- Joined
- Jan 9, 2014
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Venturing deep into the back country by vehicle is something I do mainly at this time of year because all the higher elevation hikes are still full of snow yet ski season is winding down. In BC we are lucky to have a vast network of un-gated active and in-active forest service roads to explore; these roads often go near some really neat places.
On Easter weekend my girlfriend, Hannah, and I went on a two night excursion on some of these backroads. We visited the wild and undeveloped sloquet hot springs near the end of Harrison lake. The journey to these springs can be done from either the north or the south. The south route is less far and has incredible scenery but the roads are rougher. We picked the south of course
Regardless of the route chosen, sloquet is over 100km (62 miles) from paved roads! *
Being this far off the beaten path meant bringing the usual offroad recovery gear as well as tools in the event of a truck issues. We also had our camping and backpacking supplies and of course a few knives!
We started on a drizzly friday morning and drove an hour and a half on the highway to the head of the logging road. From there we started our 115km journey on gravel. The first 50km (30miles) are smooth sailing on 2wd gravel with a few potholes scattered throughout. The rain seemed to be chasing us as every time we made a quick stop to snap a photo it began to rain suddenly and heavily.
We started on a drizzly friday morning and drove an hour and a half on the highway to the head of the logging road. From there we started our 115km (70 miles) journey on gravel. The first 50km (30miles) are smooth sailing on 2wd gravel with a few potholes scattered throughout. The rain seemed to be chasing us as every time we made a quick stop to snap a photo it began to rain suddenly and heavily.
Rain to the south at the 40km mark (the direction we came from)
We made a lunch stop at 30 mile bay on scenic harrison lake to eat, stretch our legs and prepare for the roughest part of the road between the 50 and 70 km marks. The rain let up nicely while we sat on the shore and ate our lunch taking in the views across the lake.
lunch view
After our stop it was back into the truck, much to the dismay of Hannah who isn't a huge fan of bumpy roads or driving in general. Luckily she was too distracted by the incredible scenery to worry too much about the many miles of gravel ahead of us. During the rough section of the road we were often crawling in low range with slightly faster sections interspersed. The rough section proved long but thankfully uneventful.
Once past the roughest part of our drive we were greeted with smooth roads again as the this section of road is active from time to time with logging activity from the north side; We were again able to pick up to pace to around 60km/h (40mph). This allowed us to cover the last part of the road in about an hour.
We arrived at the surprisingly developed forestry campsite near the springs around 4pm.
There were cleared gravel campsites each with an old pick-nick table and fire ring. I am used to much rougher undeveloped camping but with the rain really setting in, the available table and gravel clearing were welcome amenities. We began setting up the tarp first thing. Forty five minutes later our largest tarp was up and we had a dry place to setup our tent and cook dinner. Of course soon after setting up the tarp the rain let off and the skies began to clear
Tarp setup and dinner prep
After dinner we hiked down to the springs by the light of our headlamps. Getting out of our winter clothes and into the springs was a little chilly! Very worth it though. The wonderfully hot water was perfect after the long bumpy drive and rainy day. We setup tea candles around our rocky pool. The candle light in combination with the steam rising off the pools and a full moon with the sound of the fast flowing sloquet river in the background made for a magical experience. We soaked for a long time not wanting to leave this exotic place. Finally we left the springs and headed towards the campsite to get some much needed shut-eye. Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera to the springs that night...
The next morning we were greeted by sunny skies! We made breakfast and then left the campsite for a day of adventuring up the sloquet river valley.
Sun lighting up the tent in the morning.
Breakfast
Obligatory knife photo (north arm Coho)
We drove a ways up the valley on an fsr then parked where the road was blocked by large numbers of fallen trees. We continued on foot for a nice hike.
Photos from our hike
We returned to camp quite late, around 7pm. We made dinner and enjoyed a fire for the rest of the evening.
The next morning was even nicer!
We ate breakfast and then broke camp in preparation for the journey home.
Before leaving we made a last trip down to the springs. (This time I brought my camera, though the steam from the springs fogged up the lens without me noticing so most of my photos were un-usable)
Sloquet river
Hot springs source and pools
After our last short soak in the springs we made our way steeply uphill back to the truck. The drive home was also uneventful except for crossing paths with a black-tail deer! I got Hannah to do some of the driving as she is learning to drive standard and off road which gave me a chance to take in some of the amazing scenery
We got back to paved roads around 3pm on Sunday after about 4 hours of driving on gravel. That concludes the story of our fun little easter adventure. I hope you enjoyed reading!
