Four sunny days at Baldy
It was a triple-whammy that was spread over four sunny days at Baldy Mountain Resort in the South Okanagan. The Ski Sheriff and Constant Companion Carmen joined 10 other members of the Central Okanagan Outdoors Club at a large rented home, went downhill skiing on Saturday, checked out snowshoe trails on Sunday and skied the McKenney Nordic Ski Club trails on Monday. All four days illustrated the significant impact of weather on conditions.
Bright sunshine was beaming down on the downhill runs off the Eagle Chair so the Sheriff and CCC headed to the shade and cooler temperatures of the Sugarlump Chair.
With four seats on each chair, there was no lineup on this conventional speed lift so many twosomes rode up by themselves. The five blue and green runs were groomed to perfection while the two blacks were a little lumpy from the previous day's skiers and boarders.
With two total hip replacements in 2015 and 2016, the Sheriff was a little rusty — for the first half of the first run. Muscle memory kicked in and he was quickly making those long giant slalom swooping turns that take the breath away. Others in the group found fresh powder in the Glades off the Eagle Chair.
After lunch, we figured the Eagle Chair blues would now be suitably warmed up. And warmed up they were, to the point that hordes of skiers and boarders had piled up the soft snow and made it rougher than expected. As the sun went down and temperature dropped, some of the lower slopes had those clear white patches that you skid across.
Freezing temperatures that night made them a little icy and tree powder a bit crusty for first runs the next morning, so most of our group stuck to the groomed areas on Sunday.
Five of us decided instead to check out the snowshoe trails on the west side of Mount Baldy (above the village).
That short walk, without any preparations for snowshoeing, turned into a snowshoe walk in our boots.
Fortunately, the snowshoe trails were well-packed so winter boots were sufficient although if you stepped even a bit off the packed snow, your leg went straight in past the knees and as high as the upper thigh.
Four snowshoe trails — Tree, Webster, Meadow and Dead-End — generally run parallel and across the treed slope with a couple of cross trails not shown on the Village Map. There were some old crosscountry tracks, but we were not encouraged to try that.
At the far end of Webster, you finally come out of the trees and there is a panoramic view of the village and valley below.
The junction with Meadow has a sign on a post stating it was The Stripper Pole, an opportunity for a photo with our ski pants partially pulled down.
We decided it was time for more views so we headed straight up the hill on Dead-End but the trail went quickly into the trees and headed across the slope toward the Ponderosa (downhill) run.
Walking around a water supply fence across a summer access road, we trudged a short distance down the side of the run to where Meadow comes out.
The village was only a short walk down the adjacent Lower Cabin (downhill) Trail.
If you are standing next to the two chairlift bottom stations and look toward the bottom of the Magic Carpet lift to your right, you will see a cut through the trees in the background with a snowshoe trail that apparently will take you around to the top of the mountain (not shown on the maps).
There is also a short 15- to 20-minute trail between the two chairlifts in the Frisbee Golf area for those who simply want a short walk in snowshoes to try it out.
The ticket office has a Multi Use Trails map that shows a snowshoe/XC ski trail heading downhill from the maintenance shop.
It is a straight trail that heads away from the village and ends with two options: the one-kilometre Prospector and two-kilometre Rustler Loop.
On Monday, we stopped at the McKenney Nordic Ski Club area, 10 kilometres west of Baldy, 27 kilometres east of Oliver. Although the sun was out for our fourth consecutive day, it was not the nicest snow conditions.
The 1.2-kilometre green Coyote Flat Trail was smooth and gliding was easy in the track, but the black Elk Run ahead was not groomed.
According to the trail map (mckinneynordicskiclub.com), it was “under construction” We had hoped to do the 8.76-kilometre Outer Circuit, the outermost loop.
Our two choices were the Moose Loop which would take us back toward the parking lot and the steep uphill of Lynx Loop.
It was a steep uphill that had our hearts pounding. The Eagle Ridge Loop, which starts at a small, really small, open-sided shelter, takes you up to the one-sided Eagle Lookout Shelter where the grooming ended. The other end of the Elk Run there looked narrow and challenging.
With freezing nighttime temperatures and daytime highs above zero, ice and snow, mostly ice, regularly cascaded off the trees next to these trails and made the groomed and track-set trails slippery. Almost all of us fell at least once and coming downhill was dangerous.
If you stopped, the sound of the cascading ice was eerie, almost like falling rain, as the ice shattered on ice already lying on the ground. It was like the sound from rain sticks you can find at import stores.
McKinney isn’t worth a destination trip for those who don’t live in the South Okanagan, but a great stopover on the way to and back from Baldy.
