Month: November 2021

We were headed to Osoyoos for a mail pick up anyway (we have a PO box there ) and Scott had found a review for Spotted Lake…. (https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-spotted-lake-kliluk-osoyoos-canada )

The reviews describe it as being like something out of Dr Seuss….how could we resist a description like that!!!….so we searched for a trail close by and Kilpoola Lake was the winner promising us spectacular views of the valley. It looked ( from the map ) like it might afford us a view down onto the Kliluk lake…

You can’t actually get to the lake itself, is on protected land…..so the view is from the road…..Its pretty cool…even tho we were not there at the right time to get the full spectacle with the algae doing their artistic best..!!

It was a classic western Canada road halfway up the mountain winding and twisting as it goes…and the ever present cows milling about (a bit like sheep do in Scotland!!!) …oh…and I had the first chance to wear my new fancy little low gaiters….no more pine needles in my socks….!!!!

It was a beautiful, definitely fall day….

Blue sky and mirror flat lakes. It was a relatively easy walk, compared to some of the trails we have done……a steady up grade and a beautiful crisp day…..

It was a wide enough, smooth enough path that we met a couple of cars on the road….( they missed all the fun….you can’t drink in a landscape in quite the same way if there isn’t a bit of suffering involved…!!!)

The landscape changes again….

Around the corner into some old growth trees and more sage brush (and more sage flavoured cows..!!)…brought us along the path to Kilpoola lake. Somewhat disappointingly , the road continued around the lake where two pick-up trucks sat…their owners sitting in the middle of the lake fishing. It did look like a very peaceful spot to fish……

Like many of the lakes here in BC the edge of the lake was white with salts …and it looked curiously like it might also have a bit of the spottedness happening…..might have to see it in a different season…and with a polarising filter to get past the shiny surface of the water.

…and having made it up to this spot…which……other than the fisherman is relatively remote……another curious sight (site..?) appears….

I’m sure there is a mundane explanation….but where is the fun in that…!!?

The stroll back down involved a bit more gaping at scenery…!!

Lovely walk.

A couple of days later there was the beginnings of snow on the mountains…so we took a drive back up to Apex (the starting point for the Nickel Plate Park ).to see if we could take some interesting pictures….Apex had had a foot of snow overnight. It was impressive….but we wont be driving back up anytime soon…it is truly dramatic how much the climate changes as you get further up the mountain….!!!

Next stop will be our flirt with the US border..!!!

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The historic Grist Mill and Gardens in Keremeos. (https://www.oldgristmill.ca/ )

What a find…..we had seen the signs on previous trips through Keremeos ( my new fruit and egg buying spot……handily on the way to the Ashnola Valley).

…and it was early enough in the day to stop to see what it was all about.

When we arrived it was not open…but such a very pretty little spot. Unexpectedly there is also a little campground here (Creekside campground …11 serviced RV spots on the edge of the creek…)

As we wandered around, the manager appeared and invited us to wander up to the mill and through the gardens. Its a heavenly little place…..with an outbuilding converted into a fine little museum. We continued on up the path to the mill itself. …we started taking some pictures of this quite lovely little early 1900’s mill building… https://youtu.be/XnLzc5psL7s

Carrying on down through the gardens there is a little small but superbly comprehensive museum…It was a delight..!!

When we got down to the end of the path where the mill itself sits, I got a big surprise turning around the corner, as there was an aproned and flat capped gentleman working away in the mill grinding grain. He was a wealth of information….. lovely man…..the history of the mill itself is fascinating. Short version of the story…early 1900’s this area was relatively inaccessible……goods were still being brought in on pack mules via the old mountain trails ( we were shown a photograph from the era when there was a proposal to widen the trail to accommodate two loaded pack horse/mules to be able to pass on the trail.)

This is a link to a video of the man himself…very interesting guy https://youtu.be/hp0GuDQ9VK0

The mill was built in 1877 and built with state of the art equipment of the time…..it only operated for ten years and then the railway came through so removed the need for local milling……

The building was closed up and abandoned…so when they opened it up again all the equipment was still there and in good condition…so it has all been restored…I think they had to rebuild the water wheel….but it is back in operation grinding grain again…we were not able to purchase any cos we were right at the end of the season.

( Another amazing detail he pointed out at the water wheel…is ….if you watch closely as the wheel turns…the water drops actually fall upwards…….its hypnotic..!!😃 )

The guy himself was an architect by trade ….with a specialty in museum display…..and an obvious love for the mechanical beauty of this little gem.

