Welcome to my blog, in which I post photos from recent travels and photography ideas.
These are posted irregularly, so log in at your leisure to catch my latest ramblings.
April 1 - End of the Season
This ski season has come to a close for us. Though the resort remains open for another week, we are in the process of packing up and readying to leave the Okanagan tomorrow. We're hoping this incredible weather holds for a while longer, especially for the drive through the mountains.
With the sunny days upon us, we have been discovering more of this area.
This is a view of Kalamalka Lake looking east toward the provincial park.
While driving along this road, we came upon this marmot lying on the road's concrete barrier.
This was not an ideal setting for a wildlife image. But as I moved closer to it, this marmot climbed onto a rock on the other side.
This was a much better spot for a shot of the it. Thank you, mister or ms marmot!
On another day we went for a hike across from where we have been living into Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park.
This trail took us up to Rattlesnake Point, an lookout with great views above the lake.
Signs of spring in the park - the buttercups were blooming.
Another day we drove north from Vernon, along the North Okanagan Valley.
Further north the valley is very wide, with many large farms.
Our destination was Salmon Arm, on Shuswap Lake and on the Trans-Canada Highway.
Of course, we had to have lunch and dessert at Shuswap Pie Company.
Don't know of a place that makes better pies than here.
These farm buildings were on the outskirts of the town.
We've taken advantage of these balmy days to go for a number of hikes in Kal Lake Park.
This marmot was the lookout just behind where Veda was posing.
It is difficult to leave this fantastic weather and wonderful hiking trails, but home beckons.
Today, pack the vehicle, do the final cleanup, and hit the road tomorrow morning.
March 18 - Spring Is Sprung
For the last few days we've had unseasonably warm temperatures here in the Okanagan Valley.
Yesterday the thermometer recorded +18C.
On Saturday we took a drive south along Highway 97 to Penticton.
This is a view along the way of Lake Okanagan near Peachland.
The smoke hanging in the air is from brush being burned.
This photo looking north on Lake Okanagan was taken from Munson Mountain in Penticton.
Penticton is situated at the southern end of Lake Okanagan.
With the continuing warm weather on Sunday, we went for a local walk on the trails on Middleton Mountain.
In this photo Veda is looking down toward Kalamalka Lake in Coldstream. The high point in the distance to the south west is Terrace Mountain.
Walking the trail on Middleton Mountain affords one a view in all directions. This photo was taken looking north over Vernon and the Okanagan Valley, with Swan Lake in the distance.
This is looking east up the Coldstream Valley, with the Monashee Mountains visible in the distance.
This trail is also popular with mountain bikers.
After this walk and a coffee at Bean Scene in downtown Vernon, we drove west along Lake Okanagan.
There are many housing developments on these high hills overlooking Lake Okanagan. They afford spectacular views, but also involve winding uphill drives.
One of these exclusive sites at the farthest westerly point is Adventure Bay.
Close to where we are staying in Coldstream we often spot a pair of eagles nesting nearby.
The warm weather is nice, but not great for skiing.
March 5 - Westside Road, Central Okanagan
This morning we took our friend, Maureen, to Kelowna airport to catch her flight back to Toronto. After a coffee stop in Kelowna, we crossed the bridge and drove north back to Vernon via Westside Road. As its name implies, this road follows the west side of Lake Okanagan.
This area was the site of last summer's devastating forest fires.
This Bighorn Ram was the only one we encountered.
Upon processing this image, I noticed that it had a bad back leg.
This area had burned a couple years ago, and since then, there had been a cleanup of the devastation.
This is a view across Lake Okanagan, looking toward Vernon.
This is a section of Westside Road.
Some parts of this road are winding and narrow, and other areas have been upgraded.
There were a lot of burned homes, with some right next door which had escaped the flames.
I had no desire to photograph these, respecting the plight of the residents.
February 26 - Travel Photos
Going through some photos recently, I realized that I had not posted any images from our 2022 European trip.
On this trip, we flew into Munich and picked up a car at the airport. We then drove south into Austria.
This is a photo that I made by setting up my tripod and using the ten-second timer.
Veda and I are at 5fingers, in Austria's Dachstein Mountains.
We next travelled into Slovenia, to the Lake Bled area.
This jar of home-made honey was given to us by our hosts at our Airbnb, Apartma Klemen, in Bohinjska Bela.
Our journey then took us into South Tyrol, where we toured in the Italian Dolomites.
This photo was taken near Cortina d'Ampezzo.
We continued into Switzerland, and back to Munich, from where Jane flew home.
We picked up this Renault there and returned to Switzerland, where we met our niece, Hannah, and her husband, Chris.
We then together toured Switzerland for the next ten days.
Here we are on the Gornergrat, above Zermatt.
The weather did not always cooperate, as in this visit to the Jungfrau mountain area.
At our hotel in the village of Habkern, we had this great meal to celebrate Hannah's and Chris's anniversary - wild venison.
To see more photos of this trip, go to my website, click on "Galleries" and choose "Travel."
January 21 - Coldstream, BC
One week ago, we left Livingston, Montana, driving west on I-90.
We turned northward just west of Bozeman.
While driving this highway, I thought that I saw some animals on this prairie hilltop, near Toston. As we got closer, I realized that these "animals" were horse silhouettes. This photo shows only some of these art works.
We eventually reached I-15 and drove north through Helena (Montana's capitol), Great Falls, and Shelby, to the border crossing at Sweetgrass, and into Alberta at Coutts. No trucker blockade at this time.
This is the Alberta prairie south of Lethbridge, where we stopped for the night.
The next day we stopped in Calgary, and then carried on to Canmore, for the night.
Then we went on a drive into Banff National Park, up Minnewanka Road, looking for wildlife to photograph.
We eventually spotted this lone elk foraging in a meadow.
The following day we continued our drive to the Okanagan, through Banff, Yoho, and Glacier National Parks, and over the Rogers Pass.
The highway was covered with soft fresh snow, which was blown up by all the vehicles, but much more so by the transports. We ran out of this weather system just east of Sicamous. We reached our destination that afternoon, our winter house-sitting residence in Coldstream.
It has snowed every day since we arrived. Not what we like in town, but great for the ski hills.
This is a home at the end of our cul-de-sac.
People are encouraged to leave their decorations in place until Vernon's winter carnival.
I skied two days last week. This week I'm looking forward to five skiing days.