Category: Travel posts

The plan for the day was to hike the Observatory loop. It kind of made sense, having spied the Observatory from Hawthorne Mountain, to take the ground level walk around it….

( The Observatory being the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory ..https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominion_Radio_Astrophysical_Observatory )

We drove up to the observatory with my trusty Alltrails map already downloaded….

….only to find, once we arrived, the Observatory property…and the trailhead for this hike….are currently inaccessible to the public due to the covids.

We had noticed another trail entrance further up the road on our way home from the last hike……but with no data service to search for another trail….this time it was navigating without a route using Alltrails…….how bad could it be..!!! how long was the trail, was it steep and were there any aliens visiting ?

The parking area was jammed with vehicles……and the signs indicated that this was another birding spot. We only saw a couple of actual people head off up the trail, and though we thought it might be busier than our usual hikes….we were here, so, off we trekked around the edge of the cliff.

Found this weird creepy ….large stripped skeleton…not a cow…(not a person) maybe a bear we thought…(or an alien…!!!!).Further investigation once home leads me to believe it was a pig of some kind…possibly a feral pig ( they apparently have a problem with feral pigs…Alberta Saskechewan, BC )

It was a grayish, cold day and a lovely trail. Then it started going steeply downhill. (….not a good sign early in a hike….cos it means you have to climb back up…likely at the end). We decided to keep on going to see if we could make the loop around the hill/mountain…..

As we passed through the trees on the way down the hill….there were a number of neat piles of branches scattered through the area……further investigation determined that this was a conservation effort to combat an invading beetle infestation……it looked like preparation for a bunch of socially distanced bonfires…!!!!

At the point we were pretty sure we were NOT going back up that hill……we found another strange structure that looked like maybe some prospecting of old (or maybe I’m just over romanticizing…!!)

After another little bit of a climb we stumbled on a pool where we spotted a couple of beavers..(we think…!!). They were initially startled when we arrived…but soon got back to their beavery business…swimming around…diving for stuff…..generally mucking about.

We trekked across part of the same trail we followed up Hawthorne mountain…..and it looked (from the map) as if we could get all the way up the valley……..there were a couple of ropey (slightly scary..!!) bits in the middle where we were a little concerned we might have to back track.

…but we found our way back on to another well travelled path that lead us all the way back to observatory…this time in the valley below Hawthorne….and another unexpected abandoned object in the middle of nowhere…!!!

Good walk…nice day…!!!

No bears, or lions, or jackalopes….!!! ( Or aliens )

Next trip out…..The Fur Brigade trail…!!!!

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We set off to try our hand (or feet) at Keogan Mountain…the weather was warmer than it is going to be for a bit so we thought we would try this one. But…arriving at where google maps took us to the trailhead…it starts in the middle of a vineyard that states ‘by appointment only’ on the gate. (Boooo…..!!)

So a quick adjustment to see what else was around….took us to McIntyre Bluffs….the hike is through Willowbrook Parkland ( https://www.willowbrookparkland.com/ ) which is a private park that asks for a $5 per person …$10 seemed like a good deal for the day so off we trotted….especially when the signs on the gate seemed to promise us Lions and tigers and bears…….

With no real chance to research or prep this on…I was not entirely sure what to expect…..but the start through the forest was promising…..

The trail made some promises….Rattlesnake Trail leading to Rattlesnake Lake……quite lovely…but no snakes…!!!

The reviews said to expect some near vertical inclines on the path…….when one is 4 km in to a 10 km out and back hike…without having encountered any serious elevation yet….I was starting to get a bit worried.

It turns out that perception is everything….!! Yes there were a couple of short steep climbs on the path……but we have seen, and done, MUCH worse…..!!!

Once you get to the bluffs….the view literally takes your breath. We have driven by these cliffs many times and stayed at Gallagher Lakes at the foot of the cliff, and now we were at the top. It is a sheer drop down to the highway….but its a ‘top of the world’ kind of place and on this beautiful blue sky day…the view is all the way down the valley across Oliver. Osoyoos and the countryside beyond are just visible in the background. The world had become miniature in that moment…!!!

This was probably one of the busiest places we have been at elevation…there were two other couples that had brought their lunch for this spot….a stellar idea……!!!

We stopped for a water break and some snacks. As we sat basking, the wind that had been promised in the forecast started up…a warm south wind, but a strong one…so it was time to head back down……

For a last minute pick…it was a pretty good day I would have to say…

And given the wind that whipped up…we were quite thankful we were not up Keogan mountain…….maybe another day…!!!