Another amazing story he shared was about the red fife wheat. Apparently this heritage grain which has gained much popularity in recent years, had all but disappeared. They found a half pound of grain at the Grist Mill, and from the small amount they were able to re-establish the variety. If you have ever bought Red Fife….it originated from the Grist Mill in Keremeos.

Wandering through the orchard , the upper part of the garden and back along the creek….this place is entirely dedicated to heirloom species of fruit, vegetable and grain……and its lovely.

Lots of heritage apples……and a little patch of Scott’s fave…..the cacti…!!

Its a great little place….for anyone that finds themselves in this area……its a must stop and see.

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Another Alltrails trail that seemed like a good excuse to go back up to the Ashnola valley, and promised a ruined cabin at the end of it. Driving back up to Ashnola…..the scenery was a bit different again as we are a little further on in the fall season and there is a bit more colour….The reds of the Ontario maples are obvious by their absence….golden and green landscape with little splashes of red from the sumac.

It was a crisp cool fall day…..and the discussion on route often involves bears…..we have not (yet!) seen any on an actual hike in BC or Alberta….but the possibility is something we are always aware of….Its interesting how often one sees a black shape through the trees…….(flinch..!!) oh its a burnt stump….or a cow…..or a shadow…!!!

It was another straight up trail with lots of switchbacks.( I know…I know…its a mountain thing 😂 )….one impressive thing on Alltrails for this one was that there are a couple of reviews from peops who have done it as a trail run….I’ll tell you walking was enough for me…!!!

The ‘beautiful meadow’ described in the app was clearly in the wrong season…presumably the spring and summer sees it full of wildflowers. In the fall in late October…..its mostly dead grass….!!! But the views were still quite spectacular…!!!

Hargreaves cabin…the goal for the day…….( I could not find any more information on it ie how old it is…who built it and why). It is a turf roofed wooden cabin halfway up Crater Mountain….(resident= 1 cow..!!!)

There were lots of cows…..beef cows ( beef cows are notorious for their unfriendly demeanor !!) and they started making a bit of noise at us…so I insisted that the photographer finish up and we head back down……at least back across the Texas gate (cattle grid).

The sun came out on return trip. We stopped a little longer in the meadow…..

….and found some interesting artifacts…..!!!…there has to be a story here…!!!

There were many breathtaking views, as seems to have become the ‘normal’…..an advantage of having to stop to look (so you don’t trip over something and fall down a cliff face…!!!)…..is that you can also sneak in those rest stops to catch your breath…!!!

Back down to the river again….

Another very satisfying day…..after the always impressive drive back down along the Ashnola river back to Keremeos…we unraveled another little minor mystery….the historic Grist Mill……..which will be the next post…….

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Burn Perimeter trail.

This was the second trip out with Scotts new toy…….a digital Nikon camera…….so lets see how the pictures work out uploading them. I am already finding that I have to sacrifice some of the clarity of the pictures just to be able to upload them …….feedback welcome if anyone has any opinions….!!

The drive to the park was another one of those BC mountain phenomenal roller coaster rides….the road on the GPS looks like a childs squiggly drawing……with lots of loops and switchbacks……we passed through Apex Mountain Resort and headed up a logging road that no one in their right mind would drive in even vaguely inclement weather or compromised lighting…… ( Aside…..we drove this road a week later in a foot of snow……absolutely terrifying…!!)

The trail itself was a cross country skiing trail…..I have to admit I was not aware one could cross country ski on such grades……not the steepest hike we have done……but there was still a significant climb.

The trail itself has been ignored a bit with COVID….so there were sections where it was difficult to follow the trail through the new growth pine and marshland…..who knew it could be so boggy up so high (just shy of 2000m of elevation)…..fortunately this elevation in October turned out to be mostly frozen…..so crunchy marsh…!!!

I keep saying it….but it is amazing how much terrains can differ……even with the proximity of this trail to Brent mountain……its kind of the next mountain over…..the terrain is quite distinctly different

Part way round, actually about halfway…we decided to deviate from the route and skip the walk up the valley on the grounds that we were already in snow and with no ice grips for our boots going higher might be foolish..(!)….and we would trade it for following another trail down to the lake side…..I think it wa a good decision…..the lake was stunning…..

….and one of the perks of the new camera came with these little buddies who flew right at us and then sat for a photo op. No way I could get them with my phone, even as close as they were….

We made it back to the truck right on time as the light was fading. Something we have had to become very conscious of, not just for the hike but for the drive home too.

Another great day out…highly recommend the trail……might be worth trying it again in snow shoes in a few weeks…!!!

