Up Widgeon Creek with a paddle

We promised that our new blog series would fill you in on events around the office, as well as giving you advice and strategies to help you manage your property better. What better event to start our new series with, than our first team getaway this spring – an easy day of canoeing and hiking at Widgeon Creek in Pinecone Burke Provincial Park.

You would think that with the amount of time we spend together in the office, we would have had enough of each other by the end of the week, but our team likes to go on adventures together, and we go hiking, canoeing and snowshoeing throughout the year.

For this trip, we planned to paddle up Widgeon Creek and then hike to Widgeon Falls for lunch. The weatherman promised rain, but luck was with us – lacklustre sunshine, but no rain. And this year, that’s saying something!

We started at the Grant Narrows boat launch at the south end of Pitt Lake in Pitt Meadows, where we rented canoes. From there, we paddled across the Pitt River to Widgeon Creek – a wide slough lined with grassy banks, old logs and overhanging trees.

At the beginning of May, it’s a peaceful paddle with lots of bird life: eagles, herons and other waterfowl – in fact, we had the place to ourselves for the morning. The most surprising sight of the trip was a young bear at the water’s edge. We were able to sneak up in our canoes and watch it until it scampered off.

Later in the year I doubt that sighting would have been possible. The slough is off-limits to anything with a motor, but when the sun comes out, the paddle and hike to the waterfalls is a popular destination and the slough gets busy.

The other upside of canoeing at this time of year is that Pitt Lake is tidal, so in late summer when water levels are lower, you can ground your canoe on gravel beds and sandbars in the slough. In early May, it isn’t an issue.

After about two hours of paddling in less-than-straight lines against a stronger-than-normal current (due to high waters), we arrived at the Widgeon Creek campground. We left our canoes on shore and started hiking up an old logging road to the waterfalls. The hike isn’t too hard – if you have a light daypack and a medium level of fitness you can reach the falls in about 45 minutes.

When we got to the falls, we were amazed at how much water was flowing over them compared to previous years. We relaxed on the rocks and ate our lunches while admiring the sheer power of it all.

Too soon, it was time to pack up and retrace our footsteps home. By the end of the day, we were tired, but happy. Spending time in the great outdoors is one of my passions, and being able to do it with a great team makes it that much better!