Tag 10: Strathcona PP - Myra Falls & an eerie encounter

22.7.24

We are sleeping in today. We only sit down for breakfast around 9, and after that, we take a walk on the Three Pond Loop Trail, which starts a few sites down from the campground. However, we can skip the trail. It only goes through the woods and all the ponds are dried up.

The clouds are slowly clearing, and the sun comes out.

Next, we head to the 'Beach Access Trail'. We are curious what they mean by 'Beach' here. The Miracle Beach was, in my opinion, far from a beach.

We walk through the woods again, then there’s a dusty path leading down to the lake. Here there are several small bays with turquoise water. One even has a small sandy beach. If I had my swimsuit on, I would jump in right now. In the sun, it feels about 10 degrees warmer. Really crazy. I haven’t worn my jacket since the Loop Trail and I’m glad I’m wearing shorts. Sweating... I really don’t know how my husband and son can stand it in long jeans.

We walk along the lake and see a snake in the underbrush. However, there are surprisingly few animals around here. Almost no birds, and we haven’t seen any squirrels at all. Odd.

We walk along the peninsula and then head back to the camper and drive off.

Our destination for this afternoon is the Lower Myra Falls with an optional swimming stop.

The first stop is the Lupin Falls with the associated loop trail. Just under 1 km, it's a nice trail through the woods leading to the waterfall. The short stop here is definitely worth it.

Next, we head to the Lower Myra Falls. We pass the Ralph River Campground, which I originally wanted to book, and I’m really glad I chose the Buttle Lake Campground instead. The option to swim in the lake is very enticing, and I wouldn’t want to miss yesterday's swim in the lake.

The parking lot along with the access road to the Myra Falls is NOT RV suitable!! We park out front on the street and walk the access to the parking lot. Good thing we did that, because the parking lot at the end of the gravel road is very small and packed to the brim.

At the end of the parking lot, a fairly steep trail begins leading to the Lower Myra Falls. First, you reach a lookout, then continue down to the rocky plateau from where you can swim in the large pool below the falls or climb along the falls. Very cool here!

The trek down here is definitely worth it. We have our swimsuits with us, but when I dip my feet in the water, I know for sure that I’m not going swimming. Way too cold! I’m really not a wimp, but my feet are really hurting from the cold as I pull them out of the water after 10 seconds. Crazy!

That’s a maximum of 10 degrees. Really freezing cold! It makes me admire the Canadians even more, who lie in the water as if it were a hot tub at +30 degrees. Unbelievable. A man even jumps off the rock over the waterfall 😱😵‍💫

I manage to get my calves into the water, while my son stays with his feet, and my husband ventures briefly for a full-body cool-off under one of the smaller waterfalls next to the large fall. Refreshing 😜

We spend a good hour on the rocks in front of the waterfall, enjoying the view and the great warm weather, then my son announces he’s hungry, and we make the steep ascent back to the camper.

My husband wants to go to the Upper Myra Falls, but I hadn’t considered them in my planning and now have no information about length, duration, and elevation gain.

We drive the road towards Upper Falls and Tennent Lake, passing the Myra Falls Mine, an active ore mine.

It feels a bit strange to suddenly be driving through this 'construction zone' and then standing in front of the Provincial Park sign again shortly after.

We eat lunch in the camper, then we start on the trail. First, we go on a construction road for 1 km until we reach the trailhead.

The trail is pure adventure. A path through the woods, over tree trunks, roots, steep up and down, across bridges, etc.

We walk for an hour and according to GPS, we’re still a long way from the falls. Roughly estimated at about 3 km in one direction according to the map. Uff.

When we’re finally getting closer to the falls according to GPS, my men abruptly stop. They heard something. We go silent and listen.

Then again: a rumbling, roaring, growling - I can’t describe it, but it’s definitely an animal and it doesn’t mean well.

I stand in shock, my husband has his finger on the bear spray. We listen. There’s snapping in the underbrush in front of us, and we hear the growl/grumbling again. Closer than before, sounds like a threat.

With adrenaline in our blood, we turn on our heels and head back. Damn, what is that? Bear? Cougar?

I remember reading that two weeks ago, two women with dogs had been attacked by a cougar, and thanks to bear spray nothing happened. We don’t want to test it...

I had no idea that my tired feet could run so fast. Sweating profusely, we reach the first bridge after about 20 minutes and take a breather. Phew... did we shake the beast? What was it? Is it still there? Has it followed us?

We don’t know, but our mood for hiking has diminished, especially since we are completely alone on the trail.

Just as we are about to leave the bridge, a family with two teenage girls approaches us. They ask how long the path to the waterfall takes. When we tell them that we turned around because we may have disturbed a bear or cougar, the father of the family seems more amused by it. He raises his small wooden stick and says he has a 'stick', but they are still willing to take the risk. The mother is not so enthusiastic but says to the girls only 'Girls, maybe we will see a big cat' and they move on. We are momentarily shocked.

Hello??? There was definitely an animal! And it was not a bunny or lap dog! We heard it, the growl went right through us, and I was truly glad to have bought bear spray.

My husband is preoccupied with the other father’s reaction for a while because he can’t fathom risking a dangerous encounter with a cougar for waterfalls.

Shortly after, we encounter another family, a couple with a small son, also Canadians. They too ask about the way, as apparently, everyone thinks the trail is only 1 km long. We clarify that the trail is much longer but that we turned back because we must have startled a cougar or bear.

The father of the family reacts in shock and wants to turn back immediately; this time, the wife is the one downplaying the situation. While they argue, we move on, only hearing him say

'It's a fucking cougar!! Oh dear, come on.... Ok boy, stay in the middle!'

They too continue on their way. Okay, they have to know for themselves. Honestly, we’re scared out of our minds, and I still have the terrifying growl in my ears.

After 2 hours, the adventure trip ends, and we leave the parking lot. As we drive off, we see the couple with the small son approaching us. So they did turn back. Hopefully, the other family is okay....

Exhausted - my tracker says 22,000 steps - we drive back to the campground. It’s windy and quite chilly; the sun has disappeared by now, and our camping neighbors all have jackets or sweaters on.

Although it’s cool and we’re completely worn out, I still go for a walk with my husband to the swimming area at the lake, a short walk from our side, and we go swimming. It’s cold, but I need to shed my nervous sweat! 😅🤣

It really takes me some willpower to step into the cold water while shivering, but once you’re in, it’s not that bad.

After a few swimming strokes, we’re back out again. Fascinating, it’s not so cold outside now 😅😜

Refreshed, we enjoy a nightcap, have burgers from the pan, and spend the evening in the warm camper. What an adventure today!!! Hopefully, the coming days will be a bit more relaxed and less nerve-wracking...

For the statistics:

Campground: Buttle Lake Campground / Strathcona PP

17.50 €; Site 14

Traveled: 82 km

Walked: 15 km

Photos: 252

Weather: sunny, up to 26 degrees