Next stop is Crater Mountain hike up to Hargreaves Cabin….a return to Ashnola..!!!

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Fooled me again…this was supposed to be a moderate 5km walk in the park close to home ( its a mere 10 minutes from where home is currently parked…..we can see it from our windows.)

It was a loop walk, which looked fairly easy on the map with an advertised 268 m elevation gain. Should let us stretch our legs we thought………we missed the significance of the ‘bluffs’ bit….

( It was also the first hike with Scotts new camera……so most of the images are now taken with a camera rather than just a phone……we will see how that turns out…!!! )

It starts with winding, snaking single track road up to the parking lot in Skaha Bluffs Provincial Park.

This was a Sunday, we usually avoid weekends, and the parking lot was jammed full so it was going to be busy…ah well…we were there so lets get on…

Easy well cut trail at start….and starts to climb……first bluff Scott wanted to veer off onto another trail….( cos it looked interesting….!!! Editor 🤷‍♂️)….so we headed around the rock face and on up the trail….we spied some climbers in action with all the gear and ropes.

Turns out ( my pre-hike research skills are apparently lacking..😂) that Skaha Bluffs is one of the premiere rock climbing parks in Canada…!!! (https://www.mountainproject.com/area/105946462/skaha )

I know…I’m saying it again….but this trail turned in to an unexpected beauty…yet another very different and quite spectacular landscape……..

I called it quits at the 50 m mark on the ledge along the rock face…..I’m quite sure it was do-able for some one braver than me…!!…..but more than I was prepared to do…back we went to find another way around.

There were lots of little 2 to 5 m climbs…not an easy path……

But the rewards…(the views )…delivered as they always seem to manage to do….!!!

The way back down was a bit challenging also. The reverse of the little rock climbs up…were, of course, little rock climbs (or little muddy butt slides…!!!) down.

Weaving our way down it was laugh out loud crazy at times as we faced the rock filled gully….it was like Turtle Mountain meets Grotto Canyon……!!!

Towards the bottom of the rockiest bits we met up with some climbers that were done for the day. They seemed to know the way so we followed them down for a bit. It was exciting…!!!!😮

Many of the paths ended in cliff faces. With hindsight……..because it’s a rock climbers paradise…..!!!

It was a bit of a relief to get back on more level ground….but it was a thoroughly enjoyable day (for a recovery walk…!!!😂)

The next adventure……and workout for the new camera…was Nickel Plate park up in the clouds past Apex mountain.

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This was an ambitious project for sure. To get to the interior part of Cathedral park, there is no road access….well there is…there is one private road where ( in season ) you can get a shuttle…a jeep ride up (for a fee)….but we were beyond the end of the season so if we were going to get to the core it was a walk in. The shortest route in is the Lakeview trail …and its 16km in ( and yes ….16km back out )…..We thought..(!!!)….if we started early ( sunrise for the day was 7.19 am…..and set at 6.33pm ) 4 hours in 4 hours out…..we might manage it….!!!

It was cold….fall is most definitely in the air…!! 🍁🍂

The trail is daunting…in the first 6km you gain 1200 m in elevation….unrelenting up is the description.!!!……….its not rough…its just up…and up…and up……

If you are thinking that the look on my face is a bit tortured….you are quite correct…!!! It was torture…..many rest stops…( and a bit of whingeing…!!😣)

It was cold enough on the way up that when we disturbed a couple of pheasants…they ambled…lethargically across the path…!!

Eventually we did get to the spot where we could see the mountain range….not close enough to get photographs with a phone camera….but enough to appreciate what we were aiming for……breathtaking views of those mountains (with snow on top…!!)

The path levelled of for a bit giving our very weary legs a bit of a break…..but we were up into the snow line…so it was cold and crisp….

…….and quite unexpectedly some fungi in the snow…!!! (my guys…!!!😁)

…at 3 hours in and just shy of 9km……it became clear that we were not going to make it….and the road down was not going to be easy……so before any more climbing (and expending more energy going in………) we should admit defeat and head back down……..we could not afford to lose light either on the walk….or the drive back down Ashnola.

There are a couple of burned spots…it’s the same weird pattern where there are burned trees…..and thick ash……but then all the trees around are completely intact…

In the valleys…the sun goes down at 6.33…..but you lose light before that…cos you are in the shadow of the mountain….the horizon is not at ground level…!!!

There were a couple of stops on the drive back down the valley for more photo ops….it is just so beautiful ………oh…and the trail that we actually walked…!!!

Next stop was an astonishing trip to Skaha Bluffs…….

