A Good Catch in the 1940s

This image is possibly from a brochure printed by the Kamloops Sentinel in the 1940s. The northeast corner of the lodge in the background.

~Submitted by Neil Burton

The Burton children on Water Street - over 100 years ago

This photograph was taken around 1919 to 1921. The parents of these children are Sidney Charles and Jane Ann Burton. They are on the Burton property on Water Street. 

From left to right -- Reggie, Isobel, Arthur. A section of the summer cottage, constructed in 1915 and is still in use today, appears in the background.

~ Neil Burton

Lac Le Jeune - book excerpt: The Value of Lakes Around the Secwépemc Territory

This book chapter is from: The Value of Lakes Around the Secwépemc Territory Copyright © 2024 by Adewale Adewunmi and Olanike Onasile is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

About Lac Le Jeune

A series of services provided by the environment make Earth habitable for humans. Human existence depends directly and indirectly on the services provided by lakes. The services include provisioning, recreational, regulation, and maintenance functions. Although we value some of the direct services provided by lakes due to the economic importance of water, we do not acknowledge other services that affect us indirectly. Humans are rational and tend to appreciate materials with monetary value, but most of the services provided by various lakes are considered gifts from nature; hence, humans place a higher priority on human capital and physical capital than the free services that they get from the environment. Assessing the economic values of lakes is not straightforward due to the non-availability of a specific market for trading the services provided by the biome (Reynard & Lanzanova, 2017). In this chapter, we attempt to assess the value of ecosystem services and Lac Le Jeune as a natural asset (capital).

Through traditional knowledge and use of the Rivers and Lakes within Secwépemcúlucw, my ancestor Antoine Lampreau, contributed to the trade economy within our region. Our waterways were an integral part of life and were used for trade, fishing, gathering and connection to surrounding communities.

— Kaleena Carriere (she/her), Advancement Officer — Indigenization & Williams Lake Campus, Thompson Rivers University

Lac Le Jeune is a lake located within Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park near Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada (“Lac Le Jeune,” 2022). The lake is named after Father Jean Marie Raphael Le Jeune, a well-respected priest of the indigenous population since 1880, who spent most of his life there (Balf, 1978). The Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park, which was established in 1956, is a 213-ha park located 37 km south of Kamloops and 47 km north of Merritt. The lake, with approximately 147 ha surface area, is also called “Batchelor” which means trout and “Chuhwels.” The lake has a 240-ft fishing wharf that caters to physically challenged anglers, and it is famous for producing fighting rainbow trout with an average size of 1.5 kg (BC Parks, n.d.).

 

Figure 1: Lac Le Jeune (Paul Mannix/Wikimedia Commons) CC BY 2.0

Valuation of Lac Le Jeune

Reynaud and Lanzanova (2017) categorized the cultural services lakes provide into several sub-services, including fishing, boating, camping, sightseeing, and swimming. Lac Le Jeune is a popular recreational lake that provides a series of ecosystem services, including provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting, to residents and non-residents of the area. The lake’s most evident service is the cultural services, and it provides all the recreational sub-services highlighted by Reynaud and Lanzanova (2017). Kamloops This Week (2018b) reported that the City of Kamloops awarded a contract worth $899,000 to a local contractor to reconstruct the surface of Lac Le Jeune Road, which leads to the lake. The decision consequently makes the trip much easier for tourists.

The total economic value of the lake can be grouped into use value and non-use value. Lac Le Jeune’s direct use value (mostly in the summer) has to do with the direct satisfaction that residents and tourists derived through its use, such as fishing, irrigating, taking pictures, camping, and breathing fresh air; meanwhile, the indirect use value has to do with the indirect benefits the lake offers to the society (BC Parks, n.d.). For instance, Lac Le Jeune serves as a source of water storage, which automatically helps reduce the risk of downstream flooding. It also serves as a water supply for the vegetation, such as lodgepole pine, marshland, and pinegrass forest surrounding the lake, providing good air and temperature for the tourists. It serves as a habitat for aquatic animals that comprise the food web and hosts terrestrial animals such as moose, bears, and lynxes (British Columbia, n.d.).

