RV camping at the Champion Lakes Provincial Park in the Kootenays, British Columbia, Canada

Our RV visit to the Champion Lakes, near Fruitvale, British Columbia, Canada was on a beautiful sunny day in the Fall when it was practically deserted except for some park workers and canoe paddlers. This provincial park has much to offer and even in summer months with more visitors, I expect it would always offer a very relaxing visit.

A quiet canoe trip

The Champion Lakes is a series of three lakes, which have been stocked with rainbow trout since the 1930’s and makes for great fishing in all of them. Canoes and kayaks are welcome but not power boats.

Calm waters on largest of the Champion lakes

The development is around the third lake with a regular shoreline and deep clear water, great for family swimming and water sports and there is also a playground for the younger RV’ers visiting here. The other two lakes are a more natural state but do have boat launch access.

There are hiking trails that cover 6.5 km (4 mi) in the park and offer hours of exploring and seeing some of the wildlife and birdlife that live in the area. Spring and Fall is the busy season for migrating waterfowl to stop for a rest on the lakes.

The Champion Lakes Provincial Park is 19 km (12 mi) from Fruitvale, BC, Canada between the Columbia River and Beaver Creek in the Bonnington Range of the Selkirk Mountains. It is 10 km off Hwy 3B, north of Salmo, British Columbia.

The park is open with the amenities available June 1 to September 15 with 95 campsites. It is open to the public all year round but there is no snow removal in the wintertime.

Visit the BC parks information page to see all the activities and amenities available at
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/champion_lk/

Yellow Water Lily

The park covers 1,426 hectares and has an unusual diversity of vegetation, which includes a forest of cedar/hemlock to alpine spruce. The water lilies were there but not in bloom. The lakes are 1000 m (1,093.6 yds) above sea level in a moist interior biogeoclimatic zone.

The Yellow Water Lily is an aquatic perennial that grows up to 5 metres (6’3”) on thick stems that support the floating leaves and flowers. They are found in shallow lakes and ponds and are widespread throughout B.C. They were once used for traditional medicinal purposes and the seeds of the Yellow Water Lilies are edible.

This beautiful area is a wonderful place to spend some time relaxing. With all that is in the area, it is a great place to make home base then make day trips to the other incredible places to visit in the Kootenays. There are several spectacular places to visit on day trips from here.

If you love RV'ing like we love it, then plan a trip over to Crawford Bay to see another part of the Kootenay's. http://we-love-rv-ing.blogspot.com/2008/09/rving-in-crawford-bay-bc.html