Road trip report: Pavillion and Minnewanka lakes

[DaleC]

Just got back from my road trip with my brother and thought I'd share what I discovered in case anyone else wants to dive the same locales. We covered 2200km's in 4.5 days and dove in Pavillion, Minnewanka and Shuswap lakes. I gave up on my Kootenay lake plans in the end as it seemed like too much driving and will have to do a southern BC trip some other time.

Day 1: Abbotsford to Pavillion Lake. 4Hr's.

I left Abbotsford at 11:30 and got to Pavillion lake at 3:30pm driving the Fraser canyon route. For camping there is a Prov. campground at Crown lake, just south of Pavillion that cost $15/night and the Sky Blue Resort (SBR) for $20/ night. If I had a camper or trailer/RV I would stay at the Prov. site as it is well set up and maintained and the SBR is not. We were tenting however, so we stayed at the SBR as it is right on the centeral recreational diving zone for Pavillion. The resort (not) is a run down affair but it was quiet and I was there to dive so I did not care. My brother got turned on to snorkelling there as well (recommended for non divers). We tented about 40ft. from the lake and all I had to do was suit up and splash.

Here's a view from our campsite:

If you refer to the BC Prov. pamphlet for Marble Canyon http://www.pavilionlake.com/pdf/BCParksPavilionLake.pdf this is looking north between the Sky Blue Resort and the Island in the lake. The dive zone is in this bay (mostly)and the Microbiolites can be found at varying depths. In all I did 3 dives here:

Dive 1: Jul 19. 73ft, 45*F, 39 min's, Vis. 50'+.
Carribean like dive! White bottom (calcium based detritus) big patches of bottom plants, fresh water sponges. Gradual descent on SW bearing. Encountered Microbiolites at 55 and 70ft. They seem to grow in colonies on steeper slope faces. Big school of rainbow trout in shallows. Awesome vis!

Dive 2: Jul 19. 90ft, 45*F, 34 min's, Vis. 50'+ (diminishing somewhat at depth).
Same as last dive but more W descent. Encountered a very large colony at 90'. Over colony like diving on a tropical reef but with no fish. Saw a large patch of sphagnum moss actively growing in the shallows. Everything that falls in the lake gets calcified.

Dive 3: Jul 22. 74ft, 46*F, 35 min's, Vis. 30 - 50ft (cloudy day).
Most microbiolites found in bay at a depth of 60 - 70'. Too tired after all the diving and driving to do another dive... Whew!

I spent some time locating the north and south recreational dive sites as they were unmarked and no one locally knew where they were (NASA had just left the lake). Funny that, if NASA and the CSA wanted divers to stay within a set area they would at least mark the areas so there was no mix ups.

The North zone is right along the Hwy and you cannot park or even stop there (no shoulder). If you look at the Prov. park pamphlet again you will see a pull out for Felix creek just below the north zone. Pull in there and drive north on the gravel road as far as you can go. There are little lanes leading down to the water and you can park at the last one to suit up and enter, doing a moderate surface swim to the site.

The South zone does have a little pull out to park but nothing would indicate what it was. To find it, refer to the pamphlet again. Driving south from the SBR note how the road veers back towards the lake just before the site. As you drive you will notice the same thing and see the pull out there. A very short path leads you to the waters edge and the site is right there.

I will continue my trip in the next post.

 

[DaleC]

Day 2: Pavillion lake to Banff. 10.5 Hr's.

Stopped at Ocean Pacific Water Sports in Kamloops to get some air and discovered one of my tanks was past due for a vis inspection. Good thing I brought some spares! Talked briefly about local diving conditions but found a lack of enthusiasm (maybe it was just me). I got the sense that the emphasis was on doing classes and diving somewhere else. I got the same feeling later on at Copper dive and tan in Salmon Arm. Perhaps I expect too much but I would have thought that dive shops in the Shuswap would have a map printed out with all the local sites on them instead of having to thumb through books. Not complaining as the staff was friendly but I just found it odd that there was so little local promotion.
Camped on Tunnel mountain in Banff. Excellent, well run campsite. $39 for a two day park pass and $27.50/nite camping fee.

Day 3: Lake Minnewanka 1912 Damsite.

From the Banff Hwy 1 exchange we drove up to Lake Minnewanka and parked along the causeway (top of current dam) on the lake side shoulder. From here it is just a careful walk down the loose boulders of the causeway into the water. Here is a view looking NW along the causeway with the dive site bouyed off from boaters and the marina beyond.

I swam out to the dive marker and descended onto the 1912 dam.

Dive 1: 74ft, 42 min's, 50*F, Vis. 20-30'.
Dove around the dam and off it several times. Very confusing topography that takes some time to understand (later at camp I would get an "ah hah" moment as I understood what I had observed earlier in the day). Found a large water intake pipe sucking water out of the lake (lucky it is grated). Explored blockhouse externally and then swam along dam top NW. Found a cable and followed it along a shallower bottom (35ft) to house # 4. Followed cable some more to House #5 and then turned the dive. Although it is shallow one should not plan to ascend as this part of the dive is outside of the bouys and in heavy boat traffic. Returned to dam and ascended.

