Our guests are encouraged to arrive at our Kruger Lake basecamp the day before the trip starts. We will get a chance to get acquainted with one another, have supper and then enjoy an evening around the campfire. Our camp is situated on the shore of Kruger Lake and looks out upon the snow-capped mountains of Bowron Lake Park. It is quite isolated here with our closest neighbours being 20 km (13 miles) away. Moose are commonly spotted along the shoreline as the call of the loon echoes across the lake.

DAY 1

Horses are brought in, saddled and harnessed by the Guides. After a hearty breakfast guests are acquainted to their horses and saddles adjusted.

The horses are strong and gentle, being raised by us in the area, many going back 5 and 6 generations.

All the food, cooking gear, tents and guestsí luggage is loaded on the wagon (or wagons) and the teams hitched to them. We may use 2 wagons with a team hitched to each depending on the number of guests on the trip. With everybody mounted up we head out, following old logging roads. These roads were built in the early 1980ís.

They were used for a short time after that, but have not been maintained since or have been deactivated. They are in poor condition so that very few motorized vehicles use them, but are excellent horse trails. The logged areas are now overgrown with planted Pine and Spruce trees as well as Aspen and Cottonwood, over 7 meters (20ft.) tall. We ford Littlefield Creek and then travel down the Indianpoint Creek Valley. This is excellent moose and Black Bear habitat and we have a good chance of getting a look at them somewhere along the trail. There are also deer, grizzlies, wolves and even a small herd of elk, which has recently moved into the area.

We camp our first night along Indianpoint Creek on the meadows originally home- steaded by Dean and Lutie Cochran. Mr. and Mrs. Cochran came to this area in 1912 where they started guiding hunters and trapping in much of the same area I operate today. Mrs. Cochran wrote a book about their life in the wilderness and had it published in 1970, shortly before she passed on. The book is titled "The Wilderness Told Me". There are no buildings left here and it is a very nice spot for us to camp.

DAY 2

Today we follow Indianpoint Creek down a short distance to where it joins the Bowron River. We then follow the Bowron River valley. An hour later we are climbing out of the Valley and soon get our first view of the Haggen Creek valley.

Soon we are following it. The mountains on both sides of it are getting higher now. We set up our camp along Haggen Creek, which is a small river here. The water comes straight out of the mountains and is crystal clear and fast flowing.

DAY 3

This morning we pack up and keep following the Haggen Creek Valley. After crossing Dominion Creek we stop for lunch and take a short side trip to view the Haggen Creek Falls. As we travel up the valley new mountains come into view. We are now looking at Clear Mountain, Mt. Cochran and Mt. Cushman (named after my father, Frank Cushman, who passed away in 1994.). We then arrive at our Haggen Creek base camp. I have 2 cabins and wall tents set up here. The camp is situated in a spot where five valleys come together to make up Haggen Creek. This is a good place to see wildlife. It is not unusual to look out the window in the morning and see caribou or mule deer (sometimes even both) sharing the salt block with the horses or to see moose and grizzly passing by.

DAY 4

This is as far as the wagons can go. Today we take what we need for 2 nights out and load it on pack horses. We follow one of the Haggen Creek tributaries for about 3 hours to its headwaters and arrive at our Mt. Cochran campsite. Anybody who has any appreciation for alpine areas will fall in love with this spot. As we arrive, hoary marmots whistle to announce our presence. The camp is at timberline, near a small lake on the shoulders of Mt. Cochran and Caribou Mtn. Four rocky peaks jut out of the lush alpine meadows around us. Caribou are the most commonly seen animal here. It is excellent grizzly country and curious mountain goats sometimes come down from the rocks and feed near the grazing horses.

DAY 5

Today we saddle our horses and ride over one of the nearby passes to explore the surrounding areas. As we ride we are constantly facing new breathtaking views and the chances of seeing wildlife. We return to our camp at the end of the day.

DAY 6

It is time to leave so we pack up our camp and go over the pass and down another tributary of Haggen Creek and follow it down. As we ride down the valley we are offered a new view of Mt. Cochran. It towers 1000meters (3000ft.) above us. We ride into the Haggen Creek basecamp from the opposite direction that we left 2 days before.

DAY 7

Today is our last day on the trail and the day we arrive back at Kruger Lake. The wagons and harnesses stay here and we load the packhorses. We ride up yet another branch of the Haggen Creek. Within an hour we are riding past a small lake which we call "Moose Lake"(for obvious reasons). It is surrounded by meadows and willow flats. We keep following this valley to its end and then up the mountain and are soon riding across one last alpine plateau. After stopping for a lunch break in the pass we can take a short hike and look down the length of Isaac Lake from above. This lake is 38 km (24 miles) long and is the largest of the world famous Bowron Lake Chain.

After lunch we ride down the other side of the mountain to Littlefield Creek. We follow this valley and are soon back at Kruger Lake. This evening we will share our last campfire and memories of our trip we started here a week ago.

On our "Mt. Cochran Pack Trip" and our "Cariboo Mountains Chuckwagon and Packhorse Tour"we see lots of beautiful country, but there is still lots more to see. Both of these seven day trips can be extended to 10 days. We can show you the area around our "Dutch Oven Camp" which lies at the base of Mt. Cushman - more breathtaking alpine scenery.

Dates:
2006 - Season Dates to be Announced
     

7 Day Trip Price: $1285.00 CND plus GST - Deposit $385.00
10 Day Trip Price: $1585.00 CND plus GST - Deposit $475.00
(Prices subject to change)