Bowron Lakes Chain!

I just got back from 8 days of paddling around the Bowron Lakes Chain in Northern B.C. What an amazing trip! I was invited to join my friend Sheri and her family to canoe the circuit. All together, there were 8 of us in 4 canoes. Three generations of her family were there, with her dad completing his 13th trip around and her two nieces and a nephew doing their first.

Bowron Lake Park is a large wilderness area on the Western slopes of the Cariboo Mountain Range. The canoe circuit is a 116 km chain of lakes, rivers and connecting portages. The trip can be completed in 4-10 days depending on how strong your crew is and what the weather's like. There have been a few radicals who have done the whole thing in less than a day - but that involves running the portages, not sleeping and generally not enjoying the spectacular scenery. Not really my cup of tea!

Overall it was a great trip. On average we paddled 6-7 hours a day, with a couple longer days when campsites were full and a couple shorter days when we found somewhere particularly nice we wanted to explore some more. We also completely lucked out when it came to weather, with most days dawning with clear skies and calm winds. The only day we paddled in the rain was the very last day as we were pulling into shore. 3 out of the 4 boats had made it to the end when it began to pour! A great opportunity to test out how waterproof our gear was, without much consequence. Otherwise, we did have the occasional storm blow through in the evenings but thankfully they didn't last long and we typically had tarps set up in time.

If we were lucky when it came to weather, karma caught up to us when it came to the mosquitoes! Never have I seen so many blood sucking critters in one space at one time. Bug spray and long sleeves did little to deter the bastards and I spent much of my time in camp swatting, scratching and bathing myself in Afterbite. At night, we were lulled to sleep by the buzzing just beyond the tent screen. That same buzzing was also a huge deterrent for getting up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, despite a full bladder!

This was my first trip portaging, and I was pretty happy for the canoe carts when going up and down the trails. Specifically the first section when the canoes were loaded! The parks do have a weight restriction, and when you register to start the circuit, a ranger does come out to weigh all the stuff you're going to be carrying in your canoe. To keep the trails in good condition, all canoes are limited to 60 lbs and whatever is left over, has to be carried on your back. Our group was overweight , but luckily our ranger was compassionate and helped us out. This is contrary to what some members of our group have experienced in the past, so many thanks to her!

We did get to see a bit of wildlife on our journey around the lake, starting with a bear visit to our campsite the first morning. Although he (she?) wasn't easily scared off, he did eventually make his way up the trail allowing us to get packed up and our way. All the campsites on the circuit are well equipped with bear caches but I guess the smell of bacon and eggs in the morning was too much to resist! (Side note - Many thanks to my cousin at Doug's Homestead in Hedley for getting all our meat ready for us! We were the envy of the campsite when we had bbq'ed steaks at the end of day 4, and their beef jerky is the best I've tasted, hands down.) We also came across several bald eagles and a few moose, including the one that Keith and Emilie had to paddle around after running the chute on Isaac river! Loons were often our companions on the water during the day and serenaded us with their calls at night. One night we were also privy to a couple of owls calling to each other across the bay we were camped at. The hoots that followed led us to believe it might have been a mating call. They kept us up part of the night!

We were one of many families we met along the way, and it seems like an ideal trip to take with enough planning and preparation. Even the little guy whose canoe took on water when running the chutes had a big smile on his face at the end of it all. No matter how you look at it, it was the opportunity of a lifetime, and although it was my first, I'm confident it won't be my last.