Watching the weather and the calendar we attempted to time paddling amongst the Fall colours just right. A fools errand to try to predict the weather and nature at the same time but every so often you hit it just right. For about a week and a half the messages had been trading on our group chat. "What was the weather doing? "How a...
When I first saw the now famous U2 Joshua Tree album cover I have wanted to see the terrain with my own eyes. It seemed so foreign to me as a forest-living Canadian. Almost alien looking. After many years of visiting and exploring around the Palm Desert area we finally packed our hiking gear, a picnic and prepped the kids for a day in Joshua Tree N...
It all started when my old knife broke... Before ordering the Roark Cassius Knife, I had never heard of the brand. I figured if Valhalla Pure Outfitters stocks it then it must be a reliable piece of equipment. That is the beauty of shopping with a place like VPO - their staff use the gear they stock and are as enthusiastic about such things a...
Like all of you we have been constantly watching the webcams, weather updates, storm predictions all in anticipation of opening day. We got the call to go up and see how things are shaping up for the 2021/22 season so we dusted off our gear and headed up. Although the base is a little less than we would like, the snow is skiing amazing. And the cre...
Twas the night before ski season and all through the hillNot a skier was stirring except some liftie named BillThe skis were waxed and hung in the rack with careDreams that tomorrow no lift lines would be thereThe children nestled all warm in their bedsWhile visions of pow shots danced in their headsAnd momma in her toque and me in my capCan barely...
When I started mountain biking, there were no hydration packs. It was the 90's, we barely had suspension let alone luxurious things like Strava! When it came to water we used to strap as many plastic water bottles to our bikes as we could, stuffing them full of ice in hopes of a cool mid-ride drink. I grew up riding mountain bikes in the South Okan...
Ahhhhh, Spring Break is upon us here in the Okanagan. Take a long, deep breath of that fresh BC air and think about all the fun things to do in your backyard. If you live here, you know that there is plenty to do, especially outside. If anything, this last year of "new normal" has taught us it is that there are so many places and activities we hadn...
Like many of you, we have been venturing into the backcountry more and more. After a few years of dipping off the backside of local resorts we have now got the backcountry bug and are finding ourselves being drawn towards quite walks up mountains with the promise of awe-inspiring vistas, fresh tracks and less people. But the question has always bee...
Have you ever had one of those days where you look back and think, "Did that really happen or was it a dream?" I recently had one of those days in the Valhalla range with my friends at Snowwater Heli. The Valhalla's are a magical place. I have had some of my best days ever up there. One this particular day we expected it to be good. Maybe 5-10cms. ...
The weather around here rapidly changed from Summer to Fall. The colours had only just started to change and there snow predicted next day. With a fever to test out some new camera gear the boys got their bikes ready in an instant for an afternoon adventure out on our trails. Good thing too. It snowed almost half a foot of fresh pow and now skiing ...
When we were packing for our trip to St. George's Caye Resort a thought occurred to me: I should bring my paddleboard. It is an inflatable SUP so it wouldn't be that difficult to pack my clothes around the gear and get on the plane. My very sensible wife convinced me that the resort had boards available and that I would be able to get on the water ...
It is that time of year again - the time when all the major ski manufacturers descend upon our local hill, Big White Ski Resort. We have been partaking in this ski intro since it began and this year was easily the most attended by ski companies. We were only up for the first day so we tried a few favourites and a few new models and then mostly scan...
It's been a rainy start to July but we aren't complaining. Here is BC we are nervous about forest fire season so any rain we get, we will take. That being said, sometimes it is hard to be motivated to go riding. Especially when the geniuses at The Weather Network can't seem to read their crystal ball right. Seriously, I think we were motivate to go...
The countdown had been on since the lift stopped spinning back in April. While we were wallowing in self pity over the ski season ending, the trail crew at Bike Big White got to work. And work they did because the trails were perfect for their 2019 opening day! Of course, we had the date on the calendar and skipped out on office work for a little b...
​Knox Mountain Park is one of the greatest gifts to the people of Kelowna. I say gift but it was actually sold to the City of Kelowna for $1.00 in 1939. Later in 1967, a large donation was from the Simpson trust was used to pave the road and establish what we now know as Knox Mountain Park. I didn't join the history of this park until 1996 when I m...