It’s always interesting to paddle a chain of lakes and one such chain exists above Lake Country BC. It is possible to paddle from Dee Lake to Island Lake to Deer Lake to Crooked Lake to Beaver (Swalwell) Lake in a day of paddling but there are so many options for rugged lakeside camping that it’s worth making it a 2 day trip.
We chose to start at Dee Lake Rec site which involves carrying gear 300m from parking to lakeside. From here it is a straightforward paddle until the dam between Crooked and Beaver lakes. It is a short and manageable portage. We camped on an island in Deer lake but there are dozens of potential camping spots (see map below). While it is possible to park vehicles at both ends, we decided to stash bikes at one side and it ended up only taking 40 mins to bike around the lakes along the forestry road.
