Skiing and cycling in same December week
If you believe in Mother Nature, then you will believe the first two weeks of December were a gift.
Unbelievably warm weather (as high as 9 C this week) meant the Sheriff and Constant Companion Carmen went cross-country skiing at Sovereign Lake Nordic Centre on Sunday, did our favourite bicycle route in Kelowna on Monday and checked out the downhill conditions at Big White Ski Resort on Wednesday.
It was the perfect combination of fall/spring and winter activities. CCC even remarked that she couldn’t remember a midDecember of cycling and skiing in the same week for the past 20 years of our outdoor adventures.
As for conditions, Sovereign Lake trails are like mid-winter, cold without being too cold, fresh snow, great grooming. With skiing-hiking buddies Marshall and Karen, we did the green Woodland Bell loop, then the Carl Wylie loop with the addition of Black Prince.
Other members of the Central Okanagan Outdoors Club (the “bolters” because you can’t catch them after leaving the trailhead) did the Aberdeen-Lars Taylor climb to the Silver Star Mountain summit. They had lunch at the main cabin and went out again. Whew!
Sovereign general manager Troy Hudson also explained why it took longer to groom some trails than during our last outing there on Dec. 12. “It was the first day all year, training a new groomer operator, that these trails were not done,” he said. “Something that is not the norm.”
The Sheriff and CCC can attest to that: the Sovereign trails are always groomed to perfection despite the heavy use by 1,800 members as well as day skiers.
On a sunny warm Monday, the Sheriff and CCC cycled Brandt’s Creek Linear Park from North Glenmore to Rails With Trails on Clement Avenue, Cawston Avenue multi-use pathway to Rotary Marshes and along Waterfront Promenade to City Park.
It was amazing how many people were out cycling, walking their dogs or just enjoying a preChristmas day without any snow or ice.
On Wednesday, by comparison, Big White was like Sovereign, mid-winter and under sunny skies. The Sheriff and CCC skied the Bullet and Black Forest chairlifts.
The uphill capacity is so great that often we didn’t have to stop at the bottom lift stations but skied right onto the chair. On many runs, we were the only skiers.
The Sheriff hates crowds and manoeuvring the skier-and-boarder obstacle course that many groomed runs become over the Christmas rush. So this week, Ian Jenkins at Silver Star Mountain Resort had a number of suggestions for non-skiers (and skiers who don’t like the holiday traffic).
“At lot of people don’t know. They just equate Silver Star Mountain Resort with skiing and snowboarding,” he said.
Sponsoring a Vernon Vipers’ game and attending other events in Vernon was an opportunity to educate the public about many other recreational opportunities available at the Vernon mountain.
“There’s a skating pond; there’s a tube park; you can get out for a snowshoe on 16 kilometres of trails — some dog-friendly; we just established a new snowshoe trail at the top; there’s also trails for fat biking. Snowshoes and fat bikes can be rented at the rental shop. It often opens people’s eyes on what else they can do. Now with the gondola, there’s another piece, that they can go up the gondola and get the views from up there.”
The top of the gondola has a small lookout with cappuccino and other treats, he said. “It’s a pretty cool experience for someone who hasn’t done a gondola before. It’s new to us. We’ve only had it open a few weeks. For skiers and snowboarders, it’s a mode of transportation; you don’t really think so much about it. For somebody who hasn’t ridden it before, it’s got that thrill factor.”
The Sheriff heard of one young boy who rode the gondola up and down all afternoon because he enjoyed it so much.
Skiers and boarders are often out early for first tracks, to take advantage of overnight snow and fresh grooming, so the afternoon is an ideal time for them and their families to experience the other activities, added Jenkins.
Downhill skiers and snowboarders can also try out cross-country skiing at Silver Star which, together with neighbouring Sovereign, offers more than 100 kilometres of trails.
“It’s not too hard to pick up and people can take a crack at it,” said Jenkins. “It’s almost walking when you see some people do it. It’s another way to get out there and enjoy winter. We’ll see where we end up with for a white Christmas in Vernon. But if people want to have that white Christmas experience, it’s probably better to come up here and walk through the woods.”
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Big White has 119 runs, 15 lifts and five powder bowls for downhillers, but it also has non-skier activities from snowmobiling to dog sled tours, ice climbing to fat biking. Check them out under Events and Activities on the bigwhite.com menu.
