Medicine Lake Provincial Recreation Area, near Rocky Mountain House

In mid-September, a trip to the Okanagan took us past Medicine Lake (about 30 minutes north and east of Rocky Mountain House). The lake is about 3.5km long and 500m wide and requires about a 12km drive on gravel.

Lake access is through the provincial recreation area campground's day-use area. There are pit toilets, a picnic shelter, and some picnic tables. The boat launch is cement but there is a sandy launch beside it as well as a floating dock You can drop beside the water and park about 30m away. The water was super clear and clean, even very late in the season.

We had a cloudy and windy day when we were there and the lake was really rolling. We turned right (north) off the launch to head into the wind and the calmer north end. Basically, the lake is a reedy edge with a mixed forest beyond that. There are some sandier spots you can get out fairly easily.

As we puttered in the north end, the wind started to calm down.

We then use the tailwind to coast to the south end. While pretty enough, the lake wasn't super interesting. Just a lot of treed shoreline.

We did see a bald eagle sitting in a tree, likely waiting out the wind.

By the time we turned around and came back up the east shore towards the launch, the wind had abated a bit and the sun started to come out.

There are a fair number of campsites on the eastern shore with water access (if that is your jam). Several folks were fishing or getting ready to go out.

There is a small pond just east of the campground that connects to the lake. You could, theoretically, get a boat under this bridge but a half-finished beaver dam made access impossible for us.

The camp hosts appeared to be renting boats as a side hustle.

Overall, a nice lake with a boreal feel and great water. I'm not sure I would drive here to paddle, but if I were going by, I might stop again.

Medicine Lake, Jasper

Medicine Lake is a seasonal lake, located on Maligne Lake Road about halfway between Highway 16 and Maligne Lake. Basically, the basin fills up in spring and then slowly drains. I've never had the chance to paddle here and we were hopeful there would still be enough water in September for a chance. No joy, though!

The best access looks to be from the lookout on the west end of the lake. There is parking lot and a set of stairs. When the lake is full, it would be a short carry to the water. The lake was down about 40 feet when we were there so the carry to the bottom was longer and there wasn't much lake to paddle.

Below, looking up from the lake to the parking lot.

It also looks like you might be able to access the lake at the west end, either by parking in the Jacques Lake trail head and carrying across the road and down the slope, or by pulling into an unmarked parking area at the far east end of the lake, carrying a ways down a closed road, and then down the slope to the lake.

You can see, based upon the scum lines on the slope in the photo below, how much the lake had dropped over the season.

I was disappointed not to get the chance to paddle the lake (which was mostly exposed mud bottom). But the views were amazing. I'm also interested to see what Jacques Lake holds.

Maybe next time!