Here's a drawing of what I saw:

Dive 2: 84 ft, 42min's, 48*F, Vis. 20-30'.
Intrigued by blockhouse so I returned to explore it some more. First penetration dive for me (and solo too - Bad boy Dale). This is a concrete two story structure with a 3-4' diameter pipe access in the bottom of it. The pipe leads to a small chamber and up into the first room. From there a ladder leads up into the second room that has a vertical pipe in it. Around the pipe and up through the ceiling that is only half there. I had so much fun I did it again! A good little entry level penetration experience. Explored the dam itself and the surrounding topography.

Here is a drawing of the blockhouse (someone who dives locally could probably fine tune some points of these sketches but they are roughly correct).

Day 4: Banff to Pavillion Lake. 12 Hr's.

Decided that the Kootenay lake portion of the trip would involve too much driving and leave me too tired to dive so we opted to drive/dive down the Okanagan Corridor. The forest fires put the kaibosh on those plans though. We then decided to return to Pavillion lake as it had such clear vis and my brother liked snorkelling there. Stopped at Copper Dive and Tan in Salmon Arm for some air. Located on 7th St. it is actually behind the drycleaning store. A very small shop. July (sp?) drew a little map for diving Reidman Pt. between Salmon Arm and Sorrento so we decided to stop there. Take Balmoral Rd. at Blind bay and follow the lake to the east. Take Rocky point Rd. to a turn around and park off the road. The point is a nice little place with a jumbled rocky slope but I would not make a special trip to shore dive this region specifically. With a boat it would be more worthwhile as one could explore many better dive sites on the lake. I was so hot that I could not bear the thought of suiting up so we snorkelled. Got swimmers itch.
Arrived back at Pavillion lake and did dive #3 and snorkelled. BTW I snorkelled using my vintage gear. Funny to use gear that is as old as I am and still perfectly functional.

Day 5: Pavillion lake to Abbotsford via Pemberton Hwy. 7Hr's.
Decided to drive home via the Pemberton Hwy and would highly recommend that everybody does it once. Beautiful country! I was going to dive at Porteau cove but the vis looked terrible and I was too tired to suit up. It is possible to dive/drive too much which is something to think about when planning a trip like this. There is a point of diminishing returns where the diving becomes less and less attractive. I feel I have had enough diving for at least... a couple of days.



I would recommend both the Pavillion and Minnie trips to anyone (but maybe not at the same time) as they offer something unusual to see. The Banff 1912 damsite and surrounding area could be explored a lot more than I did and there is still the other sites to dive if one can arrange a boat.
The microbiolites are boring in a sense once you've seen them (they all look pretty much the same) but still, you've got to see them. The clear vis and other features of the lake make the trip worthwhile either as a long day trip or a nice overnighter.

 

[mustang_5l]

Excellent write up Dale! Just wondering if the picture of you is to scale? It appears that you forgot to take your fins with you. Was it a hard swim?

 

[DaleC]

Just wondering if the picture of you is to scale?

Well, my wife says my head is a lot fatter.

 

[MarkH]

Great report. It's nice to hear of some of those spots that not everyone's been to.

 

[yukoncherry]

thanks for the road trip post. sounds like heaps of fun. i might have to make an overnight detour through pavilion lake a stop o my trip out to the okanagan. some fresh water sounds like a warm and refreshing change. time to break out the wet suit for some dives.

 

[Delta74]

hey guys, this is not for the shuswap, but the Kelowna westbank and peachland dives. may give some idea's, and cant make the trip without hitting Pavilion.
Diving Dynamics Dive Sites

 

[DaleC]

thanks for the road trip post. sounds like heaps of fun. i might have to make an overnight detour through pavilion lake a stop o my trip out to the okanagan. some fresh water sounds like a warm and refreshing change. time to break out the wet suit for some dives.

Wetsuit - You are brave YC, the bottom temps were 45*F or so. I've been to your neck of the woods before BTW about 10 years ago checking out the Little Hustan caves.

hey guys, this is not for the shuswap, but the Kelowna westbank and peachland dives. may give some idea's, and cant make the trip without hitting Pavilion.
Diving Dynamics Dive Sites

Thanks for the link Delta. I'm heading to Pentictan in about 2 weeks and will probably dive some of those sites. I am also interested in the wall at Kaleden on Skaha lake. Any info on that site?

 

[Delta74]

Hey Dale, glad you found it usefull, give me a bit and I will see what I can dig up, so far not much but if its out there I'll find something.

 

[BradnerBoy]

Excellent write up Dale! Just wondering if the picture of you is to scale? It appears that you forgot to take your fins with you. Was it a hard swim?

Yeah...and why did you leave a little trail of rabbit droppings? <uh, I kill me>

Sounds like a great trip, Dale. Glad you made it back safe and sound.