Monday, September 27, 2010

Salmon Run


In the fall, the Kokanee Salmon spawn in the creeks that run through the town and outlying areas.  These photos are of Coldstream Creek.
Forgive me for so many photos but it was awesome to see so I took lots of photos and tried to only post the best of them.
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A favorite hiding spot






This is a small run compared to other creeks in the province but exciting anyway.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Turtle Mountain

One beautiful sunny day after a week of rain convinced me to take a quick hike up a new trail opened up by a housing subdivision.                      
The trail runs along the edge of Turtle Mountain.
It was completely unplanned but I was fortunate to have my son and granddaughter come with me.   You can tell they are waiting for me to take my photos and grab a quick rest as the hike was quite steep in some parts.   I've been told this is an old volcanic crater and the rock formations were very interesting.  It was early afternoon so I didn't see any interesting birds or animals or even insects but that's okay the company was good and the sunshine wonderful.



                                      

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Unknown Berries

A quick drive along an unfamiliar back road led me to these beautiful shrubs.  They were growing wild along the road so I picked a branch and brought it home with me.                I've been looking for hours and can't find anything other than a Goji berry that looks similar but the leaves don't appear the same.  Does anyone know this bush?

It must have been a great year for berries because the same road was loaded with Snowberries and Oregon Grape and dried Saskatoons.   I guess that explains why we have so many birds here.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Kalamalka Lake - Wood Lake - Okanagan BC

Wood Lake - Kalamalka Lake
Click on any of these photos to enlarge them.


20 minutes from Vernon, BC is a town called Oyama.  
At this point, Kalamalka Lake ends and Wood Lake starts.  They are connected by a small channel which you can boat through.
On the left hand side is Wood Lake and on the right is Kalamalka Lake.

Kalamalka lake is named for the Okanagan (Okanogan  U.S. spelling) Indian chief who occupied its northern shores, although many believe (incorrectly) that it means (lake of) many colours in the Okanagan language.
Kaloya Regional Park is that treed peninsula


At different times of the year the colour of the lake can range from cyan to indigo, in different spots at the same time. The colour of the water is derived from light scattering, caused by the precipitation of calcite (CaCO3).

The higher up the mountain overlooking Oyama you go, the better view you can get.




Looking south towards Kelowna
This is one of the peaceful little bays at Kaloya Regional Park in Oyama.  





  












                                                                                                                                 


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Why the shoes?

I didn't make it to the lake as the weather is still pretty unpredictable but while I was out I remembered these photos and wondered if anyone had heard of this before.
Hopefully  you can see the fenceposts are all topped with shoes, boots, runners and all manner of footwear.



                                                   
The rest of the trip was spent admiring the peaceful scenery.  There's nothing like contented cows to calm the spirit.                     And for a finale, a quick walk in the sun dappled forest.