In addition to the indirect use value, the lake also helps reduce human activities’ impact on nature by absorbing pollutants. Furthermore, the non-use values of Lac Le Jeune are the benefits that residents and tourists derive from the existence of the lake, which is not recreational nor commercial related, such as nature appreciation, conservation, and cultural significance of the lake. For instance, Lac le Jeune is well known for its fighting rainbow trout, making trout fishery very significant to the province (British Columbia, n.d.).

This study uses the benefit transfer method (BTM) described by Sun Oh et al. (2014) to estimate the value of freshwater lakes. Recent estimates on freshwater lakes were obtained from the Ecosystem Services Valuation Database and compared to the previous studies carried out by Constanza et al. (1997) and Constanza et al. (2014) (Brander et al., 2023).

Benefit Transfer Method

The benefit transfer method (BTM) is the process of applying valuation results, functions, data, or models obtained from the study of a resource (study site) to evaluate the economic values of another resource (policy site). (Sun Oh et al., 2014). This makes it possible to estimate the monetary value of Lac Le Jeune with the value of the lake surface area and the value of various ecosystem services of lakes in Canada, the UK, and the USA (study site).

Ecosystem Services Valuation Database

The Ecosystem Services Valuation Database (ESVD) is an online database that was created to provide robust and accessible information on the economic benefits and biodiversity (Brander et al., 2023). It contains over 8,000 value records from over 1,100 studies from various biomes, ecosystem services, and geographic locations.

Table 1 demonstrates that by multiplying the size of Lac Le Jeune, which is an approximately 147-ha surface area, with the per hectare values of lakes in Canada, the UK, and the US (Angler’s Atlas, n.d.f). The value of ecosystem services provided by lakes in Canada, the UK, and the US is estimated at a conservative value of $23,542/ha/year, which is less than what Brander et al. (2023) estimated at $108,361/ha/year and the $41,251/ha/year conservative estimate for lakes in North America, Europe, and Oceania. There are two reasons our figure for these lakes is less than Brander et al.’s (2023) value. First, our value does not capture many sub-categories services, especially the regulation service, and second, it does not include all consumer surplus from the natural asset. Thus, using the median approach, the total value of economic service provided by the lake can be estimated as $11.6 million, $8.5 million using the average value, and $3.5 million using the modified median that removes low-count ecosystem service.

Table 1: Total Value of Lac Le Jeune Ecosystem Services

Table 1: Total Value of Lac Le Jeune Ecosystem Services

Skip Table 1
Ecosystem	Average	Median	Modified Median
Provisioning	3,015,999	2,857,239	62,769
Maintenance and supporting	263,424	263,424	—
Regulation	79,086	79,086	—
Cultural and recreational	8,225,532	5,285,973	3,412,752
Total	11,584,188	8,485,722	3,460,674

Note. Adapted from Brander et al. (2023). See Table A for a full breakdown

Applying a simple annual interest of 1.5% to the total ecosystem service value (median approach) gives a value of the Lac Le Jeune at $773 million, $567 million (median approach), and $233 million for the conservative approach. However, the value of Lac Le Jeune as a natural asset is a minimum of $3.5 billion and a maximum of $11.6 billion using the lower 0.1% discount rate. Compared to the 2022 value of British Columbia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which is $284.8 billion, at the maximum estimation, Lac Le Jeune provides benefits equivalent to 4.1% of the province’s GDP (Statistics Canada, 2023).

Table 2 shows a breakdown of the value of Lac Le Jeune as a natural asset.

Table 2: Value of Lac Le Jeune as a Natural Asset

Table 2: Value of Lac Le Jeune as a Natural Asset

Skip Table 2
Valuation	Ecosystem Services per year (in millions of USD)	1.5% Discount Rate (in millions of USD)	0.1% Discount Rate (in millions of USD)
Average (per hectare per year)	11.6	773	11,600
Median (per hectare per year)	8.5	567	8,500
Conservative/Modified Median (per hectare per year)	3.5	233	3,500

Note. Calculated using data from Table 1

Concluding Remarks

This chapter has helped to place a monetary value on the ecosystem services provided by Lac Le Jeune. The study uses two different social discount rates (1.5% and 0.1%) to evaluate the value of the lake. The two discount rates place different weights on future generations. The lower discount rate places a higher weight on the future generation and allocates a much higher value to the resource than the 1.5% discount rate. The maximum value of the lake using the lowest discount rate, which portrays the sustainability goals of the indigenous community, is $11.6 billion, almost 5% of the province’s GDP.

