North Saskatchewan River, Quesnel Bridge to Dawson Park

On the Thanksgiving weekend, we float through downtown Edmonton to take in the autumn colours.

We put in below the Quesnel Bridge and the river was super clear.

The water was at summer levels so no gravel bars and we made it to Dawson par in about 2 hours (maybe 14km?) with little paddling.

The river was weirdly empty for a long weekend. Maybe we were just a bit earlier than most folks but we saw only one other boat (beached) the whole trip.

The colours were great.

The water was also super calm the whole way (no upstream breeze).

We pulled out just below the Rowland Bridge at Dawson Park.

Overall, a pretty and quiet trip that was mostly unremarkable.

North Saskatchewan River, Emily Murphy launch

In early October, I got up before the sun and hustled down to the launch at Emily Murphy Park to catch the morning light. 

I don't usually post about paddling the river since it is pretty much always the same paddle. I decided to put this one here because the sky was very pretty as I launched and worked my way upstream.

There was no wind and a nice bit of morning mist on the water.

I saw six different beavers out between Emily Murphy and the Mackenzie ravine.

At this point, I turned around. The car read 2C when I started and 4C when I got back and I was cool, despite two jackets.

This is probably the peak of the leaf colours. 

The southward shift in the sun was really noticeable.

The water was summer low, but not as low as usual for the autumn (where the gravel bar the gull is standing on is usually revealed and dry.

I got back without seeing alone else out on the water. There were a few commuters on the paths.

This was my 60th paddle this year, which I think is a record. I expect we'll have a few more before freeze up although putting the garden to bed is occupying more of my time and the shorter days makes it hard to get out.

Kalamalka Lake, Kaloya Regional Park

In late September, we had a second paddle on Kalamalka Lake near Vernon, this time out of Kaloya Regional Park. This was an easier entry than the Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park, requiring just a 20m carry over grass and sand from the parking lot.

You can launch off either the western beach (gravel) or the sandier eastern beach. We chose the latter. There are pit toilets and change rooms here as well as picnic tables and a short walking trail around the park.

We paddled north on the eastern shore about 3 km, basically to the second point of land.

The shoreline is rocky beaches and there are plenty of no trespassing signs.

Just past the second point (below) is the Kalamalka Lake cave.

The cave entrance is hard to miss given the graffiti.

It is a shallow cave (you can just barely get your boat inside) and has an opening in the roof.

We went bit further up the shoreline (which gets steeper) before turning back south.

Kalamalka Lake joins Wood Lake through a narrow and shallow channel in the SW corner (you drive over the channel to get to Koloya Park).

We took a quick tour through and into Wood Lake and then decided to turn around. Our arms were tired from the previous day's lengthy carry.

We ended up back at Koloya Park but on the western beach (which has a marked swim area). We then hung out here, reading books and having lunch.

Overall, this was a nice paddle. The terrain wasn't quite as spectacular as the provincial park and there was more boat traffic. But the entry was way easier and the cave was pretty cool. There was also direct access to Wood Lake off a gravel beach nearby. 

Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park

In mid-September, we spent a few days in Vernon and paddled Kalamalka Lake. The first day, we paddled out of the provincial park. 

After some walking around, we decided our best bet was to follow the paved trail from the first parking lot down towards Juniper Bay Beach and then hook a right to launch from the sandy beach into Jade Bay.

This was a 400m carry with a pretty good elevation drop (30m?) and the first time I've ever wished for carts! The launch was beautiful, though and we ended up swimming here at the end of the paddle. There were pit toilets and picnic tables right off the beach.

We then went left (south) off the beach and followed the shoreline for an hour around Rattlesnake Point and then towards Cosens Bay Beach.

This was a spectacular paddle. Great weather, no boats, and a tremendous blue-green colour made for a nice day. Yay, travelling in the offseason!

The water was super clear. The colour is apparently a chemical reaction: as the lake heats, crystals form that reflect the blue-green rays.

We were starting to poop out at Cosens Bay so we turned around, had lunch, and paddled back.

The carry back up to the cars sucked, and we ended up stopping several times to give our shoulders and hands a rest. But the paddle was totally worth it. It is also possible to access the beach from the north end at Kal Beach, but that area is much more built up.