The purpose of this document is to guide the management of Gwyneth Lake Park. Gwyneth Lake Park is 132 hectares in size and situated on the Hurley Forest Service Road close to Gold Bridge, 70 kilometres west of Lillooet and 60 kilometres north of Pemberton. The centre of the park is a small lake with six unit rustic campground. It provides opportunities for fishing, camping, picnicking and is a base for hiking. The park and surrounding area have been logged and are in a state of vigorous regeneration. Gold Bridge and Bralorne are the nearest communities to Gwyneth Lake Park. This park was recommended through the Lillooet Land and Resource Management Plan in 2004 and formally established as a Class A park by the Protected Areas of British Columbia Amendment Act, 2010. Class A parks are Crown lands dedicated to the preservation of their natural environments for the use and enjoyment of the public.
Values and Roles of the Protected Area
Gwyneth Lake Park is primarily a recreational stop catering to visitors travelling over the Hurley Forest Service Road from Vancouver area. It provides a location to camp while participating in hiking, hunting or visiting the communities of Gold Bridge or Bralorne. Almost all of the park has been previously logged and contains numerous access roads and ski trails. The lake also contains Rainbow Trout and is used by anglers year round.
Management Direction
The vision of the park is to provide a rustic camping opportunity in a secluded setting. Visitors use the campground as a base for hunting or exploring in the surrounding area by mountain bike. The lake continues to provide opportunities for wildlife viewing while hiking or camping, and angling in both summer and winter. The area continues to support healthy wildlife populations, primarily focussed on the productive wetland areas of the lake.
To encourage more visitors to the area, there is local interest in providing a higher standard of facilities, with possibly more sites becoming available while retaining the rustic, unstructured nature of the campground. Grizzly bears are regularly observed in the general area and are considered a viewing attraction. However, the presence of bears brings potential conflict, with the need for campers to be more bear aware and to eliminate bear attractants. There are some objectives and some possible strategies to manage it like ensure a high level of bear awareness and bear management strategies to reduce potential conflicts with bears. Another strategy to provide a rustic campground to improve campground facilities with the expectation to maintain a rustic and largely unstructured camping experience. To support a continued successful fishery the possible strategy is to manage the lake and spawning habitat for a productive natural fishery.
To manage a park properly it is recommended to use a zoning plan to divide a park into logical management units. They are used to show the physical environment and the desired level of management and development in a given management unit. Gwyneth Lake Park is divided into two zones that reflect the highest use area and the remainder of the park that will provide habitat for wildlife but it still allows visitors to explore the park.
Plan Implementation
Specific projects will be evaluated for priority in relation to the overall protected areas system. Where needed, B.C. Parks will seek project-specific funding and partners to implement management strategies. There are two strategies which are identified as high priorities.
- Ensure a high level of bear awareness and bear management strategies to prevent bears from habituating to human presence.
- Improve campground facilities with the expectation to maintain a rustic and largely unstructured camping experience where campers are self-sufficient.
In order to ensure that the management direction for Gwyneth Lake Park remains relevant and effective, B.C. Park staff will ensure that the management plan is assessed. In case the management plan should be amended there is an opportunity for public inputs.
Gwyneth Lake Park in:
- Evergreen Stewardship Plan for Lillooet Sub Region
- Evergreen Stewardship Plan for South Chilcotin Sub Region
- Source BC Parks. March 2016. Gwyneth Lake Park, Management Plan, Final Public Review Draft. Available at : https://bcparks.ca/planning/mgmtplns/lillooet/mp-fprd/gwyneth-lk-mp-fprd.pdf?v=1465745250520 [Accessed 03/2021].