It is important to note that the estimates from this study only provide comprehension of Lac Le Jeune’s monetary value; further estimation, such as contingency valuation analysis, travel cost, and hedonic pricing evaluation, may be required for decision-making. This value may provide some insights to policymakers on the lake’s economic value and consequently influence them to enact regulations that protect the lake from development or other activities that may harm its value.

Appendix

Table A: Value of Ecosystem Services of Lakes in Canada, UK, & US

Skip Table A

Table B1: Value of Ecosystem Services — Provisiong (2020 International $/ha/year)

Skip Table A1
Ecosystem Service	# of Values	Average	Median	Modified Median
Food	21	177,282	19,992	19,992
Raw Material	4	29,547	28,077	28,077
Water	2	2,809,317	2,809,317	—
Total	27	3,015,999	2,857,239	62,769

Table A2: Value of Ecosystem Services — Habitat (2020 International $/ha/year)

Skip Table A2
Ecosystem Service	# of Values	Average	Median	Modified Median
Maintenance of Genetic Diversity	1	154,350	154,350	—
Maintenance of Life Cycle	2	109,074	109,074	—
Total	3	263,424	263,424	—

Table A3: Value of Ecosystem Services — Cultural (2020 International $/ha/year)

Skip Table A3
Ecosystem Service	# of Values	Average	Median	Modified Median
Aesthetic Information	8	1,425,165	209,034	209,034
Opportunities for Recreation & Tourism	40	4,927,146	3,203,718	3,203,718
Inspiration for Culture, Art, & Design	1	1,873,221	1,873,221	—
Total	49	8,225,532	5,285,973	3,412,752

Table A4: Value of Ecosystem Services — Other (2020 International $/ha/year)

Skip Table A4
Ecosystem Service	# of Values	Average	Median	Modified Median
Moderation of Extreme Events	2	79,086	79,086	—

Note. Adapted from Table I in the Introduction.

Media Attributions

Figure 1: “Lake View, Lac Le Jeune, Canada” by Paul Mannix (2006), via Wikimedia Commons, is used under a CC BY 2.0 license.

References

Angler’s Atlas. (n.d.f). Lac Le Jeune. https://www.anglersatlas.com/place/100554/lac-le-jeune

Artell, J. (2014). Lots of value? A spatial hedonic approach to water quality valuation. Journal of Environmenal Planning and Management, 57(6), 862–882. https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2013.772504

BC Parks. (n.d.). Lac Le Jeune Park. Government of British Columbia. https://bcparks.ca/lac-le-jeune-park/

Brander, L. M., de Groot, R., Guisado Goñi, V., van ‘t Hoff, V., Schägner, P., Solomonides, S., McVittie, A., Eppink, F., Sposato, M., Do, L., Ghermandi, A., and Sinclair, M., Thomas, R., (2023). Ecosystem services valuation database (ESVD). Foundation for Sustainable Development and Brander Environmental Economics. https://www.esvd.net/

British Columbia. (n.d.). Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park. https://britishcolumbia.com/things-to-do-and-see/parks-and-trails/thompson-okanagan/lac-le-jeune-provincial-park/

Costanza, R., d’Arge, R., de Groot, R., Farber, S., Grasso, M., Hannon, B., Limburg, K., Naeem, S., O’Neill, R. V., Paruelo, J., Raskin, R. G., Sutton, P., & van den Belt, M. (1997). The value of the world’s ecosystem services and natural capital. Nature, 387(15), 253–260. https://doi.org/10.1038/387253a0

