Banff Trip: Paddling Two Jack Lake

Some folks warn against meeting people that you only know online. But those folks probably weren’t meeting up for a Church of the Double Bladed Paddle (COTDBP) Jamboree. Before we arrived in Banff, only one of us had met one person from the group IRL. Our experience meeting up with folks we met on the internet was phenomenal.

First on the schedule: paddling Two Jack Lake. Of the lakes we paddled, this was the shortest drive from Banff’s hotels and campgrounds where the out-of-towners were staying. Since most of us arrived Thursday afternoon or evening, it was a great idea to keep the morning drive short. For us, it was ten minutes from campsite to lake… 8 minutes of that was inside the campground. Even though it was a short drive, there was still a bit of a traffic jam due to some elk who casually crossed the road and were in no hurry.

Unfortunately, we didn’t fully understand the itinerary, so we didn’t reserve our main campsite for quite enough days. That left us with an early morning so we could strike camp and pack the car before heading to Two Jack Lake that morning.

Arriving at Two Jack Lake

The local expert of the trip encouraged us to get to our launch sites relatively early. Relatively early for folks on vacation, that is. There weren’t too many super early mornings on the trip, but arriving by eight or nine made for a much emptier parking lot than we would have seen by ten. We arrived early to get the kayaks unloaded. We knew we would need to unload at least three of them because one of the paddlers had arranged to borrow a kayak for this trip. The other three were available to anyone at the Jamboree to borrow and we did loan out all of them over the course of the long weekend.

Once everyone completed our self-certification forms and got our gear in order, we headed out. We first headed toward the dam that separates Lake Minnewanka from Two Jack Lake. Paddling that direction was lovely, but nothing compared with the view when we turned around and headed toward the canal.

Rocky Mountain Paddling

Having grown up in Western Washington mountains are nothing new. There is a 14,411 foot mountain whose summit is about 40 miles from my front door. We can frequently see it from the water. When we circumnavigate Fox Island, we see views of both the Olympics and Mount Rainier.

But the mountains around Banff are different. For one thing, instead of volcanic mountain ranges, these are fold mountains. They have a completely different look than what I am used to and they are stunningly beautiful. For another, you’re paddling inside the mountain range. Instead of 40 miles away, Mount Rundle is around seven miles away. It’s simply stunning to paddle a glassy-smooth lake in the midst of the Rocky Mountains.

Beyond the Scenery

And the views weren’t the only thing that made it a wonderful outing. It was really fabulous to chat with fellow paddlers and start getting to know the folks that had made the trek. We made our way into the canal at the southern end of the lake and limbo-ed under the wildlife overpass before turning around to head back to shore.

This was the day that we discovered we were in the company of an entomologist and also of someone who got to name the dinosaur specimen she discovered. We highly recommend paddling with scientists. They tend to have interesting insights and great stories.

On the return trip, two of the more experienced kayakers challenged the only pre-teen in the group for a race to the beach. These two paddlers were stronger, faster, and more experienced. But they also like a good chat. And they got caught up in conversation and forgot they were racing. You’ve heard the story of the tortoise and the hare, right? Sometimes the hare doesn’t have to be lazy; just easily distracted from the race.

Story Time

The camaraderie didn’t end with the paddle that day. After we all took our kayaks through the boat wash station, we headed to set up our new campsite. That evening, we met up with the group for a potluck and storytelling. We learned more about the folks who had decided to make the trip to Banff from as far away as Georgia. Listened to adventure stories from one person who has paddled the length of the Mississippi and another who raced a tornado to shore. We heard about the founding of the Church of the Double Bladed Paddle and how it got its name, and we talked about our paddling adventures and how we came to own North Coast Kayaks. Good food with new friends after a beautiful paddle: the perfect end to a great day.