Kwai Lake Backpack

I did an overnight hike to Kwai Lake, Forbidden Plateau in Strathcona Provincial Park. I headed down the trail just after 6 am. There was only 1 van in the parking lot so I knew it wouldn’t be crowded at any campsites. It was a chilly 5*C in the subalpine and the boardwalks were a bit slippery in places. The first part of the hike is a boring walk along a well constructed boardwalk which is suitable for wheelchair access. The walk protects the sensitive Paradise Meadows and makes a pleasant loop walk for older folks. I like walking on dirt trails and was finally relieved to get off the well groomed trail on my way to Battleship Lake. 

Early morning hike

A lot of snow has melted and left very muddy trails. Although the trail undulates a lot it seems to be heading in a downward direction which makes the hiking pleasant on the way to Kwai Lake.

There are huge snow banks around Lady Lake still but parts of the trail are showing in-between. Some parts of the trail are like small creeks with runoff flowing down it but the worst part is the extreme mud in places. 

 Nothing but mud

Sometimes, it is hard to negotiate the mud patches without getting the boots dirty. Quite a bit of snow has melted at Murray Meadows; a flat piece of open meadows which is just starting to green up. It will be a short season for plants and flowers.

 Murray Meadows

I had arrived at Kwai Lake around 9 am and chose the site closest to the outhouse and bear cache. 

 One of the campsites

I set up my tent then took off to Hairtrigger Lake which was 1 km away. Most of the trail was snow covered but a sign pointed the way up a snow bank so I headed up in that direction. I passed a few alpine tarns before coming to the lake. I photographed the reflections of the mountains in the background then skirted around the right side of the lake which was snow free. 

 Hairtrigger Lake

There is a rough path which I followed to a creek tumbling down from the lake. I scrambled down to get a better perspective of the flow of water then waited until the sun went behind some clouds before I took a shot.

 A creek tumbles down from the lake

I hiked around the lake and came across quite a few alpine tarns where I filtered water and ate my lunch. One thing I like about this area is the numerous small tarns of different shapes and sizes. What didn’t impress me is the mountain scenery; they are not scenic and far away. This is one reason I like Buttle Lake area despite the steep trails; you get up into the mountains fast.

I headed back along the trail and went to Mariwood Lake to photograph there. Despite the sun, there were lots of clouds in the sky creating a nice depth of field. 

 Billowy clouds at Mariwood Lake

Dark clouds crept in and I thought it was going to rain. I cooked up my dinner here then relaxed. I like this lake with its many rock islands. The blackflies were numerous here and there were the odd mosquito. I’m not sure if there was a resident beaver here as I heard a splash on more than one occasion. I doubt there are any fish as the lake freezes over and is quite shallow.

I came back to my camp around 6 pm and was surprised to see another tent on the lakeshore. It wasn’t your typical place to set up a tent as the tent pad provided are on the opposite side of where this person was camping.

I put my food bag in the metal bear cache provided then waited around until evening. I tied pink ribbons on the guy wires strung to the tent pegs; this way I can see them and not trip and loosen the strings.

I couldn’t decide where to set up my camera and photograph sunset but I chose the alpine tarns just up from camp. It was a boring wait doing nothing until I heard someone coming up the trail from the lake. It was the person camping along the lakeshore. We chatted for a while before he went exploring off and I waited until it got dark. Some clouds were changing colors from orange to pink. I wish there were more clouds in the sky for that visual effect.

 Evening shot at alpine tarn

I had to keep running around this small tarn trying to find the best position to photograph. The display didn’t last long and it ended abruptly so I headed back to camp. 

 Pink clouds after sunset

I had a restless night as usual and got up at 5 am to use the outhouse. It was a short walk in the dark down the snowy path; this is one reason why I chose my camp close to the biffy. I got up at 5:30 am and took a walk to the same alpine tarns where I waited for sunrise. There was mist floating on the water and the clouds were turning pink. My camera lens kept fogging up from the humidity. After I finished here, I went back to one of the empty campsites near mine and photographed Kwai Lake in the early morning light.

 Kwai Lake before sunrise

I would actually prefer to stay at this campsite as the views are nice overlooking the lake but the melting snow has the water flowing down and soaking the ground where the tent pad sits.

I got going to Mariwood Lake around 6 am. The other fellow looks to be asleep in his tent still. The bright yellow tent of his is quite eye-catching. The snow froze overnight and is very slippery and icy. I made it to the lake in time to photograph the sun and mist floating about. 

 Sun and mist at Mariwood Lake

Once the sun came out and dissipated the mist, my picture taking was over as the light was too harsh. I stuck around till about noon then headed back to camp and packed up to leave. The hike back was tiring with most of the trail going uphill and this was compounded with steep snowbanks in places. When I got back to Battleship Lake, I started bumping into people and around Paradise meadows a park ranger asked me how far I went. He believes all the snow won’t melt and will be around until this coming winter. I think he could be right.