Kluskoil Lake Trip

July 31 - August 2

Photos by Stan Hembrough and Andrew Walters

We all met up at the Bon Voyage gas station just east of Prince George. The group was mostly Fords for once, but all trucks would be capable. The line up was like this:

Mike and Levi in Leonard. An 85 Chev with 35" BFG's, a Detroit in the rear 10 bolt, and an ARB in the front.

Grant and Colleen in their 82 Chevota. A 350 powering a turbo 350 / NP205 and stock axles running on 35" mud kings.

John and Nicole in a 96 Ford shortbox. A 300 6 cylinder pushing stock lifted drivetrain and 35" assorted mud tires.

Grant and Steve in a 97 Ford extended cab stepside. A 302 and stock lifted running gear with a limited slip rear end pushing 32" mud tires ( He was wishing he had already got the 36" swampers ).

Jeff and Lianne in a 79 Chevy. Drivetrain unknown with 35" mud tires.

Stan ( all the way from Vancouver ) and myself ( The great Swamp Donkey from Mackenzie ) in Stan's 96 Ford short box. 300 6 cyl with stock drivetrain and limited slips at both ends pushing 33" mud tires.

We were also going to be meeting up with Andrew and Roxene Walter's and kids from down in Vancouver once we got out to Titetown. They have a YJ that is lifted, locked in the rear, and running on 33" swampers.

The gang meets up at a gas station in Prince George.

We headed out from our meeting spot and got about 10 km before stopping. Every truck in the line was commenting on the smoke coming from Grant's Toy so we pulled over and checked things out. We believed the problem was the oil leaking out of the valve covers. Grant mentioned that he may not have tightened them up very well. The smoke was also pouring into the cab through the holes in the floor for his shifters but a jacket wrapped around the console seemed to fix that problem. We pushed on and the smoke slowed, Grant figured it wouldn't be a problem. We pulled onto gravel and prepared for about 100 km's of dust before we hit Titetown.

Not too far down the road we began to spread out to avoid each other's dust cloud. Mike said he would stop about every 15 minutes so we could all get together again. Not everyone had a CB so it was our way of keeping track of everyone. At our first stop Grant was already down a litre of oil but everyone else was doing fine.

We kept going and Mike was calling out some directions to Stan and I, "go right after the bridge." We went over the bridge and took a hard right, and followed a trail for about a quarter mile before it dead ended. Jeff had followed us but everyone else kept going. We turned around and got back on the main road and saw the fork we were supposed to turn at just ahead. Once we caught the pack again and explained how everyone had passed us without noticing, we continued on.

We finally reached the turn-off to Titetown. Jeff was ahead of everyone else and knew where he was going so he hadn't stopped with the rest of us. We aired down the tires and locked the hubs. The bugs were pretty bad so we didn't stay long. The sign told us that the Walters had gone on to Kluskoil so we would meet them there. It was about 8:30p and we decided to push on to Kluskoil that night.

Titetown was a small city of campers with every available site occupied. It was just as well that we were continuing on. Jeff was waiting for us at the Titetown crossing. We all traversed the waters while a large gathering of campers looked and cheered. We ran into more people on the other side who were taking horses and wagons into Kluskoil the next day. Then we started down the Alexander Mackenzie trail.

Mike realized right away that the trail was going to be a lot wetter than he had seen before. We didn't know exactly what this meant, but looked forward to whatever it was. Mike would call out on the CB now and then pointing out different things: a mud hole they had played in before was now a lake; a hillclimb we could try on the way out; etc. We wanted to push on as the 18 km's into Kluskoil would take us 3-4 hours.

Stan plays on a rock.

The trail went from a nice country drive to one of the bumpiest trails I have been on. Mike had promised that the trail had lots of rock. I looked forward to some rockcrawling, but soon realized all the rocks were relatively small and would only make for a really bumpy ride. You had to pick your line constantly to avoid rockrash. The trail wasn't real hard, 2 wheel drive most of the time, but you had to pay attention constantly and it was easier to use 4 lo just so the truck was easier to control.

We were provided with a few creek crossings, a lot of bumpy rocky trail, and a lot of standing water. Not to mention it was dark by the time we got into the harder part. But we all picked our way through the rocks and water and rocks under the water. Mike had to do some trail clearing on the way in as we ventured of the main trail for a bit.

Of course the usual CB banter was always present, picking on those without CB's and those who had CB's that could receive but not transmit. Mike told a twisted version of Hansel and Gretal. Grant told everyone that he had managed to lose his cell phone somewhere. A few times people asked how long the trail was, and Mike always answered 18km's.