Next trip was an attempt at the Observatory loop……(a crazy adventure due to another ‘access denied’ and last minute change of plan …!!!!)

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We had a break in the weather. The forecast had been predicting a miserable day….but the morning outlook was much better. It was time to load up Alltrails and see what I could find, with not too much elevation…(we have had a lot of rain…not that I mind the mud…its more the slippery stuff…I prefer my legs to be unbroken..!!)

I found this one…the Peat Bog Loop, 22 minutes from home. It looked like a good candidate ( although it did occur to me as we started walking, that the name…Peat Bog….might not be a good omen…!!!)….the park we were headed to was actually the one between Campbell mountain and Skaha Bluffs.

The access road up to the trailhead was death defyingly steep and winding (as we have come to expect…!!) and the view across the valley was truly awe inspiring (….there were a few spots on the road that were a sheer drop off….cliff going down forever …and no barrier….and a driver that delights in driving right next to the edge…!!!) Editor, if the customers ain’t screamin’ …. turn it up.

The trail description promised amazing views of the valley…if there is a spot with good views….we did not find it…..!!!

It was a mostly deep forest walk….with a relatively easy grade….very serene and very pretty but no magnificent blogworthy photo ops…!!! (other than maybe some enormous prints…!!)

Midway round had some lovely views…but too many trees to be as photogenic as some of the ones we have done to date..

Crunching through the snow…lots of squirrel tracks…no bear tracks..!!!

The little squirrel prints were super cute…you can see all of its little fingers..!!!

The photographer turned his attention to smaller details in the absence of our usual landscapes LOL……

It was a really pleasant forest hike…..and good to get out and get some air and some exercise. There is more bad weather coming up so it might be a few days before we get out again.

Next hike was an attempt at Keogan mountain…which is the start of the next story…!!!

After a little break for the holiday season……and some record breaking cold , snowy weather in BC (!!!), here’s the first of the last few adventures of 2021, clearing the decks for a whole new set in 2022. No plans yet for a direction, we’ll see which way the wind blows us.

Happy New Year everyone….!!!

I have to say I did not have particularly high hopes for this one…….the last couple of hikes…though they were great fun…really did not deliver on the views we promised. So this one ….mostly…… was a fairly gentle elevation gain for the gradually diminishing weather conditions we are facing.

We definitely had a good day for being out…..it was a spectacular blue sky day ( with a few of those fake little cotton candy ‘Toy Story’ clouds scattered about)…and by following the rail trail we knew the grade was not going to be particularly challenging.

The view, strangely, for not having to work too hard for it, was breathtaking……

But as much as the walk does not challenge physically….you just have to keep stopping and staring because it just a non-stop fantastic visual feast the whole way.

The traffic was mostly bikes…there were a lot…..it would be a great trail for biking further…..we may have to come back and do the next stretch up to the Adra Tunnel. Its a much longer tunnel and most of it is now collapsed….but it sounds like an interesting site. As it was…we were headed to the smaller Little Tunnel…a very impressive engineering marvel …!!!!…I wonder how many broken limbs, squashed digits happened and lives were lost in its construction as well just the run of the railway blasting out the cliffs and filling the gullies….

Just beyond the tunnel we could see some huge rock ledges….the furthest one had what looked like a picnic table on it….and it seemed impossible to get to……but a little further on there is a marked trail called the Ladybug trail which weaves back across the rocks to where the table is, and another marvelous vantage point…..

We passed signage for “Rock Ovens”…apparently built for or by the workers who built the railroad. We were very tempted to do this side detour but we had a time deadline on this particular day (birthday party for a friend….Happy Birthday Stephen…!!) so we decided to investigate a little and come back another day….

Rock ovens….https://discovernaramata.com/parks-trails-beaches/rock-ovens-park

And so to the return journey…..

Overall…it was a ‘good for the soul’ day. BC` continues to astonish me with its spectacular beauty. It just never gets old…!!!

Next trip is the not particularly inspiringly named “Peat Bog Loop”…..what could go wrong there…!!!

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This post is out of sequence….but it just seemed like the perfect one to publish for Christmas…..so Merry Christmas and wishing much joy to all for all the holidays and festivities you care to celebrate..

A window had opened in the wintery weather promised for the week…..a day where it was going to be 1 deg C…but stable and with some sun…where the rest of the week forecast is lots of snow…and some perishing cold for the BC interior……lows of -9..(I can hear the chortling in Ontario and Calgary as you read this…!!)

