Alouette Lake: Canoeing with new friends

On the last weekend in June we ninja camped in Squamish. We had planned on getting in a climb Saturday afternoon, but I had forgotton to pack the rope, so instead we just went for a swim at Murrin park. On Sunday we joined a few of our friends at the Evan's Lake open house. There were canoeing, face painting, field games and a bunch of other activities. I really wanted to try out the stand up paddle boarding. I enjoyed the paddling until I felt a drop of something running down my leg. At first I wondered if I was really sweating that much, but after a few more drops I started to suspect that my water had broken, and decided that I better get to shore. At shore I gathered up the family and we returned to Vancouver, where it was confirmed that it was a false alarm. We were pretty relieved as we did not feel ready for this baby to arrive yet. We spend the rest of the day preparing for the baby's arrival. 

Stand up paddle boarding on Evan's Lake.

A week later on Canada day there were still no baby, so we decided that we could fit in one more camping trip, especially since we now felt that things at home were ready to go. But where do you go on a July long weekend that does not take you more than one hour away from car access and ideally not to far away from your home either. Everything that can be booked will be booked. We decided to give canoeing on Alouette Lake a go. It is only one hour drive from home, they rent canoes, but you can't reserve them ahead of time and it should be possible to find a beach camp pretty close to road access. Despite our late planning we also managed to convince a mom and her daughter from my facebook group, Vancouver Outdoorsy Parents, to join us. 

We met Claudine and her 5 year old daughter for the first time Sunday morning at the lake. I quickly set my camping chair up in the canoe rental line-up, while everyone else got to know each other better on the beach. The two girls quickly became friends. About 10 min after the canoe rental opened we had a 4 person canoe. We managed to fit all our stuff and the 5 of us in there without much trouble - despite the large amount of pillow I had packed. 

We paddled down wind for an hour before pulling over for playtime and lunch at a nice, but already occupied, beach. We ended up staying for 3-4 hours until we decided it was time to find our own beach. We paddled for another hour before we found an unoccupied beach. It was just 10 min past the Gold Creek campsite, so I felt confident that we would make it out should labour start. 

Ready to head off

At camp the girls went exploring along the rocky beach, ate wild raspberries, made a teeter totter from an old log and helped Christian gather firewood for a small fire. In the meantime Claudine and I cooked dinner. 

Evening swim

Enjoying the fire before bed

Time for a swim before heading back home

We got up early Sunday, so we could make it back by 11am to return the canoe. There were a bit of a head wind, but we still made good time.  After a couple of hours on the water we pulled into the day use area, and the girls had on last swim. 

I must admit that I had a few moments before the trip where I was wondering if it really was a good idea to go canoe camping while 37 weeks pregnant. However, I felt that we were never far away from road access or one of the many power boats on the lake, and in the end I was really happy that we went. F had such a good time with her new friend, and knowing that it would be a while before we would be camping as a family again I really enjoyed the trip as well.

Our next adventure will be as a family of four!