-mike
On Easter weekend my girlfriend, Hannah, and I went on a two night excursion on some of these backroads. We visited the wild and undeveloped sloquet hot springs near the end of Harrison lake. The journey to these springs can be done from either the north or the south. The south route is less far and has incredible scenery but the roads are rougher. We picked the south of course
Regardless of the route chosen, sloquet is over 100km (62 miles) from paved roads! *Being this far off the beaten path meant bringing the usual offroad recovery gear as well as tools in the event of a truck issues. We also had our camping and backpacking supplies and of course a few knives!
We started on a drizzly friday morning and drove an hour and a half on the highway to the head of the logging road. From there we started our 115km journey on gravel. The first 50km (30miles) are smooth sailing on 2wd gravel with a few potholes scattered throughout. The rain seemed to be chasing us as every time we made a quick stop to snap a photo it began to rain suddenly and heavily.
We started on a drizzly friday morning and drove an hour and a half on the highway to the head of the logging road. From there we started our 115km (70 miles) journey on gravel. The first 50km (30miles) are smooth sailing on 2wd gravel with a few potholes scattered throughout. The rain seemed to be chasing us as every time we made a quick stop to snap a photo it began to rain suddenly and heavily.
Rain to the south at the 40km mark (the direction we came from)
We made a lunch stop at 30 mile bay on scenic harrison lake to eat, stretch our legs and prepare for the roughest part of the road between the 50 and 70 km marks. The rain let up nicely while we sat on the shore and ate our lunch taking in the views across the lake.
lunch view
After our stop it was back into the truck, much to the dismay of Hannah who isn't a huge fan of bumpy roads or driving in general. Luckily she was too distracted by the incredible scenery to worry too much about the many miles of gravel ahead of us. During the rough section of the road we were often crawling in low range with slightly faster sections interspersed. The rough section proved long but thankfully uneventful.
Once past the roughest part of our drive we were greeted with smooth roads again as the this section of road is active from time to time with logging activity from the north side; We were again able to pick up to pace to around 60km/h (40mph). This allowed us to cover the last part of the road in about an hour.
We arrived at the surprisingly developed forestry campsite near the springs around 4pm.
There were cleared gravel campsites each with an old pick-nick table and fire ring. I am used to much rougher undeveloped camping but with the rain really setting in, the available table and gravel clearing were welcome amenities. We began setting up the tarp first thing. Forty five minutes later our largest tarp was up and we had a dry place to setup our tent and cook dinner. Of course soon after setting up the tarp the rain let off and the skies began to clear
Tarp setup and dinner prep
After dinner we hiked down to the springs by the light of our headlamps. Getting out of our winter clothes and into the springs was a little chilly! Very worth it though. The wonderfully hot water was perfect after the long bumpy drive and rainy day. We setup tea candles around our rocky pool. The candle light in combination with the steam rising off the pools and a full moon with the sound of the fast flowing sloquet river in the background made for a magical experience. We soaked for a long time not wanting to leave this exotic place. Finally we left the springs and headed towards the campsite to get some much needed shut-eye. Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera to the springs that night...
The next morning we were greeted by sunny skies! We made breakfast and then left the campsite for a day of adventuring up the sloquet river valley.
Sun lighting up the tent in the morning.
Breakfast
Obligatory knife photo (north arm Coho)
We drove a ways up the valley on an fsr then parked where the road was blocked by large numbers of fallen trees. We continued on foot for a nice hike.
Photos from our hike
We returned to camp quite late, around 7pm. We made dinner and enjoyed a fire for the rest of the evening.
The next morning was even nicer!
We ate breakfast and then broke camp in preparation for the journey home.
Before leaving we made a last trip down to the springs. (This time I brought my camera, though the steam from the springs fogged up the lens without me noticing so most of my photos were un-usable)
Sloquet river
Hot springs source and pools
After our last short soak in the springs we made our way steeply uphill back to the truck. The drive home was also uneventful except for crossing paths with a black-tail deer! I got Hannah to do some of the driving as she is learning to drive standard and off road which gave me a chance to take in some of the amazing scenery
We got back to paved roads around 3pm on Sunday after about 4 hours of driving on gravel. That concludes the story of our fun little easter adventure. I hope you enjoyed reading!
-mike
