Grasslands National Park, SK, Canada

Dark Skies & Prairie Flats

Nestled in the southwest of Saskatchewan and near the Montana (USA) border is a national park which is famous for two things: 

1. it's a 'dark sky' preserve, meaning, it has one of the best locations to star gaze in the whole country and 
2. it's roaming bison.

I visited Grasslands National Park (LINK) about a year ago and camped overnight there. I was able to enjoy hiking, buffalo watching and of course, star gazing. While not as famous as Banff or Jasper in Alberta, Grasslands is a unique experience and worth a visit. 

Enjoy some photos from my overnight stay...

The road in is all gravel and you'll pass by numerous prairie dogs and cattle guards (I think it's to keep the buffalo in, to be honest...)

Slight hills to the right...

I hiked 70 mile butte -- a butte is an isolated hill with steep sides and a flat top (Wikipedia).

View from the butte

Another view from the top of the butte.

Prairie flower seen on the hike...I'm sorry I don't know the official name.

While out hiking, you have to be aware of the bison. They are in the park and can be found close to your camp site or on the hiking trails. The park staff provide information and guidance during your visit and while interacting the these animals. The basic rule is: stay far away and bring a zoom lens. 

A lone bison resting. 

To be honest, I was a bit scared of these guys because they are so massive. Bison used to be hunted on the Prairies and their fur and meat were valuable to Indigenous people. Today, there are a few bison farms in Western Canada and there has been a push to increase bison herds here. 

You can read more about bison farming in Canada HERE (Kremeniuk, 2015). 

Grasslands is the kind of place you go to get away from everything and unplug for a while. If you decide to camp overnight, a word of caution: it's extremely windy so come prepared with warmer and/or windbreaker clothes -- even in summer. 

Location & how to get there: (via Google Maps)

References: 

Kremeniuk, T. (2015, March 4). Bison farming. The Canadian Encyclopedia. URL. 

Parks Canada. (n.d.). Grasslands national park. The Government of Canada. URL. 

Salmon Arm, BC - Part 4

 Part 4 - Columbia-Shuswap Cycling

The main purpose of most of my travels these days has been to get outdoors and ride my bike. I love 'slow pace' sightseeing, and cycling has given me the opportunity to do just that. 

On two separate days during my trip to Salmon Arm, my boyfriend and I rode some hills and took in the sights. Both rides were recommended by riders on cycling blogs and Map My Ride. Here are highlights...

Route 1 - Carlin - White Lake - Balmoral - Carlin

We started by parking at the middle school in Carlin, just off the highway. Then, we cycled down the first big hill to the fork near the highway underpass, turning right, then immediately left, following the first of many hills up towards the farms. We saw a few cyclists out and so, you'll know you're heading in the right direction by just following your fellow riders. 

 Road conditions in some areas are a little rough, but generally look like the photo above.

 

We came across some wild berries along part of the route. 

We sampled; they were quite bitter!

Biking out to White Lake, there is a public park there with a loo and some picnic tables. We stopped for a short water break and to check out the view of the lake. As this route is predominately uphill, you'll get some nice views from the crest of the farm fields and valley, below:

 For the return, after reaching the valley, head east towards White Creek along the service road that parallels the major highway. You'll enjoy passing by some corn fields, over some ups and downs before making your way back to Carlin.

Sign post denoting direction back to Carlin (via White Creek).

Route 2 - Carlin - White Lake - Balmoral - Notch Hill - Sorrento - Carlin

On another day, we decided to give the first route another try, but continue from the valley towards Notch Hill and Sorrento, another popular resort town in the area. 

I forgot my phone on this ride, so I don't have personal photos to share, but Notch Hill is a pretty nice ride and it's a good place to stop and view the heritage buildings there. The community park has a public train viewing platform (see info HERE) where you can take a break and watch the CN rail cars pass by on the street opposite. 

