Early March is a good time for a British Columbia winter activity such as cross country skiing at Sun Peaks. Sun Peaks, an hour north of Kamloops, is where we take turns cross country skiing British Columbia terrain. The four-hour drive gets us there before dusk to investigate Village cuisine as well as familiarize in our own cozy kitchenette at Nancy Greene’s Cahilty Lodge, named after a local pioneer ranching family. Nancy Greene Raine was Canada’s 1968 Olympic gold-medal Giant Slalom winner, and her memorabilia showcases in the lodge lobby. She still hosts as a downhill ambassadress on weekends with daring guests.
Our visit to the Cahilty Creek Bar and Grill waits for our final night, so Bella Italia provides cross-country-skier fare: polenta, potato-leek soup, and tiramisu.The morning’s fuel-gruel (hot oatmeal) is stacked with raisins, cranberries, apple, pear, walnuts, yogurt and milk.
Sun Peaks Mt. Morrisey Chairlift
Mt. Morrisey’s Express Chairlift is a one-kilometer ski from Sun Peaks Village and ferries us up over 5,000-foot (1675m) heights. We descend a thousand feet on ‘Holy Cow’, a two-hour, groomed ‘blue’ trail, with gentle grades that amble across backcountry trails. Just angling our skis outward a little produces the snow-plow maneuver from which to carve turns in the soft, dry snow. We stop from time to time to marvel at the hush, admire the view, and sip from water bottles.
We head ‘home’ for soup and toasted sandwiches before exploring the lower trails. We’ve still got another day to complete our Sun Peaks cross country skiing mission which is to ski-daddle across all 30 kilometers of British Columbia nordic trails.
Back at Cahilty Lodge, we loosen up in the hot tub where we soak with a half-dozen downhill ski club members who’ve flown in from Calgary, all 62 of them, to wind down their season. We purchase a few more groceries, walking-distance away: some ice cream bars, salad, and a dvd movie, War Horse, to complete our shopping list. We’re ready for a restful pasta-night-in.
Descending ‘Holy Cow’
Eager to re-try the ‘Holy Cow’ cross country skiing descent, we glory in it and on it (we are after all North Vancouverites who soldier up and around Holyburn Ridge more than sally down) then meet Don, one of the Sun Peaks ski hosts, patrolling the trail. Don gives some suggestions for our route and points us toward the McGillivray Lake Outpost, a warming hut where we munch snacks with other skiers including Mike, Don’s fellow host, and Coleen, the 100 Mile Nordic Ski Society’s café concierge. We met Coleen last month at the Cariboo loppet. Mike tells us there’s a February ‘Holy Cow’ Nordic Loppet (a cross country skiing race that descends ‘Holy Cow’ . Winners get milk and a cow bell!) We take ‘Raven Ramble’ to ‘Stellar Jay Loop’ then ‘Nuthatch’ our way back along ‘Vista’. This time, the hot tub’s all ours, and we’re jelly-legged cross country skiers, too lazy to skip across the way to the Sports and Aquatic Centre’s outdoor pool, open from 3:30 til 9pm daily.
Canadian lynx waits at the traffic crossing
Bluer-than-blue and bircher-than-birch
Stake Lake’s Sun Deck with gang
The Village is lovely in sunny pastel hues, and icicles drip staccatos, as we beebop our way to Stake Lake, British Columbia, an hour and a half away, yet en route to the coast. Just south of Kamloops, off Lac Le Jeune Road, is the Stake Lake Nordic Centre. As we approach, a Canadian lynx careens to a stop on its snowy track, as our car and another one slow to view its wild-eyed beauty. The bluer-than-blue sky and birch-tree-dotted trails inspire us along the graceful contours of these beautifully groomed trails where they host two loppet races per year. Chariot races entertain (last day of ski school and ‘don’t you wish you were six again?’) before our return to the Day Lodge deck, perfect for a picnic lunch. There we meet Stake Lake’s Overlander Ski Club volunteers and members: Bonnie and Al, Claire and Garry, as well as Chris. We share talk-story and bask in the sun. The photo is for prosperity’s sake until we meet again. Double-digit warmth: that’s what these Stake Lake Overlanders provide…a rollicking British Columbia winter activity.