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Scott had found some really promising hiking trails in Cathedral park…an hours drive from here……So off we trucked….following the Alltrails directions to get to the trailhead.

Unfortunately …one of the limitations of Alltrails here….was the failure to mention that most of Cathedral park is not accessible by road. In fact…there is a private company that do a jeep shuttle service on the only track in to the core several times a day…but that service halts for the season Sept 30th (and costs $130 per person ) https://bcparks.ca/explore/parkpgs/cathedral/

or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_Provincial_Park_and_Protected_Area

Admittedly we should have done a bit more research before we drove up there….but we really had no idea just the scale of this park ’til we got there…..

The drive up through Keremeos (which is spectacular in its own right ) still could not have prepared us for the unparalleled natural beauty of the Ashnola river…..with our ‘Wow’ muscles overworking big time…we actually stopped the truck in the middle of the road quite a few times to get out an stare…turn around and stare some more…..if any of you out there ever get the opportunity to come here…take it…..its like a whole different magnificence….!!! I have pictures to show……so Ill try to share.

The trailhead…is actually the basecamp for the company that runs the shuttle service up the mountain……so that was the end of our plan for the day….we did, however, carry on up the valley …still in awe of our surroundings…..

…and we took a couple of opportunities to park and work our way down to the river….

We did find another track off the main (only) road up the valley…and with our hike plan dead in the water….took a peek down it…and found that there is actually a parking lot and a park map…..this is a spot where one of the few hiking trails in to the park start. We hiked it for a couple of kms and decided we should probably know a bit more….and start earlier in the day…….and bring sammiches….!!!

There are many small (unserviced) campsites of this road up the Ashnola valley….for any of you out there who fancy it…….there can be few spots anywhere to camp more spectacular than these (and they are $10 per adult per night through BC parks…) Not a road you would want to pull a 30 ft trailer up…….but maybe a smaller trailer or motorhome would be just the ticket… (the road is not bad but its narrow…often close to the edge of a cliff and has many winding corners…..)

Down this little side road…we managed to get right to the river…and although we did not see any beavers we did find these very skillfully carved trees.

We still did get a few kms in for the day…and a plan for where we might go next…!! Bonus…

The drive home through Keremeos we had to stop at a fruit stand….its like some kind of Utopian fantasy…fresh local fruit. veg and samosas…..they even have a slushie machine set up with mango lassi…….gotta love this place…..😁😁😁

So…the next adventure will be a return to Cathedral park……

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We needed to find a walk for a bit of exercise……there were few interesting looking ones but a bit of a drive to get there so we opted for something a little closer and plumped for Peach Cliff Trail.

The trailhead is just above Okanagan Falls which is at the other end of Skaha Lake from where we are. Its always a beautiful drive around here……

We have been quite fascinated by the range of different varieties of pine cones we see…from little ones with barbs on them to HUGE ones from the Ponderosa Pines…….begging to be used for ……..something…….if anyone has a great idea then message me…cos these things are amazing……

(Ponderosa Pines.. https://www.coniferousforest.com/ponderosa-pine.htm#:~:text=Ponderosa%20pine%20is%20a%20species%20of%20lean%20and,resilient%20timber%20as%20well%20as%20for%20recreational%20use. )

Peach Cliff has signs on the routes asking peeps to stay on the trails…and not make new trails…….its an area that has lots….and lots of these little cacti……and a bit like the fungi……you don’t really see them ’til you are almost on them….(which can be hazardous if you are the guy that likes to lie down to get close up pictures….!!!!)

I dropped my sunglasses halfway up the hill…..and got the extra bit of exercise trucking back down to fetch them……it always amazes me how much steeper the hills seem on the way down…..

We had some views of the higher scorched areas from this trail…..and the swathes of reddish brown from the flame retardants they drop during the wildfire management. At first it was hard to tell if we were seeing the iron ore in the rocks….but when you look at the burn patterns it becomes more obvious……its hard to get pictures with the phone camera because of the scale of the hills and the forests

At the highest elevation of this hike we had some impressive views of Skaha Lake..not the most challenging hike we have done…but a lovely walk on a lovely day…..

We were rewarded on the way home with an encounter with some mountain sheep grazing by the roadside.

Overall a very satisfying hike……might well be an interesting one in snowy weather (if we get any…!!😁)

The 7th…we took a trip back up to Abandoned Rail brewing to meet with Peter (head brewer ) and get the tour……..waiting now for him to open…hopefully in the next few weeks…

The next post is our first encounter with the Ashnola River valley…….

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