Costanza, R., de Groot, R., Sutton, P., van der Ploeg, S., Anderson, S. J., Kubiszewski, I., Farber, S., & Turner, R., K. (2014). Changes in the global value of ecosystem services. Global Environmental Change, 26, 152–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2014.04.002

Davidson, M. D. (2013). On the relation between ecosystem services, intrinsic value, existence value and economic valuation. Ecological Economics, 95, 171–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2013.09.002

Herath, G. (1999). Estimation of community values of lakes: A study of Lake Mokoan in Victoria, Australia. Economic Analysis and Policy, 29(1), 31–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0313-5926(99)50003-9

Kamloops This Week. (2018b, March 28). Lac Le Jeune Road to be resurfaced. https://archive.kamloopsthisweek.com/2018/03/28/lac-le-jeune-road-to-be-resurfaced/

Lac Le Jeune. (2022, June 14). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lac_Le_Jeune&direction=prev&oldid=1170229828

Mannix, P. (2006). Lake view, Lac Le Jeune, Canada [Image]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lake_View,_Lac_Le_Jeune,_Canada.jpg

Reynaud, A., & Lanzanova, D. (2017). A global meta-analysis of the value of ecosystem services provided by lakes. Ecological Economics, 137, 184–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.03.001

Statistics Canada. (2023). Gross domestic product, income-based, provincial and territorial, annual (x 1,000,000). https://doi.org/10.25318/3610022101-eng

Sun Oh, J. Herzig, S. C., & Daujat, C. (2014). Benefit transfer method. Ecosystem Services.

Sutton, P. C., & Anderson, S. J. (2016). Holistic valuation of urban ecosystem services in New York City’s Central Park. Ecosystem Services, 19, 87–91, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2016.04.003

Verpoorter, C., Kutser, T., Seekell, D. A., & Tranvik, L. J. (2014). A global inventory of lakes based on high-resolution satellite imagery. Geophysical Research Letters, 41(18), 6396–6402. https://doi.org/10.1002/2014GL060641

Wilson, M. A., & Carpenter, S. R. (1999). Economic valuation of freshwater ecosystem services in the United States: 1971-1997. Ecological Applications, 9(3), 772–783. https://doi.org/10.2307/2641328

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FISH LAKE HOTEL (The Sportsman’s Paradise) – Lac Le Jeune

Thank you, Neil Burton, for sharing this history on the Lac Le Jeune Resort up to 1985.

Display photo put together by my Reg Burton, possibly in the 1950’s

An advertisement appeared in the Inland Sentinel (Kamloops) toward the end of 1904.

By what would be the beginning of the fishing season, May 1905, Messrs. Lusk and Hesson had taken over the Fish Lake Hotel and would soon have a new building to receive guests. Visitors could be accommodated in the old premises in the mean time.

The partnership of A. Hesson and David W. Lusk was dissolved, in July 1905, by mutual consent with all indebtedness being paid by Mr. Lusk. It appears Mr. Lusk took on a partner or assistant Robert Cowan. 

David Lusk received injury in an accident on Coal Hill when returning to Kamloops, in the Fall 1905 and retired from the Hotel near the end of the 1906 season, leaving Cowan possession. 

Mr. & Mrs. Cowan then built “Rainbow Lodge” more away from the lake. Lusk’s “Hotel” became a storehouse for boats, tackle and fish cleaning.

In 1926 when Robert Cowan became sick the property was purchased by Thomas D. Costley.
Fish Lake was renamed Lac Le Jeune in 1928.

Above information - (Know Your Local History by Mary Balf, Kamloops Museum Curator – Kamloops Sentinel – July 1970).

Mrs. Costley died at Lac Le Jeune on October 16, 1929.

The name of the lodge on Lac Le Jeune was changed from “Rainbow Lodge” to “Le Jeune Lodge” in May 1939 (KS – 09 May 1939 – p. 6).

When Thomas Costley died, from “traumatic shock”, following a broken leg, the break (by falling tree) happened while he was watching land clearing about 3 ½ miles from the Lodge, in June 1947. 

The new owners of the Le Jeune Lodge property became John and Muriel Whitaker that year.

