Late August 2020
After my wonderful stay at Michelle’s farm in Vanderhoof, I headed east on Highway 16 to Prince George and then travelled 30 minutes north to visit my niece Erica and see her new home on 5 acres of land in the beautiful Salmon Valley.
Erica’s husband Brandon was working away so unfortunately I missed seeing him, but Erica and I had a good visit and I loved touring her very cute house and large yard with newly built garden boxes and newly planted fruit trees. As well as working at UNBC, Erica is an artist and a very successful potter who is famous for her swear mugs (“When a regular f***ing mug just won’t do.” You can find her products at wheelhousestudio.ca and on etsy under wheelhousestudio). Here are a few pictures of Erica and her house, inside and out, including her kiln and pottery studio.
After my visit with Erica, I returned to Prince George and continued south on Highway 97 as far as 150 Mile House. There, I turned northeast to visit Horsefly and camp at Horsefly Lake in the Cariboo Uplands. I’ve always wanted to visit both Horsefly and Likely just because of their great names! Both towns were stops on the earliest rough trail created by miners to access the Cariboo gold fields before the official wagon road was constructed using another, less direct but also less challenging route. My plan was to follow that historic trail under Liz Bryan’s guidance in her chapter entitled “Back Road to Barkerville.”
Unlike the early gold seekers, I was not on foot or horseback and faced with “precipitous ascents and descents, fallen logs, overhanging branches, roots, rocks, swamps, turbid pools and miles of deep mud…” For me, the drive to Horsefly was easy-peasy and beautiful! The road traversed gently rolling hills and was bordered by pretty hayfields, sections of forest, and many lakes and ponds.
As I neared Horsefly, I passed several beautiful old farmhouses and barns.
The village itself was tiny, with just a few homes and other buildings (including a school and library) grouped near the general store, and with other homes and small farms scattered further out along several roads.
Right beside the general store was the bridge over the crystal-clear Horsefly River.
I crossed over and drove about a kilometer or so to arrive at the Black Creek stream channel area which was being rehabilitated by the local hatchery to provide good rearing habitat for young salmon. I walked the trail there along ponds, over a wetland boardwalk, and down to the riverside that was lined with tall cottonwoods and alders.
Happy with my peaceful walk, I carried on to Horsefly Lake Provincial Park where I had no trouble securing an excellent lakefront spot.
A light rain was falling as I arrived so I made my dinner under the cover of my Highlander’s rear door. I sat for a good long while enjoying my meal and the tranquil view. It was very quiet, with only the occasional and very welcome sound of loons calling to each other from far across the lake.
Later, the rain eased up long enough for me to walk around the campground loop several times and then over to the day use picnic area. Apparently this is a very warm swimming lake but the temperatures today were quite cool and there was a hint of Fall in the air. The rain started up again, and I retired to my Highlander to read in bed and have an early night.
The next morning, a steady rain was falling so I decided to leave my back roads trip to Likely and then on to Barkerville for another day and instead head south to the warmth of the Thompson River valley where another country road was waiting for me. First though, I wanted to visit Moffat Falls which is located not far from town down several gravel roads. If you stop into the Clarkes General Store and ask, they will give you a pamphlet called the “Horsefly Waterfall Quest” which gives descriptions of, and directions to, five different waterfalls in the area.
This is my first view of Moffat Falls after walking on the short trail from the parking lot.
I crossed the bridge over the stream and followed the path around to this excellent view of the spectacular twin falls, roughly 70 feet high, dropping into a circular pool and misting the air all around.
And here is a zoomed in view. Beautiful!
I was the only one there, and the only car in the parking lot, and I had an uneasy cougar-or-bear-is-nearby feeling so I didn’t linger, but I was very glad to have seen the falls.
The return trip to Highway 97 from Horsefly was just as scenic as the day before and I enjoyed it immensely. I travelled south on 97 as far as 93 Mile House where I turned east onto the Interlakes Highway 24 (also called the Fishing Highway and the Little Fort Highway). This 97 km route across the rolling Cariboo hills follows an ancient trading route of the Secwepemc (Shuswap) people that was later used by the Hudson’s Bay Company in the early 1800s to transport furs from northern BC across to Fort Kamloops.
At the junction with Highway 5, I turned south and followed the road which parallels the wide, green, clear, and incredibly beautiful North Thompson River all the way to Kamloops. Shortly before reaching Kamloops, I turned east onto Pinantan Road/Paul Lake Road, headed for Paul Lake Provincial Park. I had driven Pinantan Road twice before with Sophie and Daniel when they were young – once to stay at Jandana horse ranch (recommended!), and once when we visited the Kamloops area over a Thanksgiving weekend to view the Adams River sockeye salmon run. It is a wonderful road! Surprisingly green so close to Kamloops, with thickly forested north-facing slopes, small road-side lakes, and areas of golden range land, dotted with sage.
Upon arriving at Paul Lake, I chose a good campsite and then I headed out to take the 1.6 km forest trail from the campsite up to Gibraltar Rock, a 294 m rocky bluff which overlooks Paul Lake.
The trail travelled gently uphill through an open forest of Douglas Fir, pine, and aspens, and then there was a steep scramble to the top that was well worth the effort. Here is a view from the top of the bluff , looking west along Paul Lake.
And here is the view looking east.
