Maple Leaf School – TRU Trip to Wells Gray Provincial Park

October 28+29, 2017

Twelve students, our principal, our principal’s son, and I left Kamloops at 7:00 am on October 28 in two

8-seat rental transit vans and head north up the Yellowhead Highway. Our destination for the weekend

was Wells Gray Provincial Park slightly north of Clearwater, BC. Google puts the drive from Kamloops to

Clearwater at 123.4 kms and calculates the drive should take 1 hour and 22 minutes. In the end it took

around 2 hours due to several stretches of construction and dense fog.

This travel advisory sign put it into words. Fog inside the park.

The idea to travel to Wells Gray for the weekend was a result of hearing that Thompson Rivers

University (the university campus where our school is located) owned a piece of property in that area.

The land had cabins on it that were perfect for field trips, field studies, etc… There was some discussion

about doing this in late October because of winter usually setting in around this time. Much of the

park’s roadways are shut down when the snow begins to fly. In the end, we decided to go for it and

were quite happy we did. We were able to sneak the trip in before winter. The temperature inside

Wells Gray ranged from -2⁰ to 8⁰ during our stay but was expected to drop well below zero with snow 4

days after we left. Because we were so late in the season, I was wondering what we would see in terms

of wildlife. Some research indicated that Black Bear were quite easy to see in the spring feeding on

grass beside the park roads and Moose were readily seen in the valleys during cold winters. But, would

bears be hibernating already in late October? Would Moose be descending into the valleys for the

winter already? This, coupled with the fact that we had never been there before, led to intrigue and a

sense of discovery as we travelled north in the fog. Apart from wildlife, Wells Gray is famous for

waterfalls. Geologic activity there has led to many drop offs that the area’s rivers flow over. The TRU

cabins provided us with a great base from which to explore during our 2-day stay and we are grateful to

TRU for the use of them. The photos below showed the cabin areas with a school house, kitchen,

woodshed, and washrooms.

After arriving at the cabins, we dropped off some of our gear and headed for Moul Falls. The main

attractant to this waterfall was that we had heard it was possible to walk behind it. Moul Falls is

accessed by a 45 minute hike in from the parking lot. The hike is almost flat except for the last 5

minutes when it drops drastically to the bottom of the falls. The walk behind the falls is exhilarating and

the carved out cave area behind the falls is a cool experience as well.

Above: Moul Falls with people walking behind Below: Behind the falls (waterproof jackets mandatory!)

No wildlife was heard or seen on the hike in to Moul Falls but the hike out was full of life. Maybe it had

something to do with the fog finally burning off? Wildlife encountered on the hike out:

Clock wise from top left: Golden-crowned Kinglet, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Red

Squirrel. Hiking pictures below

The next activity to do was to travel north in our vehicles to the top end of Wells Gray Provincial Park.

When significant snowfall occurs, the main road is closed at Helmcken Falls but we were able to travel

all the way to Clearwater Lake with no snow. We made a stop at Helmcken Falls, Canada’s 4th highest

waterfall right beside the main road. Helmcken Falls is the signature waterfall of the park and probably

the main reason many people visit. A nice viewing platform has been constructed there.

The platform The height of Helmcken Falls compared with Niagara Falls

Our next drive took us from Helmcken Falls to Clearwater Lake. This section is gravel and passes

through some beautiful forest. The drive there was uneventful other than taking in nice scenery along

the Clearwater River. At the lake we explored an area where canoes are rented during summer. After a

short stay we drove back towards Clearwater for supper. I had seen a place to cast a fly into the

Clearwater River on the way up and so we stopped for 15 minutes at this location. I didn’t catch any fish

but we did see some bear tracks and Moose tracks on a sand bar there. The bear tracks were most likely

from the same day so we reasoned that they all weren’t hibernating yet. Can anyone separate Grizzly

from Black Bear tracks? In Wells Gray, they were most likely Black Bear but Grizzly is possible as well.

Back on the road we stopped a Ruffed Grouse roadside. A Striped Skunk made a short appearance on

the road at this site as well.

Bear Tracks Moose Tracks

Clearwater Lake

Striped Skunk Ruffed Grouse

After this we drove all the way back to Clearwater looking for more wildlife. Between the TRU cabins

and Clearwater we saw a wonderfully close Coyote right beside the road. Returning to Clearwater, we

checked out a few places for dinner before choosing the Old Caboose Restaurant. Turned out to be an

excellent place!

Coyote Supper at the Old Caboose

Dinner was followed by a camp fire back at the cabins. Our principal brought some sweet potatoes,

garlic bread, and marsh mellows. One of the students brought some hot dogs and potatoes as well.

Soon we were feasting, playing games, and relaxing around the fire after a busy day. The clouds broke

and the moon appeared briefly. I put the Swarovski spotting scope on it and many of the students came

and had a look. After this I put Swarovski’s iPhone adapter on the scope and snapped a few photos on

my IPhone.

The Feast in progress The Moon through the telescope

Some of the food Group picture

The next morning we drove as far as we could towards Clearwater Lake looking for wildlife but had to

turn around shortly after Helmcken Falls due to fog. Instead we drove up to the Green Mountain

viewpoint. It was on this road that we encountered a minimum of 2 Spruce Grouse and 3 Ruffed Grouse

along the road. After breakfast back in Clearwater we returned to the viewpoint at the end of Green

Mountain road and hiked the short ways to Foot Lake.

The main road through Wells Gray Park The viewpoint at the end of Green Mountain Road

Foot Lake Foot Lake hike

Spruce Grouse along Green Mountain Road

After the hike and drive we stopped back at the cabins and packed up all of our gear. Cabins were

inspected and the camp fire area was cleaned up. With a bit more time before we had to leave, we

decided to drive a ways up the gravel road on the west side of the Clearwater River towards Mahood

Lake. We knew we probably didn’t have enough time to get to Mahood Lake but the road there looked

very scenic and worth exploring. The scenery was amazing, and the Clearwater River lived up to its

name. There was one place where we pulled off for a group photo. After this, we headed back to

Kamloops.

Special thanks to the Clearwater RCMP (police)

I set my Canon 7D with a 300mm lens and 1.4X converter down on the rocks beside the river here for

the group photo. I couldn’t set it down by my feet because we were in sand. Upon returning home and

packing up my bags I realized my camera was missing! I had forgotten it beside the Clearwater River. I

immediately returned the rental van and began the long drive back to Clearwater in my own vehicle. I

tried to reach the restaurant where we had eaten two times as a group to see if anyone there wanted to

make some quick money and go and secure my camera for me. I was unable to reach anyone there so

eventually I reached the Clearwater RCMP (police). I explained my situation and the constable on duty

there went out of his way to go and retrieve my camera for me. Fortunately, I was able to remember

exactly where we were for the group photo. The directions went something like, “it’s approximately 15

kms up Mahood Lake Road 1 m beside the Clearwater River where there is a gate that could close the

road…” The RCMP officer agreed that it would probably still be there because of the remoteness of the

location. Sure enough, after 45 minutes or so I got the call that he had found it and had it at the

Clearwater RCMP office! What a nice guy! It was only when I was getting close to Clearwater that I

realized it was completely dark and I would have been heading down the river bank looking for my

camera in complete darkness. Massive thanks to this particular constable.

Top: The TRU cabins Bottom: Our principal’s dog Tano