Northeast River Valley Park

In early September, I dropped in on the Northeast River Valley Park that opened in 2023. The park has a small lake and a channel to explore. You can probably get a boat in just about anywhere but the official launch is about a 250m carry from the main parking lot, across a bridge and down a hill. The picture below looks back at the pavilion from the launch.

There is a dock here in the summer but it was gone for the season when I was there. Entry was a little easier this year due to a small apron of gravel. The bottom is a shallow slope and I got in dry.

Lots of folks are just DIYing entry. The picture below is one access point just below the main parking lot down into the channel. A bit goopier of an entry but only about a 50m carry.

The edge of the lake is most reeds and grass. I was getting some early fall colour the day I went.

The best part of the park are the bridges, including these two that join an island with a playground to each side of the lake. There are also washrooms and a picnic area.

The water was clean but weedy and there are no swimming signs up.

I had a crazy calm day but the lake is also shallow and protected by the surrounding hills so waves aren't going to ever be an issue here.

There are also cement/brick bridges that mark the entrances to the channel.

There wasn't much happening animal wise. I did see a couple different types of hawks, lots of geese and ducks, and I chased a poor heron down the channel and back. The beaver lodge back here looks abandoned.

Two leisurely laps took about an hour. I think this lake offers a nice evening paddle when the days are getting shorter.

Lac Ste. Anne, West Cove launch

Cancelled plans led to a sunset paddle at Lac Ste Anne in early September. The weather was a bit unsettled when we drove out, so we put in at the West Cove launch, thinking we could shelter from any wind behind Farming Island.

The launch was deserted when we got there. The water definitely has some blue-green algae (pretty common in Lac Ste. Anne at this time of year) but it wasn't too bad.

There was a bit of chop and a slight bit of rain when we set out so we paddled north along the eastern side of Farming Island as the storm blew past and the sun came out.

It was super quiet on the lake. I expect the first day of school and the weather were responsible for that. 

The skies cleared as we rounded the north point of the island and the wind mostly gave up. 

The sun was starting to set as we headed south. There was also periodic drumming and singing from the Alexis First Nation that drifted across the water, which was super cool. 

Not much for birds on the water (some pelicans in the distance, some annoyed grebes in the reeds) and a few fish jumping.

I nearly bit it getting out of the boat (couldn't seem to to find the balance point as I stood up for whatever reason) but managed to catch myself and only got a wet sleeve! Overall, a great night on (and partly in) the water.

East Pit Lake

In early September, I hauled my boat down to East Pit Lake. Access to East Pit requires carrying the boat over 1000 feet from the parking lot with a pretty significant elevation change, so generally I end up going here on my own with my kayak riding on my head.

The upside of East Pit is that the water quality is almost always good (a tough thing to find at the end of a hot summer) and the carry deters most paddlers.

The muddy shore launch is fine. There were a lot of folks fishing (it was the Saturday night of a long weekend) and even a few folks on the water, which is unusual. Most cleared out by about 6 pm.

The lake was calm (it sits about 100 feet below the surrounding land) with just enough breeze to help cut the heat.

There were lots of ducks, plus two osprey fishing, and these two making a lot of noise in a nesting box (maybe eagles--it was too far away to tell).

I did two laps in about 90 minutes and there were a lot of fish jumping.

The climb back out is always a chore. The canoeists in the picture below took a lot of breaks getting up the hill.

I managed to make it up the hill in one go...

...And then down the other side to the parking lot. The trail from the crest to the parking lot has had a bit of wear since I was last here and required more attention to footing (roots and terraces, mostly). I wore my runners for the walk and changed into and out of my water shoes by the shore.

Overall, a lovely trip if you're up for the carry. Inflatables--which is what most people were using--really come into their own here.

First Chain Lake (Ponoka)

In late August, we found ourselves in Red Deer. After a night in a motel on the dodgy side of Gasoline Alley (every hotel in town was, somehow, full???), we headed for home and stopped at the First Chain Lake, just east of Ponoka on our way. Access is on the east side of the lake, coming down Range Road 250 from the north, take the right fork down to the water.

The launch is sand, with space to park. There are no facilities here. I don't normally flag road conditions (since they change) but, like the Second Chain Lake, this entry might not be for everyone. Below you can see the launch from the water and, on the right, the road down to the launch.

It is fairly steep and the sandy soil can erode. I didn't have any trouble getting down (or back up) in our Escape (I just went slowly). If it was super wet, the tire tracks suggest some floorin' it might be required.

The lake runs north-south. It is about 2.5 or 3km long and maybe 100m wide. The shore is reeds giving way to steep wooded slopes.

Overall, the lake has a pretty alpine feel to it and offers good wind protection from the east or west. Google maps suggested the lake might be pinched by a swamp about half way up but that turned out to be a loose set of lily pads that were easy to navigate.

We did the whole lake in about an hour without really breaking a sweat. There was no one on the lake at 9 am on a Saturday.

Overall, this a nice prairie lake. The water was very murky (like slightly diluted motor oil) and there were lots of bugs in the water, so might not be the best for paddle boarding.