The Vernon Lake Campground is among the best places to camp on the North Island. The views from the beach are incredible, to say the least. The lake itself is so damn pretty, it looks like a painting. It can be quite busy during the summer months. I find the best time to visit is during the winter months. With no other people, along with the snow-covered mountains above the mist-shrouded lake below, it’s awe-inspiring.
Vernon Lake is in the Namgis territory. Please show respect to all aspects of the land. Recently, the Namgis First Nation has partnered with the BC Government to jointly create a land use plan. It is known as the Gwa’ni Project. They are developing a strategy to protect rivers, lakes, watersheds and forests, along with archeology sites. In addition to these protections, they are also protecting areas that are of particular importance to a variety of animal uses. Along with a more sustainable forest harvesting plan.
I was hiking recently in the Mvivor River Watershed, where there is a very large protected area that includes most of the west end of the lake. This is a marble murrelet nesting site. Both the rivers that flow in here are very sensitive habitats filled with giant trees. The Sebahal and McIvor rivers are beautiful, and the wildlife is incredible. Not only are there many big bears here, but it’s well-used by elk as well. I saw lots of small toads, a few other frogs and many kinds of birds.
There is a sad story from 1939 about this lake. Two trappers, James H. Ryckman and Lloyd Coombs, had travelled by chartered plane to trap for the summer months with plans to hike out in the fall. When they headed out, they found that the fall’s rains had made the rivers uncrossable. They were forced to stay at the cabin with hopes of hunting enough food to make it through the winter. They were not successful in this, and Ryckman passed on in March. Coombs put a gun to his head and took his own life soon after. We know this because they kept a diary right up till the end.
This is a wonderful lake to canoe or kayak in, I prefer these modes of water transportation as it lets you glide along without the noise of motors. The west end has an incredible estuary with a big sandbar that juts out into the lake. The flats of this watershed are wondrous to see with the Sebahal River flowing past the big trees that dot the grassy bogs at the lakeshore. Put in at the Vernon Lake Campground and go on an adventure of exploration.