake has the outflow and it is a bigger creek.

It winds some, the current is very gentle, and there is a narrow bit (stream bisected by an island--choose the wider channel)

I got down past the power lines and there was another beaver dam here.

It had also been breached, either by someone digging it out or maybe by the significant rainfall we'd had the week before?

I could definitely get the boat through the narrows but I wasn't sure I'd be able to get back. Since the land all around was a boggy nightmare and I am way to old to be hauling a boat through a swamp on foot, I decided to turn around. It looks like the creek crosses Highway 20 just south of Winfield.

Overall, a pretty nice paddle. It would be great for kids or first timers. It was a bit of a drive (90 minutes) but could be combined with a paddle on Battle Lake, Buck Lake or Pigeon Lake. You could also camp here, although the amenities are modest.