Paddle River Dam

In early May, we popped out to the Paddle River Dam near Sangudo. The reservoir behind the dam is a good size (maybe a 10km perimeter) and I was keen to get up the Paddle River a ways on the west end.

The boat launch is very good, with both gravel and a cement pad. There is parking up above with a pit toilet (that could have used some cleaning) and a picnic table. There is also a campground at the top. Dams are big and the scale of things takes some getting used to. The picture below is from the parking lot looking down at the boat launch (10-foot orange kayaks for scale).

The wind was from the south and it was cool so we decided to paddle clockwise to get some shelter from the south shore.

The southern shore is decidedly boreal feeling.

When we got down to the far end (the power lines are about two-thirds of the way), we started looking for the entrance to the river. There were two accesses (the delta is a bit of a mess, with smaller channels and lots of debris), both basically below the farm house on the north shore). The deeper bay on the south side dead-ends with old oxbows.

The paddle river itself was deep and muddy with not much current. It might be the source of the reddish tint the water has in the reservoir.

We saw two eagles nesting up a tree (sorry the picture is bad--it was a long way off). The river eventually narrowed about 1.5km up. I could get to the chute on the left but could not paddle hard enough to get through it. You could carry your boat past this point.

We were pooped so we headed back. The north shore looks like this, with more of a parkland vibe and two farms. There were lots of birds (mostly water fowl). We also saw a beaver, but no forest critters.

Overall, a nice paddle. There was only one boat on the lake with us (right at the end) and the lake is big enough that that is no bother.

Johnny's Lake

In early May, we put in at Johnny's Lake. The public access can be a bit tough to find so I have put directions here. I was out here last fall but the lake was too green to put in, so I put it on my spring list.

Lots of parking but no washrooms (or, alternately, infinite washrooms). You best bet for washrooms are over at nearby Star Lake. The launch was in better shape than in past years. I moved the wood that had washed in out of the way and we both managed to get in dry footed. 

If you're not into a mildly acrobatic entry, the area in front of my wife's boat has a very solid floor of gravel, maybe 5 inches below the water, so you can just set your boat in a wade a feet out to get in.

There were a huge number of gulls on the lake and the noise was amazing. Johnny's is not really a lovely lake, but it is interesting. there are rarely power boats here and there are three islands to explore plus a creek (and birds all the time). 

We passed between the northern two islands and paddled the west shore. 

The creek isn't hard to find but the duck blind below is a useful marker.

We went maybe 1.5km up the creek. Lots of birds and frogs.

Eventually, the creek got choked off and we turned around.

We went past this huge beaver lodge (right side, wife for scale) and the beginnings of a dam, maybe.

Then we toured the southern island. My wife csrae dup some ducks (just one the bow of her boat).

Overall, a lovely paddle early in the spring. The water was okay (mountain dew coloured) with no algae.

Muir Lake

In late April, we decided to roll the dice and see if a lake west of Edmonton was open. We landed on Muir Lake because it was close to home and there were lots of other lake options nearby if it was still frozen. 

Other than the boat launch gate being locked until May 1 (so we had a short carry), it was ready to go. The dock was in and the water levels were up. The pit toilets were also open and reasonably clean.

The county hadn't yet fished two large snow fences out of the water. These surround weak ice where they aerate the lake in the winter.

It was a gloriously sunny day, with lots of birds, including an osprey. Only saw one other paddler and a couple of walkers.

Overall, Muir was exactly what we wanted: a short paddle, sheltered from the wind, and close to town. That it was empty (it is a popular fishing lake) was a bonus. It looks lie the ice is mostly out on all the lakes so we'll try something a bit more adventurous next time.

Astotin Lake

In late April, work took us out past Elk Island Park. On the way back, we stopped at Astotin Lake to have dinner and see whether the ice was out. It was!

The main beach was clean and, miraculously, there wasn't too much wind. We decided to drive to the boat launch to avoid the long carry.  

The water level was low, which exposed big rocks right at the surf line. We would have been better off going off the beach. These rocks were a major pain last year as well and make the boat launch tricky to use, especially if you are coming hot with the wind behind you.

The water was the usual iced tea colour, and there was already hint of green in the foam.

We paddled along the north edge of the lake and watched this raven hassle a bunch of geese trying to nest on this little peninsula. It is usually too windy to paddle this part of the lake so it was nice to see a different part.

Eventually, the sun started to come out and the little bit of wind stopped.

We took a loop around this rocky island (probably a glacial moraine) and there was still snow in the shady part. There were lots of water fowl plus a heron with very nice blue plumage.

 

We then paddled over the High Island where all of the ice was washed up on the shore.

This picture gives you a bit of scale for the ice shelf that was left.

We were a bit tired after a long day of work so we watch the birds for a bit and then headed back.

Overall, the water quality was better than usual. The last couple of summers have been super green. It was nice to be out on a lake again and we saw a huge number of bison foraging on the shoulders of the road on our way home.