I had found this Bobcat and Far Out Loop……..I’m a real sucker for these bizarre names on the trails…so this one seemed like a must. Plus it was back to Naramata which is beautiful and very close to our little tin house ……on the east side of the valley. …(which…as we have discovered…stays in the sun for longer…!!!)

The trailhead was not immediately easy to find as there has been a great deal of construction in this area….huge multimillion dollar houses perched on the rock faces…This area is being developed at a frightening rate, hence, trails which were do-able even 6 months ago have now become private homes and gardens.

We found it by locating a parking area close by on the KVR and walking back to the trailhead. I was very glad of my ice-grip spikey soles and gaiter combo on this hike.

Once we got up to the loop part…we were on virginal snow…(crispy crunchy ) I do love walking in fresh snow…..so I was having a blast…

Its a little harder to see the actual trail in the snow……which is why I have my phone in my hand in most of the pictures…lol…..

It was not a difficult walk along the side of the valley. When the views of the lake were obscured…we were surrounded by this wonderful Christmas card landscape with snow atmospherically clinging to undisturbed branches and stumps……it was just soooo pretty.

I absolutely loved this hike, we added a couple of extra bits in to the Alltrails map we were following. Both because the day was so lovely, we had some time left in the short day, and who could resist the possibilities promised by a trail named Lynx…!!!

We did not see much actual wildlife out and about. There were many scatterings of tiny footprints of all kinds of critters……and most notable by absence……no bear prints 😅😂

It really was like waltzing through a series of Christmas cards, or chocolate boxes…without the chocolate…!!!!

….and on the descent….we left the official path again having been too tempted by following the yellow brick road……!!!

What a lovely day, filled with sights and smells (….the forest pine smell has a whole level of loveliness to add to the picture….!!) and sounds…crunch crunch crunch…

So…here is wishing everyone a happy, restful peaceful holiday season….and a Happy & Prosperous New Year to one and all when it arrives….!!!!

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The weather…as I keep on saying…..is becoming progressively cooler and I am trying to pick hikes at a lower elevation to reduce our exposure to extreme weather/conditions. So …today was a return to Skaha bluffs…but this time a far less scary route with a lower level hike….including the promise of some pictographs…..

When we got to the park the gate was closed…not sure why…but it meant that the first 1km of our hike was straight uphill to the parking lot….to begin the proscribed trail.

It seems pretty steep in the truck…I’m telling you it was a bit of a slog…!!..but once we got up to the park the elevation was much easier. It was a really windy day…and I think we picked a fairly sheltered hike…most of it was up the valley between the rock faces ( pretty intimidating rock walls either side of this hike….!!)

I did the phone call to mum on the way up….had to shorten the call cos the wind was so bad when we hit the top of the trail she could not hear me any more…!!!..and we also found this cool pictograph on the rock wall on the way up…

Lots and lots of bear sign……a bit of a bear alley really…but no actual bear sightings….either the bells work….or they were all sensible enough to be tucked up somewhere warm that day…!!!

Once we got to the end of the valley…the views out across the lake were phenomenal…

…..then as we climbed up to get a better view…we stumbled across more pictographs. A little unexpected delight….!!!

They are such simple drawings…but they are just sooooo cool…….

I tried to research to see if I could find more information about the pictographs, or pictographs in general….but information is pretty scant……anybody out there got some references..?

We were hoping that we could get to the other side of the rock here to get better vistas down the lake…..

Scott disappeared up the ladder and across the top of the rock…leaving a very cross wife……( has he fallen off, has he been eaten by a bear….crap he has the truck keys…!!!) (Editor. Did we keep that life insurance going ?)

…thankfully he re-appeared…and with some pix of eagles…so he said….!!!! I dont know…maybe he faked them so I wouldn’t kill him…!!!

….we always seem to find the fungi on the way down…!!!!

…..and so to the journey back down…..

…and I just have to add these two pictures…its the view from the entrance to the big Pentiction PC grocery store….

Next trip out goes up the Naramata Bench (mega wine country)….following the very spectacular Kettle Valley Rail trail

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Another trail starting from that winding road from Okanagan Falls…The weather forecast was for snow, so we rushed out the door fingers crossed.

The starting point we found from the Dogtown trail…is the Mahoney Lake Ecological Reserve….and this was roughly in the vicinity of the trailhead for this one…but heading north instead of south. The path itself starts through ponderosa pine with those enormous pine needles (8 to 9 inches long) covering the path as you go.

