Indoors the place to be during deep freeze
The Big Chill slammed the Okanagan — and rest of B.C. — this week with Interior mountain temperatures in the –25 C range.
When bare cheeks feel the impact after 10 minutes outside to feed the horses, lone chicken and 50 California quail, the Sheriff decided to wait until later in the week for a warming trend to get back outdoors.
However, before The Deep Freeze hit on Monday, the Sheriff, Constant Companion Carmen and four hiking buddies explored the Glenmore Highlands on snowshoes.
Glenmore Highlands is the name used to describe the major northsouth ridge (and several smaller ridges) between Okanagan Lake and the Glenmore Valley in Kelowna. A major part of it consists of the Wilden residential development where the Sheriff used to horseback ride in the 1980s and 1990s.
No Trespassing signs have been posted at the north end of Union Road advising everyone that “the natural area” of Wilden is closed. Another sign advises that a wildfire fuel reduction project is underway and the public (not seeing the first sign) should stay out of the project area when work is underway.
Despite the no-trespassing sign on Union Road and perhaps due to the lack of signs at other access points, a deep snowshoe track, plus hundreds of boot and dog paw prints, indicate Wilden residents and visitors treat the Glenmore Highlands as their personal adventure playground.
Unfortunately, last weekend’s low cloud meant obscured or no views of Okanagan Lake.
In November, the Sheriff, CCC and buddies Lawrence and Maggie explored the Glenmore Highlands trails from the south end off Clifton Road (before reaching a Wilden notrespassing sign).
The north end of the Highlands can be explored through Stephens Coyote Ridge Regional Park on Glenmore Road, but you should have good way-finding skills, in other words, the ability to extricate yourself from such a large area if, by chance, the myriad of unmarked trails becomes confusing.
GPS apps like Strava and maps.me are handy even if you only drop a “pin” at the trailhead and determine which way is north as a reference direction to know how to return to the pin.
It can also be difficult to decide which snowshoes to bring when entering unfamiliar territory. Err on the side of a larger pair in case you want to leave a packed trail and check out an untracked viewpoint.
As for measures to deal with that extreme cold, the first rule is to cover exposed facial skin with a scarf or long, thick neckwarmer.
Other suggestions: longjohns; thick tuque; mitts (warmer than five-finger gloves); chemical handwarmers and toe warmers (removed from wrapper, shaken and put in mitts/boots before you go outside); thick socks (if boots allow without cutting off blood circulation); heated insoles (like the Sheriff’s Thermacells); and gators to keep snow off your legs and out of the boots.
The usual rule is layer, layer, layer, but more thin layers are better than one thick layer under your winter coat. Know your body response when you are exercising since you don’t want excessive sweating. It’s better to remove one or more layers if you start to overheat.
A well-known rule is to dress so you are slightly cool in the ski area parking lot. If a heated space is available and close, change into your ski boots there so you don’t start chilled. Keep ski boots inside the vehicle where it is warm rather than in a cold trunk.
Once outside, a few minutes before everyone else, stretch and move the muscles you will be using. It has always seemed strange to the Sheriff that in all the established outdoor recreation groups experienced over many years, no one warms up with a few stretches or exercises. Strange but true.
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With holiday crowds gone, now is the time to enjoy the Okanagan’s downhill resorts, especially if you love the magic of night skiing.
Big White Ski Resort is promoting “the best deal on the mountain” — its $12 Friday nights. Lift tickets are $12 (save $27); regular ski and snowboard rentals are $12 (not high-performance); tubing is $12 (save $11); and 1.5-hour beginner lessons with a pro 6-7:30 p.m. are $12 for first-time skiers and boarders age 13 and up.
In addition, the Moose Lounge has a $12 dinner special 5-8 p.m. for a pasta buffet. Underground Pizza has a one-half medium cheese or pepperoni pizza with soft drink for $12 from 4-9 p.m. Mountain Yoga has $12 Apres Ski Yoga classes, 4-5 p.m. and 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Three lifts with the capacity for more than 5,000 people per hour are spinning 3:30-7:45 p.m. The Plaza Quad, Bullet Express (Tuesday through Saturday) and Telus Park (Thursday-Saturday) provide access to more than 2.5 kilometres of lighted terrain, the largest night skiing area in Western Canada.