My boyfriend did manage to get a photo of me looking pretty happy on my new Trek road bike (an Émonda SL 5 - view them HERE at Trek.ca) as we stopped at the end of the road next to White Lake:

In Sorrento, we stopped at a Subway to eat lunch before heading back to Carlin. The sandwich gave me the power I needed to get back to those hills and finish up this cycling trip. I highly recommend Salmon Arm for a short trip away!

Bonus: Views from Canoe Beach.

I did a few open water swims at the public beach here. The entrance is very Instagram-y:

The view from the beach is great too -- you can see the lake stretching out and cliffs on the opposite shore:

 

Despite sharing the water with boaters and jet skiers, the facilities here are really good. There is a sandy/muddy bottom, a floating dock off the shore by about 50 meters(?), a pathway from the grassy area to the shoreline, a playground for kids, some picnic tables and benches, outdoor showers (very cold!) and large change rooms; all facilities here are free! Best times to go are in the morning or the early evening, when there are less boaters and the lake is calmer.

Hope you can get a chance to visit Salmon Arm; it's beautiful! 

Next post: Cycling in Canmore & Banff, AB.

References:

Columbia Shuswap Regional District. (n.d.). Notch Hill community park. CSRD. URL. 

Trek.ca. (2020). Émonda SL 5. Trek Bicycle Corporation. URL.

Salmon Arm, BC - Part 3

 Part 3 - Hiking the Upper Canyon Trail

After completing the Margret Falls hike, I still felt up to another hike, so we took a longer, steeper trail within Herald Provincial Park. Here's a map for those interested: 

According to Hike Kamloops (LINK), this trail is a little more strenuous, is dog friendly and is about 4.1 kilometers long. It took us about an hour to complete the loop, starting from the lake overflow parking lot on the right side of the road. 

Here's a quick view of the beach front facing the lake. It's a beautiful spot with lots of picnic tables under large, shady trees:

The trail is very steep for the first kilometre or so with a number of switchbacks up the hill. According to my Garmin, the elevation gain was 178 meters. At the start, the trail is narrow and snakes through the forest, as you can see below:

Once you reach the top of the hill, you'll come across this scenic lookout. You can see the lake overflow parking area at the bottom of the photo:

Deep into the forest, you'll come across a trail marker directing you towards different routes. We went straight.

Map shows the entire loop. 

At the top of the loop, we found this wooden bridge which traverses the river. I dipped my hands in the water too because it looked so beautiful. I was surprised; it was not as cold as expected.

The loop back was very easy; for those who are not experienced hikers, I would recommend only hiking this part of the trail. It's wide, the underbrush is soft with few rocks and has a gradual slope.

Once we made it back, we entered through the gate to walk the trails that snaked their way through the park campground. That was really fun to be honest! We crossed some small rivers by just stepped over stone or logs placed in strategic places.

 The gate and trail markers showing you can cut through the campground to the parking area.

At larger crossings, the park staff had installed silver metal bridges, making those crossings much easier.

 

We completed our hike by eating lunch at a picnic table by the beach at the lake (see the first picture featured in this post). This park is really great! It's free for the day, there is a "dog beach" for pooches to play in the water, and has lots of picnic tables and hiking trails to enjoy the fine weather. Highly recommended!

Next post: Salmon Arm, BC - Part 4 Cycling the Shuswap Hills

References:

Bunny Luv [screen name]. (2020). Columbia-Shuswap upper canyon trail [map]. Garmin Connect. Used by permission.

Hike Kamloops. (2020). Margret falls upper canyon loop trail. URL. 

All photos by Cutenekko taken on a Huawei P10 Lite.

Salmon Arm, BC - Part 2

 Part 2 -  Hiking the Margret Falls Trail

Skipping ahead a few days into my trip to Salmon Arm, I went hiking in a provincial park up the road about 10 minutes. According to Hike Kamloops (LINK), Margret Falls was a recommended hike due to its simplicity and ease of access. For those who like maps, here you go:

 

(via Google Maps)

Margret Falls is located inside Herald Provincial Park, which hugs the coastline of Shuswap Lake (LINK). It's a beautiful drive to the park too, as the road winds itself along the lake shore. 

