Nemo Loop

[mbiraman]

This is probably the last of the Slocan Lake summer stuff i'll be sending in. This was the last trip i took. We had been getting weeks of rain and all of a sudden we had this one day of sun in the forecast so i got ready and headed out first thing in the morning. It was cold but they were forecasting a high of 74 or something. I drove north to the Village of Silverton as i had an inkling of what i might do . I got there and the lake was calm and i new then i was going to do a crossing and maybe head to Nemo Cr.. I tried to get a better pic of Nemo basin on my way to Kootenay Lake ( That's another story) but the fog obscured the whole west side so this is the only shot i have . You can see the obvious basin in the mnts, that's Nemo basin in the Valhalla's. The creek is running to the far left of the old homestead. You can just barely see the line through the trees.


I paddled across the lake which is a couple of miles and got to Sandpoint beach where i had a tea and apple break and walked the beach a bit. This is a pic of that beach from another trip.


I then started heading south and at the same time thinking about the rest of the day as it was early and calm now but a storm coming tonight. I got about half way to Nemo and new i was going to do a loop of Silverton across the lake, down to Nemo Creek , cross back over the lake from Nemo to Bannock Point and then north back the Silverton. This was sort of a get back on the horse situation as the last time i did a crossing at Nemo i got caught in 2' quartering wind waves and a current , got dizzy and was out of my comfort zone. Since then i've been in more rough water so have more experience with it but i felt a bit nervous. This is a pic as I'm approaching Nemo creek and the beach there.


When i got there i was the only paddler there. There was a small powerboat there belonging to the forest service, they probably are doing a check on the cabin up at the far end of the basin about 4 miles up in the basin. Here's another shot from above the beach on the trail. You can barely see my kayak bihind the forestry boat. Its a beautiful beach here and the mnts in the background is Kokanee Glacier Park


The trail is a 4 hr hike and i really hadn't planned on it and didn't have the time to do it now and didn't have the hiking shoes either but there is a shorter loop that takes you to the falls so i put on my crocks and started walkin. The Nemo basin is Grizzly country and hikers are warned of the potential hazard but the population of grizzly isn't so large that they have closed the trail down. I didn't see any signs of bear activity on the loop. This next pic i took only because i new someone here would appreciate it. Hawkeye loves Hemlocks.This is a little grove of young one's.


Further along the trail as i'm entering the canyon everything is covered in moss and there's allot of moisture in the air. What's unique about this moss is its from 6"-12" thick. Walking on it is like walking on a bed.I only walked on it for a moment.


I start to see what i'm looking for. This place was enchanting and hard to capture with photography.


The Nemo Falls proper.


and again


I'll tell you the Nemo Creek Canyon and falls is a magical place , one of the highlights of the summer. I will definitely go there again next yr god willing.
I went back to the beach where i left all my stuff and had lunch and tea, played some music on my Mbira and then after a little more walking around i started to pack up for the next crossing over to Bannock Point. I guess because of all the bad weather nobody thought about getting out for the day as i didn't see one other paddler the whole day and only a few boats.
I took a pic looking south from out in the lake a bit in front of the Nemo Creek site.


As you can see its glass like conditions and so the "back on the horse " was effortless. I got to Bannock and again the sun was shining and warm, i had another tea break and walk on a trail there , sat on the cliffs and watched all these fish jumping, lots. What a day. Sort of glad to be alive feelings.


Finally it was starting to get late and although i could have just laid there for another hr i new i had to get moving or i'd be paddling in the dark.This is the last shot of the day heading back to launch. You can see by the sun on the bow that its the end of the day, another really great day paddling, hiking trails, seeing great water falls and even challenging myself a bit.


It was another good trip. After that it was back to bad weather again and then all of a sudden we got a couple of days of unseasonably warm weather so i decided to go to Kootenay Lake , but that's another story, (-;