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On Friday and Saturday nights, Silver Star Mountain Resort provides four kilometres of beginner and intermediate groomed and lit trails accessed by the Gondola, Silver Queen Chair and Discovery Carpet.
A night ticket for the Gondola, 3:30-8:30 p.m., is $30. But you can ski under the stars for the rest of the season on a 2020 Night Ski Pass for $199 for a possible 24 nights.
For a special deal, grab your friends, family or neighbours, buy three passes to get a fourth free.
For another option, a Night Beginner lift ticket is $10, and provides access to the Silver Queen Chair and Discovery Carpet, but does not include the Gondola. You can save between five and 10 per cent when you purchase online, peak periods excluded.
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Apex Mountain Resort has night skiing and boarding on the Okanagan Run, Terrain Park, Bunny Hill and Beginner Terrain Park via the T-Bar and Magic Carpet 4-9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
The Tube Park is also open 4-9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays with a $7.50 Friday night special.
The Adventure Skating Loop and Apex Hockey Rink are open nightly until 11 p.m.
The South Okanagan resort will hold an Avalanche Awareness Day, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Jan. 25 with a display of avalanche information and demos in the village. A barbecue burger fundraiser is noon-1 p.m. followed by a silent and live auction 3-5 p.m. in the Gunbarrel Saloon.
————— Fresh Air Experience will hold a demo day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today at the Kelowna Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club.
Fresh Air will have a full range of classic and skate skis as well as matching boots at the main cabin on McCulloch Road. Of special interest for classic skiers will be a chance to try out new skin skis.
Fresh Air will extend special pricing to Kelowna Nordic members who want to purchase new equipment next week.
————— Outdoor photographer Linda Quon of Kelowna (foilanphotographer.com) will be among 28 fine art photographers with 68 quality works at the fifth annual Captured Images exhibition in the Peachland Art Gallery on Jan. 18-March 8.
“I am humbled to share this space in the Peachland gallery with so many amazing artists,” said Quon whose remarkable image of a spirit bear named MaÌah was chosen as one of five on the event poster.
The official opening is noon-3 p.m. today. Refreshments will be served and the photographers will be in attendance at one of the largest and longest-running exhibitions in the Okanagan.
“For sheer size, quality, and depth of subject matter, you won’t want to miss this one,” says the Peachland Arts Newsletter:
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Big White Ski Resort has the Barrels & Berms SBX World Cup on Jan. 24-26, the first time since 2013 that Canada is hosting a Snowboardcross World Cup event.
It is the only opportunity for the entire Canadian national team and Next Generation Team to compete at the top international level at home in 2020.
Both the Individual SBX and the Team SBX World Cup titles will be contested with the team event a new Olympic discipline that will debut in 2022.
————— Walk, Dine & Wine is back at Big White on Feb. 2-6 when you can stroll through the picturesque village, stop at three of Big White’s top dining destinations for a feature dish paired with an Okanagan wine.
Tickets are $85 per person through concierge@bigwhite.com. Also at Big White:
— Park Chics is a new activity “Run by Girls, for Girls.” A team of female snowboard and ski coaches meet in Telus Park 4:30-6:30 p m. on Thursdays. Riding with girls only in small groups, participants will get comfortable riding in a terrain park and hitting new features in a fun, relaxed environment.
— The resort has a Carnival Night every Thursday and Saturday in the Village Center Mall.
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The Kelowna chapter of the Canadian Company of Pilgrims will host an information booth 10 a.m.4 p.m. today at Atmosphere outdoor store in Orchard Place, 1835 Dilworth Dr. (at Harvey Avenue) in Kelowna. Anyone interested in learning about the Camino de Santiago is invited to stop by.
“I thought the Camino was ‘a walk across Spain,’ but it challenged me mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally. It stretched my introverted self to meet people from all over the world and experience the world at a slow pace, giving me time to see, hear ... and just be.” commented CCoP member Shawna B, who walked almost 900 kilometres on the Camino in September-October.
The Canadian Company of Pilgrims is a volunteer-run association that supports Canadians interested in the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
CCoP has issued more than 20,000 credentials or pilgrim passports and now has more than 3,000 members, said Kelowna chapter member George Forshaw.
For more information, contact the planning team of the Kelowna chapter led by David and Betty Brown at kelowna@santiago.ca.