Pack and Paddle: Frisken Lake – KamloopsTrails
There are a number of lakes in Roche Lakes Provincial Park that are accessible by hiking, ATV, or snowmobile. I have hiked to all of them too, but I hope to paddle them. Four wheel drive vehicles can access some of them when conditions are dry, but it is always a matter of how much punishment we want our vehicle to take. I have driven to John Frank Lake, but that road is very rough. I have hiked to Bulman and to Ernest Lake, but would not take my truck on those roads. I had hiked in to Frisken Lake(and beyond to Bulman Lake), so I opted to backpack my folding kayak to the lakeshore. I drove around Roche Lake on the Smith Lake Forest Service Road to Range Valley where I parked.
My kayak fits into a special pack. There is a sleeve for my paddle and I hang a PFD off the back. I fit any other gear into a day pack and sling it over my shoulder. I hoisted the packs and hiked along the power line, then onto the Frisken Lake Road. The route is about 1.5 km each way.
The Smith Lake FSR is a good gravel backroad. The track along the powerline is rough.
Frisken Lake is a nice lake to paddle. There is a good launch spot at a primitive camp spot. It was quiet at the lake. I saw no one else all day and I would guess that the lake is rarely visited.
I assembled my folding kayak on the shoreline then launched into the lake. I paddled around the lake (2.5 km).
After paddling everything needs to be folded and packed up. I hoisted my pack and hiked out. It was a warm day for a backpack, but not too long. I spotted a snowshoe hare, lots of ducks, loons with chicks, grey jays, blackbirds, and I could hear many other birds. One more lake to the list of local lakes paddled.
A few moments from the hike and paddle are shared in this YouTube video.
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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