From a Christmas Card of John and Muriel Whitaker

Come year 1966, new owners of the property would be partners John R. Turner and the Honorable E. Davie Fulton (KDS – 30 June 1967 – p. 31 – Advertisement).

The 9-room historic Le Jeune Lodge was being demolished for landscape and parking for a new 25-unit lodge (KDS – 20 Sep. 1974 – p. 13).

Le Jeune Lodge went into receivership in 1978 and sold to a group of Albertans (KDS – 26 Oct. 1978 – p. 29).  New owner was W.G. Folman Enterprises of Calgary (KDS – 02 Dec. 1978 – p. 22).

The Lac Le Jeune Resort was again sold for the 2^nd time in less than three years. The price $1.5 million. Article says W.G. Fahlman Enterprises was Edmonton-based and the two principals of the new Edmonton-based group were Spike Kubermaus and Joan Nicersault (KDS – 27 Sep. 1980 – p. 14). 

The Le Jeune Resort Lodge was operating under new ownership since 01 Oct. 1980 (KDS – 22 Oct. 1980 – p. 11).

Spike Kubbernus (notice different spelling), the owner of Edmonton-based Paramount Real Estate and other investors saw the Lac Le Jeune Lodge purchase and deeded land as a real estate investment having an assessed value of about $2,2 million (KDS – 28 Feb. 1981 – p. 04R).

The name Derick MacDonald (wrong spelling in newspaper) appears in 1983 with connection to X-Country skiing (KDS – 21 Dec. 1983 – p. 03b) and (KDS – 01 Nov. 1985 – p. 02b).

Five Want Ski-Trail Deal (Excerpts) – Five proposals have been submitted to the Kamloops Forest District for the management and maintenance of cross-country ski trails to be built in the coming year.

The trails, in the Stake Lake area, will take the place of those near Bush and Timber Lakes lost to the development of the Coquihalla Highway. The Ministry of Forest has agreed to build 25 kilometres of trails this year and 25 more next summer before turning the trails over to the private sector to be operated on a “user pay” basis.

Proposals have been submitted by Dearwood Design Group, Mr. and Mrs. H. Vanderhorst, the Kamloops YM-YWCA, Lac Le Jeune Lodge, and Andrew Cairns. Cairns is from Nelson (KS – 28 Aug. 1985 – p. 3a – Fri.).

Lac Le Jeune Resort to operate ski trails – The Forest Ministry has selected Lac Le Jeune Resort to maintain and operate new cross-country ski trails in the Stake Lake area.

Research: Neil Burton – 23 May 2024.

 

 

 

 

So long, tree

Last week many residents noticed something was very different as they wandered up Lac Le Jeune Road. Our very familiar and loved tree had come down. The nest at the top was home to ospreys (and the occasional goose with goslings!). We will all miss seeing this landmark and the bird activity surrounding it.

Hot Summer of 1960 at Lac Le Jeune!

Murray Foubister / CC BY-SA 

1960 was a HOT summer in the B.C. interior.

 

It was 60 years ago that the B.C. Forest Service , on July 26, 1960, was rushing an extra 100 men and 8 bulldozers to a forest fire that originated over the ridge about 5 miles from Lace Le Jeune Lodge.

 

On July 27th, it was said the fire was now 1,000 acres and being fought by 200 men and 18 bulldozers.

 

This fire had jumped a fire guard and 33 firefighters were evacuated by helicopter on July 29th.  Fires’ edge was now only 2 1/2 miles from  the Lac Le Jeune lodge  and away from the Frogmore Lake lodge.  People, summer residents of the “Old Townsite”, north side of Lac Le Jeune, were removing the smaller items from their cabins.

 

Cattle of the Frolek Cattle Co. were also being removed from the area.

 

As at August 9th, trees remained on the south shoreline of Lac Le Jeune, but John and Muriel Whitaker’s ski hill operation was destroyed, but would see greater skiing over the coming winters.

 

The beaver aircraft of Pacific Western Airlines, in November 1960, had seeded the areas of Squam Bay and the “Dean” fire, between Merritt and Boston Bar.  Arrangements were being made to seed the Lac Le Jeune area burnt by the  summer fire.

