One culvert under one short road, a fish-bearing stream beneath it, and a closure that ran from February 2024 into the following June.
Where Katherine Lake sits, and the other places we attend
around Pender Harbour. Every name on the map is a link.
The smallest of the twelve accessible lakes
Katherine Lake lies off Garden Bay Road between Kleindale and Garden Bay. BC Geographical Names adopted the name on 2 March 1950, on map sheet 92F/9, at 49 degrees 39 minutes 07 seconds north and 124 degrees 01 minutes 40 seconds west. A second, unrelated Katherine Lake exists near Coquitlam on a different map sheet.
Bylaw 708 lists the accessible lakes in the Egmont and Pender Harbour plan area from smallest to largest, and Katherine Lake is first on that list, ahead of Lily Lake and Ambrose Lake and well below Sakinaw at 686 hectares. Routing on 12 September 2026 measured 11.72 kilometres and 16 minutes from the lake to the Madeira Park centre, with Sechelt Hospital about 43.7 kilometres and 49 minutes away.
The access road off Garden Bay Road is short, and it crosses a fish-bearing stream. Both of those facts became the whole story of this place in 2024.
Nineteen powered sites, and a season that ends at Labour Day
Katherine Lake Park and Campground is a regional district park at 4955 Garden Bay Road, operated under contract by Pristine Parks Ltd. It has 19 sites with recreational vehicle hookups, numbers 1 to 6 at 15 amps and 7 to 19 at 30 amps, plus 10 tent campsites. Facilities are two washroom buildings with showers for campers, a sandy swimming beach without lifeguard services, a small playground, fishing, boating, an on-site caretaker and a day use picnic area. The season runs from the May long weekend to Labour Day in September.
That schedule is the local reality for anyone with a house near the lake. From September to May the park is shut, the caretaker's season is over, and the one place on this road where people gather has nobody in it.
One culvert failed in February 2024 and the road closed
Heavy rainfall in February 2024 opened a sinkhole in the park's access road. The regional district's statement on 24 April 2024 described the damage as significant and attributed it to an undersized and corroded culvert system. The repair required complete culvert replacement and reinforcement of the road base. Because a fish-bearing stream runs beneath the road, both provincial and federal approvals were needed before work could proceed.
The remediation and upgrade of the road will be completed with climate resiliency in mind.
Shelley Gagnon, SCRD General Manager, 24 April 2024
The park was to stay closed until at least after the May long weekend, and the campground operator refunded existing bookings. Permit timelines then pushed it further: the closure was extended toward July, with the regional district saying it would report in mid-June on any additional cancellations. The campground opening was finally announced for 7 June.
One rainfall event, one culvert, one short road, and the better part of a year and a half of engineering and permitting. There is no second route to the lake.
What that road failure means for a house on it
The same rainfall that lifted a culvert on a public road runs through private driveway culverts on the same slope. Driveway crossings here are smaller, older and not inspected by anyone unless the owner arranges it. A blocked or collapsed culvert on a private lane does not close a campground; it strands a house, and it is usually found by whoever next tries to drive in.
The regional district's plan for this area records that terrain and soil types present moderate constraints for on-site sewage disposal, road development and site preparation, and that geotechnical review may be required. Fire cover comes from the Pender Harbour Volunteer Fire Department, with Hall 1 at 4990 Gonzales Road in Madeira Park and Hall 2 at 13303 Deller Road in Garden Bay. The five engines across both halls carry 3,300 US gallons in total and no tender is listed.
What a check at Katherine Lake covers
The driveway culvert and the ditch line either side of it, especially after heavy rain
The access road surface between Garden Bay Road and the property, for slumping or washout
Doors, windows, sheds and the boathouse, with every lock tried individually
Heat on and holding, or the whole system drained and the supply valve confirmed closed
The well pump, pressure tank and any treatment unit still running on power
The dock, float and any small boat or canoe left at the lake for the winter
Trees and limbs over the lane, the roof and the overhead service drop
The septic tank lid and field, and the ground above them after prolonged wet weather
Dated photographs of every item above, issued the day the visit takes place
An unoccupied house is usually subject to a policy condition setting the longest permitted gap between inspections during the heating season, four consecutive days in many contracts, with a competent person doing the inspecting, unless the water is off and the system drained. Insurers do not word it identically, so read the condition in your own contract.
What it costs
A scheduled check at Katherine Lake is
$55 a visit, plus
$10 travel. The travel charge is the same
everywhere between Gibsons and Egmont. There is no minimum term and no joining fee.
See the full price list.
Where these facts come from
Every figure, date and quotation on this page was taken from one of these. They are
listed so you can read them yourself.
