This 207 km long lake is formed by the Hugh Keenleyside Dam just above Castlegar. It lies between the Monashee Mountains to the west and the Selkirks to the east. The lake level fluctuates 37 feet between low water in April and high water in early July. In 2012 with a huge snowpack and the wettest spring in history, the lake was allowed to go 2’ above high water. Most beaches disappear and thus camping recommendations are limited to the few sites above this level. When water levels drop, many gorgeous sandy beaches appear. The water is quite warm in summer and swimming is good. The lake is divided into Upper and Lower with the Narrows, just south of Nakusp separating them.
UPPER ARROW LAKE. This 85km long section extends in the north from the town of Revelstoke on the Trans Canada highway to McDonald Creek PP. Launch just south of the centre of town. Highway 23 parallels the west shore as far as the Shelter Bay Ferry after which it is on the east side. The highway is not close to the shore and when paddling, one has the feeling of being in wilderness. Upper Arrow Lake is covered by the 1:50,000 maps from north to south L16, K12, K5, and K4. Upper Arrow Lake ends at McDonald Creek PP, 10km south of Nakusp just above the Narrows. I will list potential campsites with the distance from Revelstoke (even though they may not exist at high water but many appear as the water level drops).
Camp. 16km – east. N 50°51.66’ W118°05.60’. It is a nice beach on the north side of a prominent point.
Arrow Head. 41km – east. This is the site of an abandoned community and a trail that parallels the shore on the east side just before the North East Arm. The small community of Beaton is 16km up the arm and offers little of interest.
Shelter Bay PP. 38km. N50°38.20 W117°55.35’. This is the west side of the free ferry and has a boat launch. There is no campsite and usually a lot of people in the summer waiting for the ferry. This 5km long ferry ends at Galena Bay on the east side.
Eagle Bay Rec Site. 45km – west. N50°33.98’ W117°57.05’. This is a nice boat access site with wind protection on either side of the point on the west side.
Halcion Hot Springs. 50km. N50°31.44’ W117°55.35’. This is a resort on the east side with a restaurant, a hot spring and non-primitive camping.
Camp. 58km -west. N50°27.19’ W117°57.67’. This is a good campsite especially if the wind is from the north.
Pingston Creek. 60km – west. N50°26.31’ W117°57.28’. A great place to primitive camp near a beautiful waterfall. There is good protection from a south wind here. A good launch point is at a log dump south of Halfway River across the lake.
Camp. 67km – west. N50°22.70’ W117°56.29’. A nice beach campsite.
Fostall Creek. 69km – west. N50°21.50’ W117°56.71’. This creek has another beautiful waterfall close to the lake with good camping. There is a trail to the falls and several houses just south.
Nakusp. 85km. A small community (pop. 1600) on the east shore with all services. The Burger Hut at the southeast corner of town has great food. This is a good place to launch with free close parking. Nakusp Hot Springs are a short drive east of town. Nakusp is a hotbed of wild mushroom picking. Visible SW of town is one of the best hikes in the area to the top of Saddle Mountain. There is a ferry at the lower end of the Narrows. From the lake, access is a little cumbersome with a possible bushwack to the gravel road that parallels the shore and then a 4.5km walk up a road to the parking area to start the hike. Views from the top are spectacular.
McDonald Creek PP. 85km – east. This a full service campground with several kilometres of sandy beach, many waterfront sites, grassy meadows and a boat launch. Reservations are recommended in the summer.
LOWER ARROW LAKE
It is 122 km from McDonald Creek PP to the Hugh Keenleyside Dam. I have included the Narrows in the description of this part of Arrow Lake. All distances are from McDonald Creek PP. The 1:50,000 maps that cover the lake are 82K/4, 82F/13, 82E/16, E/9, E/8, and 82F/5.
Arrow Park Ferry. 10km.
Needles Ferry. 44km. N49°52,33’ W118°04.81’. This is a free ferry on Highway 6. The town of Fauquier on the east side with a nice 9 hole golf course.
Tate Creek Recreation Site. 53km – east. N49°47.66’ W118°04.80’. This is a small forested campsite with a sunny exposure and a good beach at low water.
Edgewood. 56km – west. N49°46.69’ W118°08.25’. This is a small community with most services. It is the end of the road on this side of the lake. Eagle Creek PP is immediately south of town
Octopus Creek. 59km – east. N49°44.98’ W118°06.60’. This is a small open campsite and the end of the road on the east side. There is no road access to Lower Arrow Lake for 17 km.
Island Point Recreation Site. 74km – east. N49°37.05’ W118°08.08’. This site is just north of Hutchison Creek.
Blackberry Beach. 76km – east. N49°35.89’ W118°08.07’. A nice beach site at low water.
Pebble Beach Recreation Site. 78km – east. 49°34.89’ W118°07.31’.
Sunshine Bay Recreation Site. 82km – east. N49°82.45’ W118°07.05’. This is a small, forested campsite which can barely be accessed by a very rough road. There is a good beach at low water.
Bowman Point Recreation Site. 84km – west. N49°32.0’ W118°08.83’. This is a small, treed, boat access only site with a sheltered anchorage.
Renata. 96km – west. N49°25.88’ E118°08.08’. This excellent fruit growing town was mostly abandoned (there are still a few residents) after it was flooded when the Hugh Keenleyside Dam was built forming Lower Arrow Lake. Across the lake is a boat launch used by the residents of Renata to access their homes. Road access is difficult. There are two good hikes here to waterfalls on Faith Creek and Dog Creek.
Natural Arch. 100km – west. N49°25.88’ E118°06.08’. This amazing geological formation is the largest arch in Canada at 3m wide and 6m thick stretching 45m across the gully. It is 34m from the top of the arch to the ground. It is accessed only by boat from Deer Park. Land on the beach in front of several homes at Brooklyn at the mouth of Pup Creek. The trail is 1.5km long and ascends 250m.
Deer Park. This community with no services has many cottages and a few permanent residents. The gravel road access is good. Across the lake is the beautiful rail trail, the start of the Kettle Valley Railway rail trail that starts at Castlegar and ends in Hope, BC. It climbs steadily from Castlegar, has several nice trestles and after turning south goes through a kilometer long tunnel.
Tulip Creek Falls. 109km – south. N49°21.82’ E117°55.80’. This is a gorgeous waterfall a short walk from the beach.
Syringa Creek PP. 113km – north. N49°20.98’ E117°53.15’. This park has a large campground that is very popular in the summer and reservations would be necessary. There is a great beach at low water. One kilometer past the campground is a boat launch with good parking. This would be a good take out for any trip. From here on there are many signs of civilization with first a yacht club and marina, a subdivision, and then Scotties Marina all on the north side.
Hugh Keenleyside Dam. 122km. It is possible to boat across the dam through a lock. Phone 250 365-3115 to contact the dam staff. A powerhouse has been added to the dam on the north side. Past the dam are the communities of Robson on the north shore, and on the south shore a pulp mill, a sawmill and then the city of Castlegar with a complete range of services including an airport. It would be possible to take out in Millenium Park in Castlegar. Two great hikes (Mt Sentinel Grind and Brilliant Overlook) give tremendous views west up to Arrow Lake, east up the Kootenay River, south down the Columbia and of Castlegar.
Columbia River past the dam. This is one of the only free flowing sections of the Columbia River left. Fishing here is world class with mammoth sturgeon, walleye and trout. It is a nice paddle with some riffles to the city of Trail, past which are some significant rapids. Lake Roosevelt at high water starts at the US border.