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Things are looking great for the start of ski season here at Vagabond Lodge. Kicking Horse Resort isn't scheduled to be open until December 9 but with the snow conditions we have I wouldn't be surprised if it opens a week early. The top of the mountain has been getting some nice dumps over the past week or so and now the snow has moved down to our level with a good 20 cms a couple days ago and 30 cms new snow at the top. They now have over 100 cms at the top. It looks like a busy winter for us at Vagabond with some dates fully booked especially in January and February. There are still some open dates in mid March. Give us a call directly 250 344 2622(text too) or email us at info@vagabondlodge.ca and we can see if you can fit you in. You can pre-purchase lift tickets through the resort for a bit of savings. Click here for the link. Looking good. Video is from November 5th.
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The snow is starting to happen here at Vagabond Lodge at Kicking Horse Resort. After an amazing autumn with temperatures in the 20's C and very little moisture, the mountains are turning white in the past few days and with more snow in the forecast for the next couple weeks. Tentative opening date is December 9. It looks as if we are going to have a very busy winter here at Vagabond Lodge with a lot of dates sold out. If you are interested in staying with us, it is best to give us a call at 250 344 2622 or text us at this number. You can also email info@vagabondlodge.ca to see if we have some room. We have a 4 night minimum stay for the winter. I always look forward to the first turns of the season. Can't wait. Video is flashback from last winter with friend Patrick. We did hike up to the top of T1. Amazing run. It doesn't get much better than an autumn kayak trip down the Kicking Horse river through the town of Golden. Along with friend Patrick we took advantage of a perfect fall day. With water levels dropping dramatically we spent some time making sure we could navigate through some of the rocks that were starting to pop up in various spots along the channels. But at the end of the day we had no issue. The water this time of the year is so nice and clear and colourful. Usually in the summer it can be either muddy after a big rainfall or a lot of silt with the runoff. It was a great way to finish off our kayaking season. Next up heading to the interior for some lake stuff. It's not over yet. Vagabond is closed for the next couple months and reopening for ski season in December. Book your vacation direct. It's the final long weekend of the summer and it definitely feels like summer with temperatures hovering around 30C which is not normal for this time of the year. Luckily we have had some nice rain every week so unlike a lot of parts of the province and North America we are not dry. Having said that there are forest fires not that far away but not big wild fires such as we have had in the past where thick smoke blows in for days on end, although there has been a bit of a haze in the air the last few days. Forecast calls for a cooling trend in the next few days and temperatures in the high teens and lower 20s C. That is perfect. We have been taking advantage of both the Kicking Horse and the Columbia rivers that run through and by the town of Golden. And what better way to enjoy the long weekend than a great paddle. We are open for a couple more weeks and then closed until ski season. Bookings have been strong for the upcoming winter. Don't miss out. Book direct at Vagabond Lodge for the best rate. We have some great ridge hikes in our backyard at Vagabond Lodge. The gondola at Kicking Horse Resort does most of the grunt work. This trail is seldom used and is not on any maps but it is outstanding. Overall it is about a 2 hour loop from the top of the gondola with some great views and if you are lucky maybe a sighting of goats. As the snow in higher elevation has finally melted for the most part, this is my favourite time for hiking. We have finally gotten some heat. The first of this summer with temperatures around 30C which is as hot as we want. And one of the best things to do is to find some water and that is not an issue here. We have both the Kicking Horse River and the Columbia river running through or by the town of Golden which is just a 10 minute drive away. On a hot day, there is nothing better than a float down the Columbia River. A group of us did this trip a few days ago. We need to have cars at both ends to do a shuttle after getting off the river. Our trip was about 4 hours and allows time to go into some of the lakes that are formed this time of the year with the water level very high. Not much paddling is needed. Just sit back and relax. There are a couple of companies in our area that rent kayaks and canoes as well as stand up paddle boards and they will do a shuttle for you. It is a great way to enjoy our playground here at Vagabond. It has been a slow melt this spring to say the least. We are probably a month behind as far as the snow disappearing from the upper elevations which means hiking is limited to lower trails and they are not always the most scenic. But finally I was able to do one of my favourite ridge hikes here at Kicking Horse Resort up to Terminator peak. And the views are always stunning. We have had a lot of rain and cooler weather throughout the spring and even fresh snow not long ago at the top of the mountains. But having said that, I will enjoy this compared to last year when we had a heat dome in June with temperatures unheard of and then followed by forest fires throughout the province. That meant smoke and that is not fun. This is just fine. Video is from my hike a few days ago to Terminator peak. We have an amazing playground in our backyard here at Vagabond Lodge. One of my favourite spots is Takakkaw falls in Yoho National Park. Over the past few years we have made it a tradition to ride our bikes the 14km up from the turnoff off hiway#1 to the falls before they open the road to car traffic. Once that happens it is way to busy to ride bikes as it is a narrow road. Plus going there prior to the road opening makes it a very special experience. We try and do it a few days before they open for the summer and then in the fall just after they close the road. During the summer there are hundreds of people daily. We saw six other people who were doing the same as us. Friend Patrick and I did the ride just two days before they opened the road and it was magical as usual with the falls at full force with all the runoff from a few days of rain. We were lucky and managed to sneak there and back without getting too wet. Well worth the effort. You never know what is just around the corner in our backyard here at Vagabond. Along with friends we went on our first bike ride of the season of any significance. One of our favourites and is to take a forestry road to Canyon Creek. It is about an half hour ride on our ebikes to a view point that overlooks a stunning canyon. And we are in for a treat as we came across two black bears and our favourite...mountain goats. They have a spot at the edge of the canyon that has a mineral in the soil that apparently attracts them. Every so often if you are lucky they are there licking the mineral out of the soil and this day we were lucky. They are so stunning to see relatively close up. We gave them enough distance not to disturb them. Vagabond is open for the summer again soon. Book direct from our website and we can show you the route to this lookout. You may be as fortunate as we were. Yes skiing is over for another winter at Vagabond Lodge. Kicking Horse Resort had its final day yesterday April 17th. And it ended in good style. We didn't get much for fresh snow over the past couple weeks but the weather stayed exceptionally cold despite the time of year which meant the conditions were winter like, rather than spring skiing which I am not that fond of anyways. Along with friend Patrick we did pretty well daily trips to the top of the mountain and did some exploring out of bounds where we found pretty well fresh tracks daily. Friends Ken and Tom joined us the final couple days. 90% of the skiing was great with the bottom 10% sometimes a challenge as the lower elevation snow was icy. But it was all worth while. Vagabond is now closed until June when we reopen for the summer with hiking, mountain biking, kayaking and more available on our doorsteps. Book direct at Vagabond Lodge or give us a call 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge.ca. We had some fun this winter and now looking forward to a summer of adventure. Final video of this winter for our last couple days. |
KenKen along with his wife Lori are the owners and operators of Vagabond Lodge at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. 
 Click on Photo to go to Vagabond Lodge Website. 
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