Jocko Lake (Jacko)
Jocko Lake facing NNE. A low elevation lake in the "grasslands"
General Information
It seems a modern cartographer misread Jocko for Jacko as all the new maps have the incorrect (Jacko Lake) name on them.
This is a good family fishing lake. There are several good locations along the shoreline from which a person can easily fly or spin cast. Easy walking trails circle most of the lake. There are no specific good swimming areas and of course, as with most lakes, there are leaches.
This is a small lake and one on which it would be difficult to get into serious trouble in a boat due to strong winds. It can be windy but a person can get to shore almost anywhere along the lake and, if necessary, walk around, back to the boat launch site.
Location and Access
Jocko Lake is approximately a 20 minute drive from downtown Kamloops. Turn off the Trans Canada Highway #1 at the Copperhead Exit.(west of Aberdeen Mall) Go (south) left across the highway overpass then take the first right onto the Old Lac Le Jeune Road. Most of the route is paved.
Coming from Kamloops you will pass under a mine road overpass. Slow down as the turn-off is on your left, about one hundred metres past the overpass. The distance from the pavement to the lake is about 2 kilometers. There are often some potholes but all have a good solid bottom and small cars are often seen at the launch site. It should be noted there are some rather sharp rocks and crushed gravel on some short sections. During spring and early summer you will also see many groundhogs who live along the roadside and in some southern banks above the lake.
This lake can be quite busy, especially on weekends. We have seen upwards of fifteen cars and boats and other's have told us of numbers in the mid twenties.
Boat Launch & Site
When you arrive at the lake the boat launch is directly in front of you. The actual launch site is good, solid gravel. There is room for three boats to be launched at the same time if everyone is considerate. If you are not pulling a boat trailer, after you launch your boat, park on your left, facing the fence. If you are pulling a boat trailer, after you launch it is easiest to simply pull straight ahead up on the rise. Please pull up a considerable distance so as to leave more available single vehicle parking over by the fence.
Note vehicles parked facing fence (upper centre) and those with trailers pulled further up the hill.(upper right)
Special Note:
This access and launch site is on private land and our local Kamloops Fish & Game Club have made arrangements with the owners to allow public access.
Good habitat for shoreline dwellers. Of note, there are several large dead ponderosa pine trees that have fallen (or are about to fall) into the lake. If windy, suggest you stay out from shore wherever those dead standing trees are