(Thanks to Tom from Paddle Heaven for allowing us to reprint his story)

The paddle April 29, 2010

  Kayaking Buntzen Lake can be a good thing. The lake is alive with silence and natural wonders.

The major noise in the area if the picnic area is not alive with people and barking dogs happen to be the water the little water falls and creeks that spill into this British Columbia hydro reservoir.

Buntzen Lake is truly like paddling in a living masterpiece. Even though this is a man made reservoir it is a great escape.

No fossil fuel engines are allowed on the lake consequently the air is refreshing and clean.

There are few human interruptus except for a powerhouse on the west shoreline, power lines on the east and a service road that is not noisy.

The park has many walking and hiking trails. In fact there is a trail that encircles the lake.

On this particular paddle the wind was kicking up on the salt water in the low lands. At Buntzen Lake the conditions were mild to placid in regards to any breezes.

There are several little islands in the lake that can be paddled around and admired from the kayak or canoe.

The shoreline is filled with an abundance of flora from firs, broad leaf, and flowering plants like kinnikinnick, salal, dogwood and many others in the spring.

The water lever is affected by the hydro plant. In the north end of the lake there are several features to note.

At the very north end there is a suspension bridge. Just beyond that there is log boom after which is the hydro plant intake and off limits due to danger.

Near the north end is a large tunnel on the north east side of the water when in operation supposedly shoots a giant volume of water into the lake. It is also posted as dangerous. On this paddle there was no water so the area was calm. Would be interesting from what a fellow paddler said was an event to witness.

A fairly large waterfall high on a mountain on the north eastern side of the lake can be seen and heard from the north west side of Lake Buntzen.

Near the kayak or canoe put in there are tiny island for paddling around.

The south end of the lake is more shallow with ancient forest of trees in a sculpture like garden.

At the very south end is a metal foot bridge that can be paddled under sometimes if you are very careful. A small area of the lake is just beyond the bridge.

Other then that there is plenty of paddling available up lake from the foot bridge.

The sounds of silence broken by bird calls and rushing water from streams entering the lake make this place in nature a great place to spend the day paddling.

Fore more information and a great paddling resource for the Pacific NorthWest click here to visit Paddle Heaven.