We finally made CB contact with the Walters and knew we were getting close. We trudged on. Stan and myself were the last truck in line and we got hung up on a rock, fell behind a bit but just needed to pick a better line and continued on. We all got to the campsite about 11:30p and set up camp in a hurry. Tents and sleeping bags were flying all over. Then we settled in by the fire where Andrew was warming the rocks for the sauna.

We sat around the fire until the rocks were heated and then a few of us hit the sauna. This is a real experience, it was great. Andrew has a great set up. The sauna was amazingly refreshing and after sitting in it for 20 minutes the cold night air wasn't even noticeable. So we sat around the fire a little longer and soon everyone had gone to bed.

Beautiful Kluskoil Lake.

The morning brought another beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. The campsite, which we couldn't see the night before, was great. We were in a nice field beside the lake.. Nearby were some cabins that outfitters used. A short walk took you to the falls coming out of the lake. Everyone made their way out of bed and some started breaky, others went fishing. We finally got ready about 11:00a to venture on up the trail. Jeff, Lianne, John, and Nicole opted to stay behind at camp and spend the day fishing. The rest of us headed out.

The trail was much the same as it was the night before, bumpy and slow. Mike found a big rock on the side of the trail and we all took turns climbing it. An impromptu ramp test. All the trucks got part way up and it was interesting to see how some full-size trucks could flex. Not too far down the trail we decided to try a side trail, it had a few short hills and some neat stuff. It dead ended so we turned around and got back to the main trail. We took another side trail and ended up at another really nice camping spot on the Blackwater river. Grant got out his rod and caught a rainbow right away. Steve decided to walk across the river and slipped on the rocks in the middle. Good thing his beer was already empty cause he filled it with water. We hung out for a bit then got back to the main trail and kept going. Our goal for the day was to cross the Blackwater river at the Pan crossing, maybe make it up to the ranch.

Mike started whining that he wanted some action and moments later he found a hill with tracks going up. So Mike headed up too. Then Stan and then Jerad. It was a good little hill.

We made it to the Pan crossing and took a look. It didn't look too bad but it was hard to tell how deep it was out in the middle. Stan would be first up, so we hopped in and headed out into the unknown. We could start to feel the current pushing the truck around but it was barely to the top of the 33's. We reached the other side and the rest started across. One by one each truck crossed the river without problem.

Stan gets his Ford wet.

The Walters.

Mike & Levi.

Once on the other side we decided that was enough for the day. It would be getting late by the time we made it back to camp and we now knew we could cross the river. We were planning a future trip to traverse the entire Alexander Mackenzie trail and we needed to know if it was passable. We wanted to make it to the ranch and talk to them about the rest of the trail, but that just wasn't going to happen. So we headed up the trail a bit to a field to turn around.

At the field Mike noticed an old cabin. It was in great shape, still had glass in the windows. Inside we found a collection of old tin coke and beer cans. Not aluminum, but tin cans. They were unwrapped and stuck to the wall. It was obvious that no one had crossed the river and headed up the trail on that side in some time. The trail goes up both sides of the river so everyone had stayed on the other side.

We started back across the river and as Grant was crossing his back license plate detached itself from the bumper and went under. We were next in line and saw it happen. Stan got on the CB and told Grant that his license plate just fell off. Grant answered back," If you're kidding, that's very funny. If you're not, that really sucks!" Then when Jerad and Steve were crossing they found the plate. It had been driven over at least once. Incredible, and Grant told us then that he had found the cell phone too. Grant had lady luck riding shotgun on this trip. So back to the trail again, down that bumpy excuse for a road for another 18 km's.

We stopped to get some firewood in an area that had a lot of downed trees. Most of the trucks had started down the trail again when an old Land Rover came up behind us. He was a ranch hand and was just going down the trail to pick up his boss who had floated down the river. We questioned him about the trail. he didn't know too much about anything but said that his boss would know. So he told us where he was meeting his boss and we waited. The boss, Abe, finally arrived and we started to interrogate him. He told us that the rest of the trail was not wide enough for the trucks, that it was a horse trail. But as we talked to him I think he started to come around. We left with the impression that it needed it be checked out further.

We bounced through the rocks for about two hours and finally made it close to camp. Grant was out in front a bit and called back to us that there was a bunch of horses, wagons and quads in camp. When we got there, we saw 8 horses wandering around.