On a better day, it would have been a much more enjoyable experience. And you might see the baby bobcat on Coyote Flat that we looked for but didn't see.
***** The big rails-to-trails news is word that the North Okanagan and Columbia Shuswap regional districts have purchased the abandoned CP rail corridor between Armstrong and Sicamous for $6.5 million. (It doesn't include seven kilometres on reserve land owned by the Splatsin First Nation.)
No doubt you are wondering if the abandoned rail line between Armstrong and Coldstream could be added so you could hike, bike or otherwise travel from downtown Kelowna all the way to Sicamous. Wouldn’t that be glorious?
When a key player in the ArmstrongSicamous purchase was asked about that possibility, Phil McIntyre-Paul, executive director of the Shuswap Trail Alliance, responded: “You bet. We've been meeting with the Vernon Ribbons-of-Green Society and the Armstrong-Spallumcheen Trail Society to discuss the Armstrong-to-Vernon section. They are working on concept options.
“As well, we've got a dialogue going between the North, Central and Southern trails initiatives (Okanagan Rail Trail and the Southern Trails-to-the-Okanagan initiatives) with the intention of all linking together. The Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association has been involved in those discussions as well.
“The idea of being able to ride a bicycle from Sicamous to Osoyoos on a dedicated trail within the next five to 10 years is actually a very reasonable consideration now and I think will be doable on major sections of dedicated trail with intervals of backcountry road links between them within the next three-five years.
“I think the most compelling part of the effort up here is the clear lead taken by Secwepemc leadership through the Splatsin. Very much being used as a tangible opportunity to consider a very different era of relationship between communities and orders of government. I hope it will come to influence the wider effort. It's very exciting."
The corridor will be “used for recreational opportunities, including walking and cycling, while retaining it for future transportation and economic development needs,” said the official announcement.
Early contributions have already come in and are being held in an STA trust fund. Donations can be made at: shuswaptrails.com. An overview of the Rail-Trail vision, including the link with the Central and South Okanagan rails-totrails initiatives, is posted on the website.
That presentation estimates it would cost $8.3 million for the 50-kilometre rail-trail corridor.
You can donate to the Okanagan Rail Trail at: okanaganrailtrail.ca/donate.
Cheques can be mailed to: Community Foundation of North Okanagan, 304 – 3402 27th Ave., Vernon, V1T 1S1 or Central Okanagan Foundation, Landmark 1 – 306 1726 Dolphin Ave., Kelowna, V1Y 9R9.
***** The Sheriff recently attended the annual general meeting of the Central Okanagan Naturalists Club in Kelowna. A large crowd was present but like some other clubs, CONC had a challenge trying to fill executive positions — vice-president in this case for 2018.
The rest of the executive volunteered to lead for another year, but president Rick Gee warned this would be his last term as stipulated by the constitution.
The annual budget includes $15,000 to build a birding platform at Robert Lake which is located in the Glenmore Valley southeast of the Glenmore landfill in Kelowna.
Club officials were scheduled to meet with Central Okanagan regional district officials to discuss the project.
As a result of a fee increase by BC Nature, CONC membership fees will increase by $5.
They’re now $35 for a single membership and $47 for a family. Student memberships will remain at $14. Right now, there is only one student member. And he was the guest speaker, Logan Lalonde.
His presentation, My Experience at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, had to be delayed until the March meeting due to a computer malfunction.
***** In case you haven't registered yet, Christy L. Lovig, marathon runner and lawyer with Doak Shirreff in Kelowna, is again coaching the Sun Run InTraining Program which starts 6-7:30 p.m. on Tuesday (Jan. 23) at the Kinsmen Fieldhouse in Mission Sportsfields behind H20 on Gordon Drive at Lexington Road in Kelowna.
SportMedBC, in partnership with the Vancouver Sun, co-ordinates the InTraining clinics at more than 65 locations throughout the province, says Lovig.
The aim of the clinics is to motivate and assist new runners and walkers to take part in the Vancouver Sun Run (10 kilometres) on April 22 through participation in a 13week training program. The clinic typically attracts 70-plus participants in Kelowna.
There’s also an expanded Run Stronger program this year to support those looking to improve on their 10-km time by incorporating speed and strength training into the program. Walkers are also welcome with a specific program for them.
The cost for the 13-week clinic is $150 plus GST. You can register through the City of Kelowna, by phone at 250-469-8800 or online at Kelowna.ca/recreation (barcode: 8333).
J.P. Squire, aka the Ski Sheriff, is a retired Daily Courier reporter and avid outdoors enthusiast. Email: jp.squire@telus.net.