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Walks · Prince George · Prince George

Ferguson Lake Nature Reserve

A mostly gentle circuit around a small lake at Prince George’s northern edge, with boardwalks, a fishing dock and remnants of early homesteads. It is a useful short nature walk rather than a mountain climb.

Sources reviewed . This is a research date, not a trail inspection.

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Distance
2.4 kmLoop
Elevation gain
40 mPublished route measurement
Walking time
0.5–1 hourfor the shoreline circuit
Difficulty
EasyLoop
How the elevation gain was established

Outing: 2.4 km shoreline interpretive circuit from the Ferguson Lake access; not a 3.5 km alternative

This total is published for the named outing. Other starting points or turnarounds can produce different climbing totals.

The publisher defines its elevation figure as total elevation gained from its GPS route.

Sources checked 2026-10-19.

Map & elevation

Opening the map…

Elevation profile

Full loop · approximately 2.5 km mapped

Complete loop elevation profile, starting at Ferguson Lake north-side trail access, finishing at Ferguson Lake north-side trail access750 m775 m800 m0 km0.6 km1.2 km1.8 km2.5 km
StartFerguson Lake north-side trail access2.5 km · back at startFerguson Lake north-side trail access
Explore the elevation with the chart or slider.

Approximate terrain elevation. Mapped distance may differ from the published hike distance.

Map and elevation sources

Approximate ground elevation from a 90 m terrain model. Distance follows the mapped itinerary and may differ from published walking distance. This is a terrain-model profile, not a surveyed measurement. Any ascent total is identified separately with its own source or estimation method.

The city’s licensed trail geometry is an exactly closed shoreline loop. The public route description identifies the north-side access at54.037100,-122.842573 and permits either direction around the lake. Rotating the closed source chain to its existing vertex162 places the graph start32m from that documented access, instead of an arbitrary southern vertex. The loop itself is unchanged; no parking connector is drawn.

Route source 1Route source 2Route source 3

Copernicus GLO-90 terrain elevations via Open-Meteo (CC BY4.0); linework: Open Government Licence – City of Prince George · checked 2026-10-18 · CC BY4.0 elevation data; Open Government Licence – City of Prince George linework. Copernicus DEM 2021 GLO-90 via Open-Meteo. Linework source: https://services2.arcgis.com/CnkB6jCzAsyli34z/ArcGIS/rest/services/OpenData_ParkData/FeatureServer/7. Sampled and rounded for display.

Complete mapped outing from Ferguson Lake north-side trail access. Line source (opens original source).

Getting there & parking

  1. Take Highway 97 north to North Kelly Road and turn left.

  2. Follow signs for the reserve and turn left onto Ferguson Lake Road. Continue about 5 km to the lake.

Parking: The City lists the nature reserve at 9915 Ferguson Lake Road.

Full access notes

Head north on Highway 97 and turn left onto North Kelly Road. Follow the Ferguson Lake Nature Reserve signs to the left turn onto Ferguson Lake Road, then continue roughly 5 km to the lake access. The municipal address is 9915 Ferguson Lake Road. Use the reserve’s access area rather than navigating to an arbitrary point on the shoreline.

Estimated drive from Prince George: 27 min · 18.2 km. Modeled one-way driving time from downtown Prince George using mapped road speeds, rounded up to a whole minute. No live traffic or invented forest-road multiplier. Ferguson Lake Road and the small parking lot include unpaved surfaces; parking capacity is limited.

Open driving directions →

Map position: 54.03962, -122.84319 · civic park address. Official published civic address matched exactly by BC Address Geocoder; not verified trailhead or parking. Park location marker for orientation; not a source-published parking point or trailhead. Neighbourhood park existence does not establish a named hiking route.

On the trail

  1. At the lake, choose either direction around the shoreline circuit.

  2. Follow the established lakeside trail and boardwalks past the historic cabins and around to the start.

Full route notes

At the lakeside trail junction, choose either direction around the water and stay on the reserve’s loop. The route links wooded shoreline, elevated plank walkways and the old homestead area, with picnic and fishing facilities near the access. Most of the walking is relatively level, with a few mild slopes. Published distances disagree: the club gives 3.5 km for the lake circuit, while a commercial route guide lists 2.4 km and 40 m of gain for an interpretive loop around the same lake. No different endpoints establish those as separate outings, so treat them as competing estimates. A short visit to the dock or an out-and-back stroll has a different scope. Keep dogs leashed throughout the reserve, including on boardwalks, and leave room for other walkers on the narrower sections. Wildlife uses this edge-of-city habitat, so keep pets close and avoid approaching animals.

The way back

The ordinary visit is a loop around the lake, about 3.5 km in the club guide. Return to the entrance where you parked; the previously listed shorter circuit was not established as a distinct route.

Terrain: boardwalk.

Distance and elevation source notes

The 40 m ascent belongs to the publisher’s 2.4 km shoreline circuit, now selected as the main outing. The licensed City circuit measures about 2.46 km and excludes a parking connector. Caledonia Ramblers gives 3.5 km for the same lake circuit; a separate alignment has not been established.

Conditions & seasons

Season-specific access has not been established in this guide. Read the dated notices and original land-manager information before choosing a departure date.

These are dated research notes. Open the trip planner for current available weather and advisory feeds; no alert found does not establish that a trail or road is open.

Check weather & available updates →

Camping & overnight plans

On-route camping permission has not been established for this outing. Check the relevant land manager before planning an overnight stay; a mapped lake, cabin or previous tent location does not confirm permission.

Photos of Ferguson Lake Nature Reserve

A photograph with confirmed reuse permission has not yet been added to this guide.

Original photo galleries

These galleries stay on their photographers’ original websites.

Take this guide with you

Choose a trip pack or an available individual sheet for your map case.

Full trip packDirections, planning notes & available mapsTopographic mapComplete mapped outing and source locationsElevation sheetProfile of the complete mapped outingSave offline guideDownload a copy to your device
Sources, dates & research notes

Descriptions are written for this guide from the linked evidence. Source review dates, published reports and field observations can differ. Photographs and route lines retain their own attribution and reuse terms.

  1. https://www.princegeorge.ca/parks-recreation/parks-trails/ferguson-lake-nature-reserve (opens original source)
  2. https://www.princegeorge.ca/parks-recreation/parks-trails/our-parks-playgrounds/nature-parks (opens original source)
  3. https://geocoder.api.gov.bc.ca/addresses.geojson?addressString=9915+Ferguson+Lake+Road%2C+Prince+George%2C+BC&maxResults=1&locationDescriptor=accessPoint&outputSRS=4326 (opens original source)
  4. https://www.10adventures.com/hikes/prince-george/ferguson-lake-interpretive-trail/ (opens original source)
  5. https://caledoniaramblers.ca/trails/ferguson-lake (opens original source)
  6. https://www.theoutbound.com/canada/hiking/take-a-stroll-around-ferguson-lake (opens original source)
  7. https://services2.arcgis.com/CnkB6jCzAsyli34z/ArcGIS/rest/services/OpenData_ParkData/FeatureServer/7 (opens original source)
  8. https://backwater.ca/tour/meeting-places/ (opens original source)
  9. https://project-osrm.org/ (opens original source)
  10. https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright (opens original source)
OpenStreetMap line references (1)

These contributor-mapped features support the map geometry. They are separate from the written access and route sources.

  1. https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/470145643 (opens original source)
Details still being researched
  • accessibility
  • camping
  • seasonal

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