Harrison River: Eagles, Seals, and Sturgeon!
When I bought our inflatable canoe a couple of years ago I had visions of us floating down a rushing river. In the meantime, most of our trips have been on lakes, theoretically more mellow, but in reality at least one was scary too. Finally, on this trip, we got a chance to experience some real “moving water”. The trip down the Harrison River is apparently a classic fall trip in the canoe community, due to the many eagles that can be seen at this time of year, and the fall colours – and it sure delivered!
We left home a bit late, and made a quick stop to stash my bike at the take out point where we’d finish the trip. More delays – as we drove back and forth for a while to find free overnight parking in Harrison Hot Springs, had lunch and a swim (it was a hot October), and only got on the water after 2pm. The first section took us along the southern edge of the huge Harrison Lake. Soon we made a left turn, leaving the lake and entering Harrison River.
The first section was slow and quiet. The water was shallow, and we made sure to steer for the darker and hence deeper water. We saw very few people, so there was a real wilderness feel – we were alone. The salmon spawning season was on, and indeed we managed to spot some salmon swimming up the river, against the current, and some dead salmon floating on the shore.
The current in this section was very weak, and we were making slow progress. The fall days are short, so we were a bit concerned that we might not make it to the put out before dark. Our concern grew as our slow progress didn’t improve, and we calculated that if we continued at the same pace we wouldn’t make it before dark. Luckily we had all our camping gear with us, but we weren’t sure we could find a suitable place to camp, and we had a reservation for the very nice Kilby Park Campground where we intended to take out, and spend the night.
We took a short break to stretch out our legs, have a snack, and assess the situation. There was a potentially good camping spot on the other side of the river, but we decided to keep going and see what we’d find. Suddenly, the current started pulling us fast, and seemingly at the same time eagles started appearing all around us – perched on trees, resting on the shore, or flying above us. Then we glimpsed a sturgeon – the giant fish that can grow to a massive 3-4m long. The trip had just got far more exciting, and finally, we were moving! Our spirits were buoyed – at this pace we’d make it to the campground before dark.
The Harrison River flows into the massive Fraser River, which flows into the ocean near Vancouver. It was strange to think that we could keep paddling and end up at home… But on this particular trip we had to make sure not to go too far. We dutifully watched for the Harrison Mills bridge, since we knew that we must keep to the left immediately after passing under it, to end up at the campground.
In this area, we were suddenly surrounded by seals. They seemed to be following us, coming closer, too close even – almost as if they were stalking us. Our friends had once been attacked by a seal, so we kept our eyes on the seals, perhaps ready to defend ourselves. Luckily these seals were peaceful, perhaps just curious to take a look at us.
Finally, we were at the campground, with time to spare before dark. It was cooling down quickly, so we changed out of our damp clothing and got some warm layers on, followed by dinner, and a campfire. We put up our tent hastily, and collapsed into it early, for that peaceful and long sleep that only seems to come to us on trips. Ahhh!
The next morning we enjoyed the wonderful views from our campsite, right on the water, while having breakfast. I rode my bike the 20km or so back to Harrison Hot Springs to pick up our Modo minivan. Along the way I saw flooded fields of cranberries, blood red, a method of harvesting that apparently works because the fruit contains some air and floats. Later it got very windy, and we were happy we had brought our kite along. For lunch we upgraded our bland tortillas and cheese to quesadilla status by heating them on our stove. Then it was time to head home, after a fun and exciting weekend. We vowed to return, but next time we’ll leave earlier so that we can enjoy the paddle more!
