The weather was clear but cool when more than twenty SKABC members began the annual Harrison River paddle on 17 October 2026.
The Harrison River paddle is a one-way 9-nm journey, starting from the boat launch in Harrison and ending at the Kilby Park boat launch. Paddlers coordinate at the start to bring most of the cars over to Kilby Park so they’re there when we finish.
Harrison Lake is a natural lake, part of a series of large glacial valleys that feed into the Fraser River. It was named after Benjamin Harrison, a deputy governor of the Hudson Bay Company. Harrison Lake was part of the Lillooet Trail, an important transportation route from the Interior to the BC Coast during the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858-60.
When we first set out from the Harrison River boat launch, we had to paddle a bit northwest with a not insignificant wind coming from the north, making for a slightly intense start to the paddle (especially for people like me, who didn’t have a rudder or a functional skeg!), but once we’d left the Harrison Lake and entered the main channel of the Harrison River heading southwest, we were more protected from the wind.
We had a big enough group that we needed to split into two groups, one led by Kapila Jayaweera and the other led by Limor Friedman, although we were mostly always within view of each other.
When we stopped for lunch, we debated whether the large tracks we saw were moose or cows, while several people practiced their rolling or went to look at known pictrographs on the rocks.
The tide was low during our paddle, making for some shallow water and the threat of running aground and needing to either get out of your boat or use your hands or paddle to push yourself up enough to drift off the sand bar. It was a good time to practice reading the water to try to avoid the shallows.
The highlights of the Harrison River paddle are spawning salmon and birds (especially Bald Eagles and Heron!) feeding on the salmon. We definitely saw spawning salmon! In the first half of our paddle there were quite a few salmon trying to swim upriver. By the time we were reaching the end of the paddle, the river had a significant number of dead and dying salmon who had achieved their spawning goals. On the banks were hundreds of seagulls waiting to feast on them. There were also a few bald eagles this year (last year we saw tons when we went down a much more shallow side channel) and at least one very majestic Heron.
Overall, a lovely paddle and a fun time afterwards at the Sasquatch Inn!
