Minnie Lake and Garner Lake

In late August, we paddled Minnie Lake (NE of Glendon) and scouted Garner Lake (NE of Vilna).

Garner Lake

Garner Lake is located northeast of Vilna and just east of Bonnie Lake. It is a triangular-shaped lake with the easiest access being through the Garner Lake Provincial Park on the south shore. There may also be a boat launch on the east edge off Range Road 122, but we didn't drive over there.

The lake has experienced a significant drop in water levels over time and the boat launch  gives you a sense of how much (I'd guess at least a meter). The province had banned trailer launches in order to protect the lake bottom. You can still hand launch off of the silty beach or the floating docks. The water was so-so. Parking is back up the hill about 75 meters

The other option is to go of the public beach in the day-use area. This involves a long carry (100m meters) across the old beach and the exposed lake bed. There are pit toilets, a playground, and picnic tables here.

Below is a shot back up from the edge of the lake towards the parking lot. The drop in water level (basically the grassy area)  is really quite something.

The water was again so-so with a fairly mucky-looking launch. 

Floating Stone Lake to the east is probably a better bet if you want to paddle nearby. In the end, we decided to pass and go on to Minnie Lake.

Minnie Lake

Minnie Lake is located just NE of Glendon. It is about 2km north-south and maybe 400m east-west. The best access is from the municipal campground on the south shore.

There is a boat launch with a floating dock, a cement launch, picnic tables and pit toilets. You can drop and park right by the water.

The water was insanely clear and clean and lovely. The cement launch was a tad slippery as we wadded out to get in, with both of us almost biting it!

The southern half of the lake is basically forest behind a bullrush border.

As you get further north in the lake, the trees thin out and it becomes a bit more pastoral.

It was windy as hell the day we were there (at least 30kph based on the flags) but there was hardly any real chop on the water, likely because the lake is small and shallow.

You could also likely launch off the public beach in the campground.

Overall, this was a lovely paddle, even in 34C heat. It was a bit short (less than an hour) but would be a great option for SUP.

Bonnie Lake and Cucumber Lake

In late August, we took a trip northeast of the city. Along the way, we paddled Bonnie Lake (near Vilna) and scouted Cucumber Lake (near Andrew).

Cucumber Lake

Cucumber Lake is a long lake running about 4.5km SW to NE. The width varies but averages about 300m. Access is off Highway 857, north of Willingdon.

I thought our best bet at access was on the western edge, where Township Road 570A cuts north across a small causeway to run along the north side of the lake. You might also be able to get in on the north side of the lake or the far east end (we didn't drive that far). Access on the south side looks like it would require cutting across someone's land.

Cucumber is basically a large sloe with a bullrush shoreline. The best spot I could find was on the causeway by the culvert (above). This would be a tricky entry because of the slope and an even trickier exit.

The lake was pretty green by late August so we decided to keep driving a look for a nicer paddle.

Bonnie Lake

Bonnie Lake is located NE of Vilna and the easiest access point is the Bonnie Lake Campground on the southwest end of the lake run by the town of Vilna. The lake runs about 6km east-west and is about 500m wide in most places.

The campground has a cement boat launch with a steel dock, pit toilets, picnic tables, a playground, and fire pits. The facilities are a mixed bag. The picnic tables and playground looked new. The picnic shelter and washrooms could stand an upgrade. The place was largely empty when we stopped in just ahead of the long weekend.

You can drop your boat right beside the water and go park maybe 50m away. The water was yellowy-brown when we got in (not unusual). As we paddled out, we could smell the onset of a blue-green algae bloom and see some clumps starting to form.

The picture below is a pretty representative shot of the lake. The shoreline is a mix of reed beds and rocky shore. Behind that is mixed forest.

We went left (west) off the launch and found about 40 pelicans hanging out with cormorants on this small island. They were unhappy to see us and took off, circling while they gained height.

At the end of the lake, we turned and paddled east to the island that is about halfway down the lake. While technically this is an island, the water on the northern edge was too shallow to paddle through so we skirted down the western edge.

At this point, it was about 32C and the smell of the algae bloom was getting to us so we turned back. No idea what the eastern end of the lake is like.