I took a different trail down that led to the Paul Lake day use area with its large grassy lawn and great swimming beach. From the fishing dock, I had an excellent view of Gibraltar Rock to the west. I was just up there!
After walking back up to my campsite, I gathered my fishing gear and spent part of the afternoon casting from the dock, hoping to catch my supper. I didn’t get any bites, but that was fine as I was perfectly happy just taking it easy — the water was a deep relaxing green, and a light rain came and went, creating soft sounds and mesmerizing circular ripples on the lake.
The next day, I woke early to head out on my last Liz Bryan-inspired country road of the summer. Titled, “North of the South”, this route follows Shuswap Road east from Highway 5 on the north side of the South Thompson, hence the title. On the south side of the river, cars and big trucks zoom by on busy Highway 1, but for me, all was quiet with stunning views on my left of pale siltstone hills, sculpted into castle-like shapes by wind and rain, and bordered on their lower slopes by golden grasses and sage. And, on my right was the peaceful flow of the river. This is a photo from my first roadside stop, just a kilometer or two after turning onto Shuswap Road.
Several kilometers further on, there was a break in the hills on my left, leading into what was probably a box canyon. The colours and shapes of this landscape were beautiful!
Turning 180 degrees from the above spot, here is a view of my vehicle parked on Shuswap Road, with the river hidden from view below, and Highway One in the distance.
As I travelled east, I stopped many times to capture views of the sculpted hills.
Here I climbed up a little ways up for a closer view,
which also gave me a great view of the hills and road stretching enticingly eastward.
The hills, road, and power lines all urged me forward into the distance,
until I stopped again at this second small break in the hills, with fence lines curving around into a side canyon. What a wonderful place that would be to explore!
Again, I couldn’t resist climbing up a short distance for a closer view,
and from up there I had a great view down and back towards the west.
Close up views of the golden grasses and other hillside plants, including pretty blue chicory, were exciting as well!
Along Shuswap Road, the river was almost always in view on my right, sometimes with irrigated fields between me and river, and sometimes the tranquil river was right beside the road.
After a while, the siltstone hills angled away from the road, and I began to pass by houses and small farms. I also passed the small community of Pritchard, a golf course and associated housing development, several wineries, a large cherry orchard, and a huge marijuana plantation, all very interesting!
Here are several more images from my drive along scenic Shushwap Road, on the north side of the South Thompson.
As I neared the end of Shuswap Road, I decided to turn onto Loakin/Bear Creek Road in order to check out Niskonlith Lake Provincial Park. The gravel road switch backed steeply up to this marvelous viewpoint with a view east of the South Thompson flowing out of Little Shuswap Lake. The town of Chase is located at the far end of the flat area on the south shore, with the indigenous settlement of Seqeltqin located across the river from Chase.
I travelled for several kilometers through forest and past a large ranch, and then turned onto the rather rough and bumpy Louis Road to arrive a kilometer or two later at Niskonlith Lake and Provincial Park. (One can continue on the Loakin/Bear Creek Road for a further 14 km to arrive at the Adams River sockeye salmon spawning grounds in Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park.) Niskonlith Lake was beautiful, and I liked the rustic and remote feel of the campsite, but there were no families camped here so I decided that I would stick to my original plan and spend another night at Paul Lake.
I returned to the Shuswap Road and began the return journey west. At the junction with Pinantan Road, I made a detour down to the South Thompson see the historic Pritchard Bridge. I had been here previously with Sophie and Daniel on our trip to the Adams River, and I was a little disappointed to see a housing development going up on the north side of the bridge where once there was lovely grove of tall old cottonwoods. The wooden stringer bridge, however, was unchanged and very special to see. I drove carefully over the one lane bridge, parked on the south side (not far from Highway 1), and walked upstream along the shore to take this photo.
Then, I walked onto and over the bridge along the wooden sidewalk.
Here is a view downstream taken from the center of the bridge,
and here is a view upstream of the South Thompson. What a gorgeous river!
Very happy with my day so far, I carried on along wonderfully scenic Pinantan Road as it headed up and away from the river, along fields and forest, heading back to Paul Lake Provincial Park. I made a quick stop at the Pinantan Lake Community Park and reminisced about swimming here with Sophie and Daniel. I was a little tempted to get into my bathing suit, but not tempted enough!
It was getting close to dinner time, so I carried on to Paul Lake, choose a quiet campsite, made a meal, and then ended my day with an easy lakeside stroll before bed.
And that was (almost) the end of my 2020 travels along B.C.’s country roads. (I say “almost” because I did do one more day of exploring in the Merritt area and found two extraordinary places to visit. But, I am keeping those secret for now!) As always, thank you very much for sharing the journey with me.
The sanctuary is noted for bird life and 128 different species have been spotted here. My bird photography skills and equipment are both sorely lacking but here are two images of birds that are new to me.
Two kilometers south of the bridge is the abandonded town site of Granite Creek – sometimes called Granite City – which was briefly the third largest town in B.C. after a large gold nugget was found in the creek by a cowboy, Johnny Chance, in 1885. Once the site of more than 200 buildings, including 13 saloons, the place is now almost completely vacant. Set on a grassy flat next to the creek, there are just a few surviving remnants of cabins and bits of foundations, and depressions left by old cellars and the diggings of treasure hunters. Grasses and wild rose are taking over, but there is a very good walking tour with sign boards that detail the history of this place so that it is not completely forgotten.