 

Top stories of the year, of the Kamloops Daily Sentinel were the articles on forest fires.

 

To the residents of the upper and lower subdivision, it might mean the green forested area, surrounding you, have being growing for approximately 59 years.

 

Researched using Kamloops Daily Sentinel.

 

Neil Burton/ Aug. 4, 2020.

Lac Le Jeune Lodge - circa 1960

Photo courtesy of Kamloops History Community, posted here with permission

Does anyone remember when the Lac Le Jeune lodge looked like this?

This photo from the 1960s was posted to the Kamloops History Community in Facebook. People in that group reminisced about the drive on a long gravel road to come to Lac Le Jeune for all the reasons we still enjoy this area today. Well, except there was downhill skiing back then!

This lodge was torn down and the current lodge built in a different location.

~posted by Sylvia Currie~

History - First Automobile to Fish Lake (Lac Le Jeune) - 1910

Ford race car, about 1910, cc by-nc-sa

P. Herod’s new Ford automobile has the record of being the first machine to make the trip from this city to Fish Lake. With Laverne Herod driving, the auto made the run out in an hour and thirty minutes, which is considered exceptionally fast time.

Kamloops Inland Sentinel – 03 June 1910 – p. 08 – Friday (Weekly) - (From Wednesday’s Daily) Newspaper read at Thompson Rivers University Library

~ submitted by Neil Burton ~

Lac Le Jeune - The Dominion Government - History

A plan of the Trout Lake Summer Resort, on the north side of Lac Le Jeune, was surveyed by Charles Henry Taggart, D.L.S., prior to December 1911.

In Spring 1912, Donald Roy Cameron, B.A., B.S.F., Forest Supervisor, arrived in Kamloops to open an office for the Dominion Forestry Branch in B.C. to oversee work of the Forestry in the "Railway Belt" between Field and Vancouver.  In the Lac Le Jeune area, the southern boundary of the Belt, was south of Ridge Lake. (The name Ridge Lake appeared on a map of the Department of the Interior dated 20 April 1909.)  Cameron's office was located in the Post Office building, but by early 1915, was in the Acadia Building (4th Ave. & Seymour St.)

The Department of the Interior, Ottawa, 16 July 1912, issued an offering of  leases for villa lots at Trout Lake in the Long Lake Forest Reserve, which was published locally before the end of July.  Applications would be received on or after 10 August 1912.

Leases were for terms of 42 years and could be extended for that same length.  Rents varied from $8 to $12 per year.  (Rentals ended up being re-adjustable in 1920 and every 10 years thereafter.)

Before construction commenced, a building plan had to be approved. The applicant, on the lot applied for, had to erect a building valued at no less than $300 within 1 year.

According to the Kamloops Standard, 30 August 1912, the following had applied:  J. Gill, W.H. Johnston, J.M. Benzie, N.S. Dalgleish, F.E. Young, F.J. Fulton, Mr. Winch, of Vancouver, N. McGill, G. MacBeth and Dr. R.W. Irving.

It might be asked, how many of those named may have been speculators?  To what affect might the world money markets have had on these original applications? Too, there was a crisis brewing in Europe - the beginning of World War I.

F.E. Young, the proprietor of the Kamloops Standard newspaper, whose name was listed above, died in Kamloops, in May 1914.

(Fish Lake was the training camp as well, in July 1914, for a lightweight boxer Champion O'Leary - high altitude training.)

S.C. Burton had originally applied for a lease, in July 1914, but his chosen lot was already applied for.  He re-applied in 1915, and was successful.

The Dominion Forestry Department constructed a road along the lakeshore (Water Street) for the benefit of the lessees in Summer 1915.

According to the Kamloops Sentinel, 01 August 1930, the Province of B.C. took over  Dominion lands and offices of the "Railway Belt" and the Peace River Block that day.

Water Rights

It appears that Water Rights may have been transferred from the Dominion Government to the Provincial Government, as in 1913, the Kamloops Standard had many notices advertised for water rights.