We all settled in to making dinner and swapping the days stories with those who stayed back at camp. The fishing had been excellent, somewhere around 50 fish had been caught. Mostly rainbows but a few squawfish as well. After dinner the main attraction was feeding the horses hay and carrots. The horses were all wearing leg irons, their front feet chained together so they could barely walk, some so tight they could only hop. The horses had a tendency to go home so instead of tying the horses they did this so the horses could still graze.

Some of us were sitting around the fire swapping lies when Andrew's spare tire/gerry can mount broke and fell of the back of the Jeep. The weld holding it on had fatigued. Andrew said he thought it might as it was bouncing an awful lot all day. So what to do about that? Fix it of course. Someone jokingly mentioned we could weld it back on with batteries and jumper cables. Andrew said that was a good idea. He grabbed some welding rod and away he went. We assembled 3 batteries, the negative cables were pulled off the batteries still in trucks, and the batteries were hooked together with jumper cables. Then Andrew managed to stack 3 sets of sunglasses on his face, and started to weld. Everyone was gathered around. None of us had ever seen this done before, although we had all read about it in one magazine or another. Andrew continued welding and someone noticed smoke coming from the front of his truck. A fusible link was the culprit. So the positive cables were removed from the batteries too. Safety first ya know. Jeff tried welding a bit but his face just didn't support all those glasses as well as Andrew's. The job was completed and everyone happy with the new experience. Well, almost happy. We were all trying to think of other things to weld up, this was just too cool. Andrew reassembled his rack. It wasn't straight but with a little persuasion it went back into place.

While all that was going on, Grant started a little inspection on the underside of his truck. He said the drivetrain had been making some noises on the trail. Let's see: the rear driveshaft in combination with the transfercase was amazingly sloppy; the chain had a lot of play; and I think at least one bearing was gone; the splines on his front driveshaft are just about gone causing a lot of play there; the front diff has way to much backlash; and a check of the fluid in the transfer case showed it was low. So you add all this up with the motor leaking oil all over and the rough shape of the body and I'm not sure why this truck is still driving.

Our campsite at Kluskoil.

Making friends with a shackled horse.

A beautiful sunset over Kluskoil.

We all settled in around the fire and started warming the sauna rocks. The bells that the horses were wearing got closer and closer to our end of the camp. It was now dark and we didn't want the horses eating any tents or anything, so a small group chased the horses back to the other end of camp. Of course the horses were not that interested in leaving as they enjoyed all the attention and food earlier. But after they got chased away, once into the quaders camp, and then to where they belonged, they seemed to stay away. Then it was more stories around the campfire and once again some of us headed for the sauna. Once again it was exhilarating. Steve just couldn't get enough, he wanted more and more steam. He was sitting right next to the rocks and each time Andrew poured water over them, Steve was getting splashed with the very, very hot water but he still wanted more. When the rocks cooled he still wasn't satisfied, but that was it. We went back out to the fire.

Andrew and Nicole opted to jump in the lake. He told us that it was great but could only convince Nicole to go with him. So off they went to the dock. Andrew jumped in and the water came up to about his shoulders. Then Nicole jumped in and found out that Andrew wasn't standing up, the water was only three feet deep, but they both said it was great.

Meanwhile back at the campfire, we all learned that Jerad is allergic to horses. His eyes were almost swollen shut. He looked really funny. He actually looked Hawaiian. But he was the one feeding the horses all the hay, so we just laughed at him and sent him to bed. The rest of the crowd slowly dwindled until everyone had gone to bed.

The morning brought yet anther great day. Everyone got up and started breaking camp and making breakfast. A few tried fishing again by about 11:00a we were all ready to hit the trail home. Andrew had to walk their dog past the horses as we left so that he wouldn't chase them. Then once he got back in the jeep Roxene wouldn't let him in the driver's seat. He pleaded for help over the CB, but we decided that since she had also made him breakfast, although it was only cereal, that he could do nothing and would have to wait for a chance to steal the seat back.

The trail seemed a lot bumpier now that we could see what we were driving over but the drive seemed quicker. Soon we were at the hill climb and a few tried it. Then we were off again. We re-assembled at the Titetown crossing and said our farewells to the Walters. They were going on to Yank's Peak and Mike gave them directions. One by one each truck headed down the road, spacing ourselves out so as not to eat t0o much dust. Stan also headed out to Quesnel so I hopped in with Mike and Levi for the trip back to Prince George.

All in all it was a great trip. The 4 wheeling wasn't the hardest around, but it was a great trail with some nice scenery and meeting both Stan and the Walters was great. I look forward to the next time I can go wheeling with any of them.

- Brad Paulin