Hidden Homesteads, Lone Trees, and Old Snags
I have been exploring the hills for decades, often finding old homesteads in unexpected locations. I have also researched the locations of old homesteads from historical sources and I have used the imagery on Google Earth to find even more. A few books (some no longer in print) have also helped. Some of the homesteads have been featured on this website (ie Hidden Homesteads). On a foggy late fall day I went in search of another homestead, but accidentally found two.
On my long traverse over the hills to my intended destination, I came across this homestead. The roof had fallen in. There was an attached outbuilding on one side. Some flashing and iron was scattered around.
Between the logs was some mortar and some baked mud in the chinks, but most of it had fallen out. Door and window frames were still held by the log house framing. Mosses and lichens had formed on the logs.
Farther up the slope was another out building, probably a barn-like structure.
From the first homestead I hiked for about an hour in the fog. Some old curved trees stood alone on slopes.
The second homestead was smaller and quite rectangular in shape. All of the walls and frames were still standing, but the floor and roof had long since rotted away.
In fact, there were a number of shrubs growing inside the old homestead. After looking around the area, I started a loop back on a different route.
I passed by an old corral next to an icy lake.
An old snag stood Ent-like over the shores of the lake.
My return route was over the forested hills back to the start. I am not including the locations of the homesteads for good reasons. I want to allow the homesteads to stand for a while yet so I don’t want to see lots of visitors, some of which are bound to cause damage. In addition, I did this route in the off-season when there were no conflicts with ranching, mining, forestry, hunting, or off-road recreationalists. I walked in, left no trace, took a few photos, and I will keep the actual locations to myself.
Doug Smith
Doug writes for Kamloops Trails, a not-for-profit (and ad free) website, offering information on trails, waterways, routes, featured spots, viewpoints, and explorations in the outdoors in the Kamloops area (and beyond).
Doug started exploring this area in 1976 and continues to follow tracks and routes wherever they lead, with the aid of map, compass, GPSr and camera. After many dead-ends, but also many discoveries, he chose to share this information.
The Kamloops Trails website has a massive number of interesting posts and would be of interest to anyone in Kamloops who enjoys the outdoors. Visit the Kamloops Trails website at: http://www.kamloopstrails.ca/
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