There is a parking lot off to the left of the road upon entering the park; space is limited, so it's advised to arrive early (before 10 AM). The parking lot has signage showing the way to the trail head and there is a wheelchair accessible loo too.

Trail head at the start of the Margret Falls hike. It's dog friendly!

At the time of writing, COVID-19 was still an issue in BC, so it's recommended to allow 6 feet (2 meters) in between hikers and to wear a mask, as some parts of the trail are narrow and you'll likely have to pass others in close proximity.

The trail features a few wooden bridges as you cross the river.

Along one point along the river, many people have left rock stacks. To read more about this practice, click HERE (via Online Camera Ed).

Rock stacks.

This trail is not long (about 1.01km out and back) so it can be completed in less than 30 minutes. We spent some time on our hike taking photos along the route, adding a stack of rocks and spending moments at the waterfall before heading back. 

Rock stack completed by my hiking partner, Trijunkie123. 

 

Margret Falls - viewing the top.

The trail on the way back.

As this trail was shorter than we thought, we decided to add another hike to our schedule on this day. Visit again for Part 3 where I'll show photos from a more difficult hike within Herald Provincial Park.

Next post: Salmon Arm, BC. Part 3 - Hiking the Upper Canyon Trail.

 

References:

Online Camera Ed. (2016, August 26). Rock stacking [web post]. Digital Photography College. URL. 

Hike Kamloops. (2020). Margret falls [web post]. CanWeb Promotions. URL.

Salmon Arm, BC - Part 1

Part 1 - Lakefront Views

I had about six days off in early September which I wanted to spend outside of my area. Since the Canadian border is closed to the U.S and most international travel, I stayed (somewhat) local by travelling inter-provincially to British Columbia for about four days (not including two days to drive out and back). 

My boyfriend actually chose the location of Salmon Arm, since it was an area not too far across the Alberta border, was scenic and according to cyclists, had a lot of great routes for biking. 

I packed my road bike and a small bag and headed west on an early Thursday morning.

 

 

Map showing Salmon Arm (via Google Maps).

 

Salmon Arm is a small retirement community of 16,000 tucked into the hills east of Kamloops. We stayed in a kitchenette suite at the Prestige Harborfront Resort (LINK) to save on costs and also, to avoid mixing with other people in these COVID times. The room was fantastic and just outside the hotel was a nature area, lake and wharf.

 

Walking bridge over the nature area - view from back of resort.

View of the boat launch area looking towards the lake. 

 

 

Pond in a park near the resort hotel.

 

After having driven for almost 12 hours, we checked in, unpacked the food we brought and headed out for a walk around the hotel area. As you can see from the photos above, the nature area, Marine Peace Park (LINK) and Shuswap Lake (LINK) nearby were beautiful. Salmon Arm has a famous wharf open until 10 PM, so we wondered down the long planks to enjoy the sights...

View walking out to the dock's end.

View looking out to the town's shoreline from the wharf.

A short post today just to introduce the Shuswap Lake area.Part 2 will feature photos from a cycling trip that was 20 minutes up the road from Salmon Arm.

Next Post: Columbia-Shuswap Hiking

This is Not My Cat

I am the cat whisperer...

I bought a house last year. For some reason, the kitties in the neighbourhood have taken a liking to my house and drop by often. They don't just hang out around my driveway, yard, or on the deck. No, no...lately, some of the cats have been marching themselves right into my home. 

Here are three cats which are not mine.

 

This is not my cat. This is my neighbour's cat, Buttons. She's an Arabian Mau. She lost her leg due to being on the streets in Dubai, where my neighbour picked her up, got her to a vet and rest is history. She's a very demanding kitty, but very loyal. She drops by so often, she's made herself at home in my home, many times.
 

 Just taking over the bike room....

And the spare kitchen chair...

And sometimes on my lap...

And my spare bedroom...

 

This is also not my cat. This is Bella. Bella has a clumping hair problem and thus, gets shaved once or twice a year. She has the tiniest 'mew'. She is also owned by my neighbour and will often appear when Buttons is around. She is extremely shy, but has warmed up to me.