Robert Cowan of Fish Lake posted two water notices dated 06 June 1913, one being, out of Guerrin Creek, in a southerly direction into Meadow Creek, and the second, for penning 300 acre feet, from Walloper Lake, flowing southerly to Meadow Creek.

Dominion Forestry

Looking back to previous blog postings of Lac Le Jeune Reminiscences (03August & 20 September 2009) and Images of the Past (30 September 2009) all submitted by Hugh Burton, here is some information to add about the Dominion Forestry and Fish Lake Reserve.

Prior to September 1914, a George Duncan had been a Forest Ranger at Fish Lake. At this time he was now with the Provincial Police stationed in the Peace River district.

In January 1915, the Dominion Forest Branch had 3 horses stray from Fish Lake and offered a reward of $10 per head for being found.

During the summer season 1915, 4 lookout sites were to be constructed:  Lolo Mountain, north-east of Kamloops; Greer Mountain (now named Greenstone); Ridge Mountain, 2 miles south-west of Fish Lake; and Granite Peak, about 5 miles south-west of Tappen.

In July 1915, C.R. MacKenzie, of the Forest Rangers department would be away from Fish Lake, about 10 days, to assist in the setting up of Greer Mountain (Greenstone) ranger camp.

Talk was also to the effect of a telephone line between Kamloops and Fish Lake. The new Government road from Fish Lake to Long Lake was completed in July 1915. (This may have been the Goose Lake road.)

By mid-October 1915, the Hon. R. Rodgers, minister of public works, Ottawa, had given the green light for the extension of a telephone line from Knutsford to Goose Lake. Construction on the Knutsford-Goose Lake and Forestry line commenced October 26th.  On November 26th, the Government telephone crew was using the old school house at Fred Humphrey's place and the building, their belongings and equipment were destroyed by fire. Work on the telephone line was still proceeding from Fish Lake.  A Mr. P. Nelms was a foreman of one of the Forestry line gangs.

The Government Telephone line from Kamloops and the Forestry line extended from Fish Lake was completed before Christmas 1915. There was a switch installed with a public pay station at the C.R. Mackenzie ranch.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Curtiss_HS-2_NAN10-48.jpg

According to D. Roy Cameron, District Inspector, a joint request for funding by the Government Telephone Service and the Forestry Branch was turned down by the Dominion Government.  He stated that it was the initiative of Kamloops' ex-mayor J.T. Robinson who convinced the Government of a grant for this telephone service.

In December 1915, Fish Lake forest ranger  J.W. Smith enlisted to serve overseas in WWI.

D. Roy Cameron was a forward thinker in the protection of the forests of the British Columbia interior and got his aerial view of the forests flying with Major Clarence MacLaurin, superintendent of the Canadian Air Board Jericho Beach station.  Major MacLaurin brought a knocked-down HS2L flying boat, by train to Sicamous, where it was re-assembled and the pair flew to Kamloops, stopping at Chase, in search of seaplane harbours. Arrival in Kamloops was 04 November 1920 in the HS2L flying boat (G-CYBA). 

Forest Inspector Cameron would again join Major MacLaurin, Tuesday, 12 July 1921, on an HS2L flying boat flight from Jericho Beach to Kamloops passing over the Coquihalla Pass, and passing over the east end of Fish Lake, at 10,000 feet, nearing 5:45 p.m., before descending to the waters of the Thompson River at Kamloops. This flight is marked as the first non-stop flight between Vancouver and Kamloops, and the first flight of a seaplane across the coastal mountains to the B.C. interior.

Inspector Cameron was also flown over areas of the B.C. Interior, later in the Summer 1921, by Canadian Air Board pilot Earl Leslie MacLeod, possibly in the HS2L flying boat (G-CYEB).

In July 1928, Mr. Cameron was assistant director of forestry, at Ottawa, when he and his wife passed through Kamloops on their way to a British Empire Forestry conference in Australia and New Zealand.

Mr. Cameron would again visit Kamloops, in June 1933, in the matter of Dominion make-work relief projects, caused by the depression.

Submitted by Neil Burton
Research:  (Main source) Kamloops Standard newspaper.