There is an area just inside the reserve that has a generous scattering of those big white mushrooms peeking their heads up…an area obviously being harvested by someone judging by the number of cut stems….need to get my mushroom app on those ones…..they might just be delicious..!!!

Interestingly (to me anyway) this trail is two valleys down from where all the flooding happened in Merritt BC…destroying the roads and rail…and much farmland and homes in these past few days….but the pools and ponds along this trail are quite dry and at low levels……interesting how those mountains drain…..and how narrow the influence of that ‘atmospheric river ‘ was.

Lovely trail…with a few rocky scrambly up bits…..I might be getting used to these…maybe just a little….

As we headed ever higher we realised the view from this one is actually down onto the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory (DRAO…… https://astro-canada.ca/l_observatoire_federal_de_radioastrophysique-the_dominion_radio_astrophysical_observatory-eng )………..…and then we started looking for better vantage points to see down that valley.

As we continued up…as promised the snow clouds rolled in…and now we were up in the snow line…..not a lot…..just enough to make it pretty……(not too slippery just in case anyone is concerned)

It was another bust on the view from the top…as once again we were in the cloud and blizzard so the views down were not up to promise….but we made up for it with some of the snowy scenes we were able to witness….and no bears…..

We did have one lone deer galloped across the path…waited for me to fumble out my phone and then take off again before I could snap any pix…..

It was a long loop across the top of the ridge ( we came up through the valley) on the way back down…we managed to find our way without dropping off any cliff faces…again.

….and just a little bit of bear sign………!!!!

Another great day out…thoroughly enjoyable…….

Next trip out is back to Skaha Bluffs but this time for the pictograph route.

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Not only was the trail called Mount Conkle Bonk (with frontal loop..!!!) but the trailhead was in Summerland……

We drive through and past Summerland on the way to Kelowna….but we had not actually stopped there before…..

As the weather gets a little colder and winter is tapping on the window ….Summerland sounded like a good place to spend the day.

At the start of the trail…the signposts indicate that it is part of the Trans Canada trail…which was kinda cool too…..considering some of the bits we have done.

Theres a fair bit of history to Summerland it seems…..

It would appear that all kinds of important banking people in Canadian banking history have connections to Summerland…as does the Cremation of Sam McGee ( it was all new news to me ) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cremation_of_Sam_McGee

Its a lovely walk…and less intensely uphill than some of the ones we have done recently. There were quite a few mountain bikes……those guys are braver than me..(or crazier..!!)

Winding up the switchbacks we met up with a couple of hikers that we passed , they passed, we passed a few times…eventually we stopped for a chat on the top (Hi to Deb and Keith..!!). I think they were quite a bit fitter than us…..very nice couple. Good chat…and some recommendations on local trails……

They also pointed out the train station….this little bit of the KVR has a working steam train… https://www.kettlevalleyrail.org/ ……..unfortunately the train does not operate past the end of October….but for a reasonable fee one can ride it up the valley .

The views from the ridge at the top did not disappoint….also, curiously, there was this Tibetan flag tribute……kinda cool to find up there…

Deb and Keith also made the recommendation for our next hike ( Dogown Trail ) nice people…we hope to meet them again some day out on the trails.

There was a bit of bushwhacking on the way back down on this one….but no sheer drop off a cliff incidents….so all good…!!!

There are lots of trails up around this spot….so there may be a return journey…..

Next spot will be Dogtown Trail….or as Scott is keen to call it…Cloudy Mountain…!!!

A few extra pix

We had been chatting to the cheese vendor at the Kelowna market…and he mentioned this three day market in Penticton that he would be at…..so it seemed like another , slightly different adventure to add to the calender. https://www.visitpenticton.com/event/yuletide-market-at-the-penticton-trade-convention-centre/

Penticton Convention centre is also where the pool (and the hockey arena ) are…so we knew where we were going (for once..lol).

Lots of the usual suspects……Christmas crafts abounding……

I was surprised that Macrame seems to be a thing….there were quite a few vendors selling macrame crafts..!!!

The cheese guy was there (so we bought some fancy Gouda….!!(😋)…

…and the samosa lady…so …of course we had to get some of those…..very festive…!!!

We finished up, I would have to say, more than a little disappointed…..I thought we might find some interesting ideas….and there probably were……

I think its more than possible that what one learns from this new minimal lifestyle we seem to have adopted…..is how much ‘stuff’ no-one really needs…!!!

Next adventure ….back to the hikes…..conquering Conkle Bonk…!!!