One fine sunny winter day before the pending chaotic holiday season in December, we took a walk that became more like a climb to see the sights from Mt. Dufferin. We've had an unusually warm winter, unlike
last year, but this day was a special treat with the sunshine and the temperature made perfect climbing weather.
There is a road carved out of the hill for maintenance work at the water tower, so it really is not too difficult a climb, we only had to stop a few times to catch our breath....(: maybe it was the altitude. There is also a more difficult route, which I wouldn't attempt, that Keith had taken with our 8 year old grandson the week before and when they'd reached the top, our grandson said "this is the most beautiful view I've ever seen!" I was definitely interested in seeing what my wise young grandson had seen.
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| Panoramic view from Mt. Dufferin, Kamloops, BC |
Facing north from Mt. Dufferin in Kamloops, BC
We were facing north and we could see the
North Thompson River meandering through the Westsyde area and looking beyond that we are able to see the Trophy Mountain range on a good day. We can also see Batchelor Heights on the hillside to the left, going up towards Lac du Bois and behind that is Mt. Wheeler.
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| View of Dome Hills, Kamloops, BC |
We are still facing north and looking at the Dome Hills. We pass these hills as we travel up the Yellowhead Highway past Rayleigh, where Strawberry Hill sits and then onto Heffley Creek. North Kamloops sits on the river in the center of our photo and we can see the Halston Bridge crossing the North Thompson. Opposite the north shore is the Kamloops Indian Reserve and the CN Railway.
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| Meeting of the North and South Thompson Rivers in Kamloops |
Mt. Paul and Mt. Peter are usually the stars of the Kamloops horizon but they do have several co-stars. When we are looking from this viewpoint it is hard to choose any favorite, especially difficult to see Mt. Paul's profile from this point. Mt. Harper can be seen in the distance between Mt. Paul and the Dome Hills. The North Thompson River meets the South Thompson just below Mt. Paul from this vantage point and shows the sandbars that are not visible during the summer.
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| Eastern view from Mt.Dufferin in Kamloops, BC |
Directly below our viewpoint is Dufferin as we face east towards Valleyview and Dallas. The Trans Canada Highway, following along the
South Thompson River, will take you to the Shuswap Lakes if you follow it for about 50 km (30 mi). We enjoyed some
beautiful bald headed eagles on a recent visit there.
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| The Hoodoos of Kamloops, BC |
The hoodoos in the Juniper area are a great sight and it
offers a better view of them from the hills above, but we are also able to enjoy
a great view of the hills beyond that, including Mt. Lolo from this vantage point There are great
bike trails in this area, which would also be a fun way to enjoy the scenery.
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| Rose Hill overlooking Kamloops, BC |
Rose Hill offers a view overlooking the city and Rose Hill Rd makes a loop from Rose Hill coming out to meet Highway 5A in Knutsford. There are some great views from up on that road and you just may see some cattle on your drive, it has some beautiful ranch country up there. We would normally expect to see snow on these hills at this time of year but hopefully it will happen for the sake of these ranches and their livestock.
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Knutsford overlooks Sahali in Kamloops, BC
Knutsford can be seen as we drive up Highway 5A towards Merritt, BC. This view shows us some of Aberdeen Hills and South Sahali residential areas. There Knutsford can be seen along Highway 5A as we leave Kamloops heading south towards have been some light snowfalls but not enough that stayed so we are enjoying this beautiful weather as long as we can, winter is apt to happen sometime soon.
To get to this location follow Hillside Drive up to Dufferin Elementary and turn right at Copperhead Drive then follow that to the end of the street where the houses end and there is easy parking on the cul de sac. If you go through the gate and turn right then follow that road to the top, you will see this "most beautiful view".
From this same parking place for our walk, as in several other parts of Kamloops, there are several bike trails that will take you to some great scenic locations. Kamloops has much to offer in biking and hiking areas but I will leave that to others to enjoy.
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