Team Melon – Deep in the Azure

The Azure
Words by Pierce Huser
Photos by Kenneth McKay

Friday september 4th, I sent a message to Kenneth McKay asking what he thought of the current flows in the Azure. We’d been talking smack all summer about the Azure being our proper BC bush mission for the season, but never actually made a set plan. Ken got back to me after a scout mission telling me the North Thompson (our only relative gauge) was low and our window was open, we had to jump on it. Ken booked our jet boat ride out of Azure lake, and I rallied 2 more troops who were prepared for a sufferfest. Our boi Jared “Jearbear” Day was in, which reunited “Team Melon”, and luckily BC vet Benny Clark didn’t hesitate to jump onboard. We organised gear and made sure we were going to be well fed knowing we were about to burn a ridiculous amount of energy on a grueling hike in. Driving up highway 5 past Blue River, we turned off onto the Gosnel Forest Service Road taking us to the source of the North Thompson. We unloaded and hiked in 1km before running out of daylight and setting up camp.

The hike into the Azure is not something to take lightly, you essentially climb 500m in elevation over 5km up to McAndrews lake, then hike another 5km down to the Azure. Doesn’t sound bad until you consider our 80lb kayaks and the density of the vegetation on the floor of the Interior Cedar Hemlock forest (the second most productive forest zone in Canada). The ICH forest is diverse in plant and animal species, and although we had to be on the watch for Grizzlies, our main obstacles were the thick Alder shrubs and the endless fields of Devils Club.

The following morning we woke up early, smashed a pack of bacon, and got into the meat and potatoes of our hike. The trek quickly got much more inclined, the steepness combined with the 6-10ft tall alder shrubs was a nightmare to navigate. Kenny and his long ass legs were leading the charge, while the rest of us did our best to keep up. I quickly learned the most efficient strategy for myself was to throw my paddle far ahead, grab some strong alder, pull myself up a couple steps, and repeat. At one point, Benny yelled at us frantically from the back “Stop! Bear just ahead of you!” I think that was the quickest we’ve ever scurried down a hill to retreat. Around 2pm I heard another big yell from Benny, however this one sounded more painful.

When we got to him we saw Benny hunched over in pain favouring his right leg, he’d just slipped on a log and hyperextended his right knee. Benny tried to persevere, but a very unstable knee carrying a loaded boat was too much. Our only option was to turn around while we still had daylight. Ken, Jear, and I ditched our boats and hung our food high up in a tree, planning to hopefully come back the next day. Benny could hobble slowly with the support of his paddle, but his right knee was unstable and his quad was seizing up. I tied my webbing to Benny’s pfd to give him some support for the steeper moves down while Kenny and Jear dragged his boat. What took us 10 hours to climb up took about 4 hours to climb down. We were very relieved when we finally saw a small bridge crossing the creek we were following. Benny’s left leg was now also almost totally shot, and it had just gotten dark. We made it back to the subaru, and drove back to Clearwater to sleep in our own beds.

The following morning Kenny called Clearwater Lake Tours to reschedule our boat pick up from Azure lake, thankfully they said it wouldn’t be a problem. After restocking on food for the hike, we ended up at the end of the Gosnel Forest Service Road at 1pm. Travelling light, and using a better route that we learned from our retreat mission, we hiked to the kayaks and our food in just 2 hours, getting there at around 3pm. With a steep n thick 2km yet to go we kept pushing and eventually reached a declining meadow with a lake at the bottom. Dragging my loaded boat down something and having no alder to push through felt amazing. Right by McAndrews lake we found a dream camp site that came with a gorgeous view of a melted glacial bowl west of Mt Chamberlain! We ate a replenishing pasta stew with escargot and passed out hard. The next morning we started early. We passed the great divide officially entering Wells Gray Provincial Park, then dragged our boats the remaining 5km. At around 2pm we finally got to The Azure. We were very happy to be done with the hike, especially my shot chicken legs.

We finally put in and took our first strokes in the pristine blue water of the Azure. Quickly into the run we got to a gorgeous 5ft boof followed by another sweet 10ft boof. The low water gave it somewhat of a manky feel for a BC boater but came with that same beautiful bedrock. We came to a stout 20ft tall slide into a tight 5ft slot you had to hit or you’d piton your brains. I was stoked on the line, Ken and Jear portaged and set safety, I lined it up and blasted through the slot. That first afternoon on the water was surreal, pleasantly surprised by how stacked and runnable the whitewater was, it was maybe the best “bang for your buck” paddling I’ve ever done. In between the numerous quality 10-30ft drops was loads of sweet read and run boofs and slides. Eventually we got to “Unicorn Hoof” dubbed by Team Beer, a committing “U” shaped 30fter with a tight landing zone and tricky lead in. This one got the nerves up, but felt incredibly satisfying hitting the boof and stomping the landing. We ran some more quality drops before setting up camp for some rest. Exhausted and saturated from one of the most glorious sections we’ve ever paddled.

The next morning we got an early start knowing we had some big portages coming up. We paddled some boogie before making it to the first of two un-run double drops. It was a picture perfect 20fter with some overhanging rock that immediately fed straight into a slanted 8fter with an unappetizing hole. I eyed it up for a few minutes before asking the boys if they were cool with me running it and we made a safety plan. I got some speed and pulled a glorious righty boof over the 20, then a sweep boof on the second drop letting my Waka OG do the work. I named it “Decapitator Double” since I was damn close to smoking my head on the overhanging rock. A bit after that we pulled up to a roaring riverwide horizon line, the 30ft to 40ft Double drop of Destiny loomed large. Safety was heinous, time was ticking and the tired Team Melon still had another big portage further downstream. The Destiny Double wasn’t meant to be for this trip, we portaged leaving something on the table desirable enough to come back. Our next objective was portaging the final canyon which we chose to hike river left, avoiding the sketchy river right portage Kenny and Jear described to me. We hiked for 500m climbing 70m up and 100m down through an endless field of thick devils club before finally popping out of the bush to the river. We paddled 10km to the east end of lake Azure, and camped on a gorgeous sand bar with a beautiful view. Our jet boat picked us up at Rainbow falls the next afternoon, taking us home to Clearwater lake.

In the end the sufferfest was all worth it. Wells Gray provided the mental and physical challenge we were looking for and came with an amazing reward ! Thanks to Kenny and Jear for the adventure and smooth lines, and shoutout to Benny Clark who was a warrior and persevered through an ugly situation deep in the thick of it! Also gotta thank Team Beer for the savage first D, opening up an absolute gem! I’m sorry we don’t have more action shots to show we weren’t caring much about the camera once on the water, my Gopro lines can give you an idea however! Here’s the link to the edit I made https://youtu.be/ffH8UsDqWSQ . 

Kudos if you read this far;)

-Pierce Huser