!!!!UPDATE, Thursday Feb 6:

I was up scouting the trails today and found out the lodge etc will be closed Saturday evening.  This means:

– bathroom building, rentals, and lodge will be closed, but porta-potties will still be open.

– Lights around the lake will still be on.

– Snowshoeing will not require a pass.

– The trails are incredibly gorgeous – I can’t wait to see them at night!

So – we will still meet at 6.  After the snowshoe, there will be Tailgate Tea and Cafe Mocha in the parking lot.  Bring a chair if you like – I will be!  Weather permitting, our Astronomer will set up a telescope for viewing, this in addition to giving an astronomy presentation at the lookout near the Basalt Bluffs.  If weather is cloudy, we will still snowshoe and have tailgate tea etc.

If you need to rent snowshoes, you will need to get them elsewhere – rentals will NOT be open Saturday evening at the lake.  Runner’s Sole has rentals.

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions not covered here.

See you on Saturday!😃

A night-snowshoe up to a viewpoint at Stake Lake, on the night of the Full Moon with an Astronomy presentation by C. Taylor, TRU Astronomy / President of the Kamloops Astronomical Society.   Weather-permitting, the moonlight could be awesome and allow for some fantastic night photography, especially at the lookout point!  Afterwards, we will gather around in the Stake Lake “Night” Lodge for warming and hot drinks (BYO – HD – bring your own hot drink, pls remember – no alcohol on Club outings).

We will meet at Stake Lake at 6:00 pm on Saturday, February 8.  Moonrise that day is at 4:23 pm, so it will have a chance to come up a bit by 6pm.  Starting on the Lake snowshoe trail, we will connect to Marsh trail, then Basalt Bluffs trail, and finally Bushwhacker to the Viewpoint.  Out and back.  There are some steep sections (see topo map below), and given we will be moving in the dark, the pace will be careful, slow and steady.  The estimated return time is only an estimate, so allow for extra time.  Hard to predict how long we will take, as night time hiking/snowshoeing is verrrrry different from daytime, how many questions will present during the Astronomy presentation, and how long we will gather at the Lodge afterwards.  Total estimated distance, round trip, is approximately 5km.

**You will want an exceptionally strong headlamp for excellent night-time visibility; bring a hot drink/snack and as always, the 10 Essentials.  Bring extra layers in case of wind.  I encourage the use of poles, as extra balance in the dark is always a good thing.

Even if it is cloudy, we will still go ahead with the snowshoe, and reschedule the Astronomy Presentation.

(Awww, darn, we gotta do another snowshoe??  lol!)

Trail tickets are $5.00 for day snowshoeing, night rates are not posted.  I will update this once I reach someone out there.  (Message left)

Snowshoe rentals are available at the Stake Lake Day Lodge for $10.00, and must be returned at least 30 mins prior to trail closing at 9:00pm.  This should not present a problem as we will be sure to be back at the lodge by 8:30 latest, to warm up and have a hot drink.

Additionally, rentals are available at Runner’s Sole in Kamloops, $10 to $15, depending on return time.  They said we could get the 10$ rental rate if rentals are picked up mid-afternoon or later on the Saturday of the event, and returned them by 10/10:30 the next morning (Sunday).  The store opens at 10am on Sundays.