Exploring BC’s Wells Gray Park – Pt. II

It would have been easy to stay at Clearwater Lake and explore the trails and canyons surrounding. The fishing was good, too, with Rainbow Trout on the line late aft and past sundown. With the bounty of waterfalls and rivers to explore in the corridor, we will have to make a return some day soon. Our next stop, however, was the far southwest corner of the park — Mahood Lake. As mentioned in my last post (if you haven’t read, go back and check out the pics!), our family has a fondness for Mahood. The lake is warm enough to swim the day away, the trout provide campfire roasted meals and there are waterfalls, rivers and more within easy striking distance. With our floatilla of kayaks we are able to get into the middle of the lake and up the Canim River, a little bit. The rushing water made for a super fun PFD float down river into the vortex at the mouth. Our nieces wanted to do this over and over….we obliged!

The approach to the lake was with some drama. A major windstorm was ripping along throughout the park. While driving up the forestry roads from Hwy 24 (the fishing highway) we saw trees toppling in the wind, and before long we were forced to stop and chop some windfall along the way. Four times we stopped, first chopping with axes then I found a saw in our gear making short work of the fallen limbs. It was an adventure getting there. The lake was calm and beautiful on arrival, and over the next few days we had plenty of sunshine along with some fine electrical storms and downpours. Excellent mountain weather. Wells Gray, a gem in our Provincial Park system.

Wells Gray Park, British Columbia, 2015.