 

Bella, in her 'lion' cut. Her fur has all grown out now for the winter.

Again, not my cat. This is Skittles. I called him 'Fred' for the longest time until my neighbour told me his real name. He's adorable and purrs like a machine. He also loves being picked up and will kneed his paws into your flesh so hard, you could probably get tattooed by this little guy. He was originally a barn kitty, but now lives two streets up the road from my place. I ran into him while out on a walk about a year ago. He followed me home. Since then, if I come across him out on the street, he'll immediately run over for some pets and scratches. I wish I could adopt this little guy.

 

He loves hanging out on my new deck...

 

 

And he'll come in for a quick walk through of my house...

 

However, Skittles soon heads back out to lounge on the deck..

In addition to the cats, my house also attracts other animals, like....

A deer...

 

A wild rabbit which returns often to sleep in my yard during the day...

I do not own any pets. I think with all these visitors, I probably don't need any. LOL Hope you enjoyed the many animal visitors of Cutenekko.

Maui, HI - Part III

Scenic Drive - Reverse Route to Hana via Kula.

For the last full day spent on Maui island, we had to branch away from our usual cycling adventures. For the entire trip we managed to only get around the island on our bikes; for one day, we rented a car and would take a scenic drive along the south east coast. The reason for this was several:

• We had to be out of our rental by noon.
• We had to dismantle and pack our bikes into our bike boxes for the flight home later that evening. 
• The car rental company gave us permission to store our bike boxes and suitcases at the rental shop while we were out driving.(We used Kihei Rent-A-Car -- highly recommended!) 

Once in the car, we took highway 37 and 377 heading south-southeast towards Kula. The route took us past the churches we had biked the day before and we drove until we reached a small farm. The views from a public park nearby were spectacular.....

Looking down the hillside to the Pacific ocean:

We stopped at the Lavender Farm, Ali'i Kula Lavender, which has an immense garden, walking paths, a tea room and of course, lavender fields. It's not expensive to enter ($4? for parking) and the walk was refreshing. 

Along the various walking paths were many unique plants, flowers and trees. I think we spent about 45 minutes here strolling around the grounds and I snapped quite a few photos...

It's almost as if the tree is bending backwards in a long stretch...

Scenic view:

A Buddha tucked in among the tropical plants.

The famous lavender fields.

 

After this stop, we drove further south and stopped at Ulupalakua Ranch Store for some good ol' outdoor barbecue (sorry no photos). I rarely eat red meat, but this was a special occasion, so I chowed down on a burger and salad. It was delicious! The best part is that once you place your order, they will grill it outside on the deck to your liking and you can load up your burger with your favourite condiments. 

We did not go all the way to Hana, as both of us had been years prior. Instead, we called it a day and started on the drive back to Kihei to return the car. 

On the way back, we stopped at the infamous Grandma's Coffee House for a cup of java (sorry, no photos). Grandma's has a long history on Maui as she has been one of the first coffee roasters on the island (since 1918). It's worth a stop. The shop is very quaint and has pastries and baked goods on offer. There is little parking out front, so you may need to park on a side road and walk. 

That's it for Maui. I am looking forward to going back again...^-^

Bonus:

Due to the nature of my work, I am rarely home. As much as I would love to get a pet, I cannot. Thus, my boyfriend surprised me one day with a small gift - a mini husky plush toy. I take this little guy in my car and on the road, wherever I go. His name is Oliver. Here he is at the airport in Canada, finishing up the foam in my coffee before heading to Maui. This is the same photo I use on my Garmin Connect app and on Rouvy (indoor cycling app). So, if you see this little guy out and about on the apps, say hi or connect with me. I'm happy to follow you back.

 

References for this post:

Ali'i Kula Lavender. (n.d.). Home. URL.

Grandma's Coffee House. (2017). URL. 

Rouvy. (2020). VirtualTraining, s.r.o.URL. 

Ulupalakuaranch.com. (2018). Ulupalakua ranch store & grill: Home. URL.