An alternative launch point may be the Bonnie Lake Resorts public beach, just east of the campground. We did not drive over to check this one out, I just snapped a picture from the water.

Overall, this was a so-so paddle. Absent the algae bloom, this might well be a nice lake, especially earlier in the year.

Trappers Lake, near Elk Island Park

I have a long list of lakes to visit around the province. In early August, I decided to check out Trappers Lake, which is located immediately west of Elk Island National Park. The lake is about 2km east-west and 1 km north-south, although low water can have a significant effect on the dimensions of the lake.

Access is north off of Highway 16 up Range Road 210 until it ends (green arrow below). The road that hooks to the right (red arrow) is not accessible, basically being an ATV trail within Elk Island Park, behind a 10-foot bison- and paddler-proof fence.

When you get to the end of the road, you can park by the bullet-riddled dead-end sign. Access to the lake is down a "path" that starts on the left side of the photo below. 

The path to the lake is about 100m long and is vague most of the way (more of an animal path). It roughly follows the green arc on the map below. I ended up bushwhacking a fair bit of the walk.

There is a bit of a downward slope, lots of fallen trees underfoot, and quite a bit of rose bush for the first 50m. I'd suggest good boots and long pants! Honestly, it would be a real chore to get a boat though here, even on my head.

Then you get out of the trees into a meadow. It is another 50 meters to the lake. Again, there is tricky footing with lots of thistle and shoulder-high nettle. Shorts were a poor choice on my part.

The shoreline is soft, shallow and muddy. Maybe you could bum-scoot your entry to deeper water. The trick would be getting back out without sinking in the goop. There was a rough quadded trail that looked to go around the south side of the lake, so you might be able to find a decent entry spot further east or west. 

At this point, I decided this was a "pass" for me and I hiked back to my truck. Finding where I'd come out of the wood was challenging. The direction of the sun and the national park boundary marker was helpful in this regard.

This was (hopefully) the only real bust trip for the season and I'm happy this wasn't too far to go.

Vermilion Park Lake

In mid-June, we headed to Saskatchewan and stopped at Vermilion along the way to paddle Vermilion Park Lake, just on the north end of town. Entry is through the Vermilion Provincial Park. There is camping available, the google reviews of the campground are either "amazing!!" or "gopher city!!"

When you enter the park, you generally stay to the right, go past the gate and old rail station, drop down to the water on a gravel road, and there you are. You can park at the pink arrow and put in at the red arrow. There are also docks (green arrow) if that is your jam; we didn't walk over to see what they were like. There were pit toilets by the parking area as well as a few picnic tables.

You could likely drive pretty close to the water to drop and then go back to park. We just carried the boats about 100m from the parking lot to the tiny little beach. The launch was easy and we turned left (northwest) to paddle into the wind.

The lake is a reservoir created by damming the Vermilion river and filing the coulee. The lake is shaped like a boomerang. The west leg runs east-west while the east leg (where you put in) runs northwest-southeast and contains the dam. The north shore is pretty open while the south shore is a treed park with a walking trail along the shore.

The water was pretty dark and had lots of algae (not the bad kind). Between the water and the potential for wind, it might not be ideal for SUPs, depending on your tolerance for wind and yuck.

We had a good start to the paddle, heading 2km NW around the bend and then west.

We saw no one on the water and a few folks hiking the trail. There was an interesting bird blind (behind wife in picture below) and lots of birds.

The south shoreline is pretty steep in places and would be tricky to get out on.

We were annoying some ducks when the wind suddenly picked up from the west and some serious clouds blew in (it was a very unsettled day, weather-wise).

We decided to turn around and try to beat the rain back to the launch. The wind definitely helped out speed.

We made it back just as the rain started and then immediately stopped! Then there was a birthday party and squirt-gun fight to navigate as we got out and carried back to the truck.

Overall, this was an okay paddle. A nicer day and some more time would have seen us go up to the in-flow of the Vermilion river at the west end of the lake (probably at two-hour round trip). I probably wouldn't make a special trip to come back here, but I might stop in again if I was on my way to the Whitney Provincial Parks to the northwest.