Here’s a list:
* Ice skating: free (cost of rentals)
* Tubing: $23 (six-plus), free (five and under)
* Dog sled tours: $295 (large sled) * Horse-drawn sleigh rides: $15$35 (depending on age, time)
* Ice climbing: $30 or $50 for a day pass
* Kids snowmobiles: $20 * Snowmobile tours: price varies * Snowshoe tours: $30 (adult) * Fat biking, $15
* Trapped Escape Room: at Sessions
* Brewery Tours at Elevation 57: at Sessions
* Tuesday bingo
* Wednesday, Friday, Saturday bonfire and free hot chocolate
* Wednesday - Ultimate Family Games Night
* Thursday – Trivia Night * Thursday, Saturday – Family Channel Carnival Night
* Friday – Freaky Fun Fridays * Saturdays – weekly fireworks * Sunday – church services
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You may have seen drones flying over the Mission Creek Greenway in Kelowna this week. Crews did an aerial survey of the three bridges (Friends, Cedar and Smoothing Stones) and their approaches upstream from the Scenic Canyon Regional Park entrance at Hollywood Road South.
The drones will provide aerial imagery and topographical information to assist in future repairs.
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As of Thursday, here’s the latest on cross-country skiing areas from their websites:
* Telemark Nordic Centre (telemarknordic.com): currently closed. “It was starting to look pretty good last weekend with eight-10 centimetres of snow. Unfortunately, we had some warm temps at the beginning of this week which set us back. Some roller packing of the trails has been done, but there is not enough snow to open. Some snow is on the way tonight and tomorrow. If the anticipated snow arrives Thursday night and Friday, we will try to open this weekend. Stay tuned!”
* Kelowna Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club (kelownanordic.com): “windy, light flurries. –1 C: Grooming is very good, a bit windy but snow has stopped. Grooming today, however, not all trails will be done. Watch for machine on trails. Please watch out for earlyseason hazards such as sticks, rocks and small dirt patches on the lower trails. Snowshoe conditions are good.”
* Nickel Plate Nordic Centre (nickelplatenordic.org): “no grooming today. There is snow in the forecast but it hasn’t come yet. A skiff of new snow; snow depth is three-four inches; current temp –4 C at 7 a.m. Snow is still a bit thin but it is good skiing; beware of a few natural hazards still. The back end of our trails are still closed (Motherlode, Reimer’s Reach area); we just need more snow. … We are not recommending Panorama Ridge. If you decide to ski Panorama, do so with caution. Snowshoe trails: early season conditions; they are not ready; many natural obstacles, logs and stumps, etc. … Reminder: snow tires are mandatory. ”
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After recently holding a successful Christmas dinner, members of the Kelowna Canoe and Kayak Club will hold their annual New Year’s Day paddle at 11 a.m. on Jan. 1 at Okanagan Centre Safe Harbour in Lake Country.
Everyone should come prepared and dressed for cold water; a wetsuit or drysuit is highly recommended. The plan is to paddle for 60-90 minutes, then head to a member’s home for lunch around 1 p.m.
Those who don’t plan to paddle but come for lunch should RSVP to kckcvicepresident@gmail.com by Friday.
The first KCKC meeting will be at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 12 instead of starting in March, and memberships will be due at that time. Payments can be made on the website in the near future. Pool sessions have been booked for March 23, 24 and 30.
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The Friends of the South Slopes Society will hold its annual general meeting at 7 p.m. on Jan. 10 at the Environmental Education Centre for the Okanagan (EECO) in Mission Creek Regional Park, 2363 Springfield Rd., Kelowna. Refreshments, socializing and a membership table will precede the AGM at 7:30 p.m.
Guest speakers will be Herb Blamire, past president of FOSS. on natural Restoration of the Myra Wetlands; and Christian Morrissette, BC Parks’ senior park ranger for the East Okanagan area, on plans for Myra-Bellevue and Okanagan Mountain Provincial Parks.
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The Big Reds Wine Festival at Big White Ski Resort continues to gain popularity. Now in its 11th year, the event recently hosted more than 600 guests over the two nights, but this year had an even larger selection of handcrafted wines, beers and ciders to sample.
In total, 154 wines, beers and ciders from 39 different Okanagan wineries and breweries were featured along with bites from five local on-mountain restaurants. As always, guests were asked to choose their favourite winery and restaurant. This year’s People’s Choice Award winners were the Globe Cafe & Tapas Bar and Indigenous World Winery.
“We had an overwhelming response to attend from both consumers and the wine industry this year,” said Trevor Hanna, vicepresident of hospitality at the resort. “Culinary tourism is peaking with today’s destination guests and Big Reds has a great reputation for serving up an array of top B.C. wine producers along with showcasing the talented chefs from all our local restaurants.”