It doesn't get much better than this.  Along with  Patrick, the owner of Selkirk Sports  here at Kicking Horse we went on a fabulous adventure a few days ago.  We road our cube ebikes down a old rail bed and on a forestry road for about 20 kms. After stashing our bikes in the woods, we  hiked for about an hour  to one of my favourite spots in our area, Gorman Lake.  Then to add to our day, someone had brought a canoe up to the lake a few years ago and left it for anyone who wanted to use it.  And we did exactly that.  It had a hole in the front so it was better for one at a time. Outstanding.  In the past we have driven up to the small parking area and then hiked up but the road is very very poor.  The ebikes are actually as fast if not faster than driving and a lot more fun.  Especially coming back down when you can certainly go faster than in a car.  Overall it took us about 5 hours for the round trip and that included about 1 hour for some repairs we had to do on a bike.  One of the best days I have had.  There were only a few other people on the trail and no-one else at the lake.  

Winter is early.  This is what it looked like this morning at the top of Kicking Horse Resort.  It rained most of the night and you can see what it did at the top of the mountain.  Looks pretty sweet.  It is a bit early for this but who knows.  Certainly a nice break from the smoke filled skies we have had over the past month.  A reminder Vagabond has their Early Bird Savings available until Oct. 31st.  Book your winter stay and get a 10% discount. Give us a call here at Vagabond 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge.ca 
Winter is creeping up. 

It has been a tough  last  few weeks here in our area.  BC has had some horrible forest fires throughout the province and it is effecting all of western Canada. We have had a few small ones in our area too which is a bit scary at times although not anything really close but still the smoke is in the air depending on which way the wind has been blowing.  But we got a great great treat yesterday with cooler temperatures, rain all night and even some snow at the top of the mountain this morning.  The smoke has disappeared and hopefully it will be the end.  It is supposed to stay cool this week and more rain is predicted. 
Photo is from this morning at the top of the mountain.
We have our early bird pricing for the upcoming ski season here at Vagabond Lodge.   Give us a call at 250 344 2622 or email me at ken@vagabondlodge.ca 

The Columbia River that flows through Golden is one of the many gems we have in our backyard.  Just the kayaking or canoeing is reason enough but the other day we went out for a couple hour trip from Nicholson(9 km south) and ending at the airport in Golden we saw at least 3 bald eagles, a heron and osprey.  At times you can see bear and moose.  Really a  treat.  
We have our own inflatable kayaks but if you are interested in joining me for a trip, Selkirk Sports here at Kicking Horse Resort has a couple for rent and they are super easy to inflate.  The Columbia is a great place for kayaking for basically any level as there is no whitewater involved.  The biggest challenge is sometimes going into the wind which makes it a lot more work than just floating with the currant. 
Great way to see a different side of our area.  Give us a call here at Vagabond 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge.ca 

Where else would my first hike of the summer be to?  Yes to T2 at Kicking Horse. June 16th and it was as usual beautiful. 
We had a great vacation to Croatia do do some sailing which was a "once in a lifetime experience."  With some friends, we spent a week sailing from Trogir to the islands of Hvar and Vis(our favourite). 
Now back to work and Vagabond is open for the summer.  A couple of things to report from Kicking Horse.  The General Store which has been closed since last summer is now under new ownership and is open daily.  Our guests love it because they can pick up a bottle of wine or some beer without having to drive to Golden.
Also Kicking Horse announced that Rudi's Bowl is being added to the controlled territory of the resort.  Right now that means very little difference as skiers have been going up to the area anyways.  But I suspect before the end of the summer they will also announce that it will be added to the resort.  In other words, they will be doing avalanche control and will have ski patrols in that area.  It will continue to be foot assess but there are suggestions  a lift will eventually be put up to that area.  It does offer a lot of more intermediate terrain.  I am not in any hurry to have it gain lift asses but it will be inevitable. 
Give us a call at 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge.ca to book your stay. 
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Columbia river is rising by the minute.  The river flows through Golden and is one of the many hidden gems in our area.  Friend Patrick and Lori joined me for what was going to be a float down the river.  Perfect day with blue skies and beautiful scenery in every direction.  We drove to a little town called Parson which is about 30 minutes south and put the kayaks in the water.  It didn't take long to realize we had some work ahead despite the strong current.  It was windy and windy to the point of whitecaps.  The ending point was Columbia Wetlands Outpost which is about a 10 km trip.  What should have been no more than 2 hours, took 3 with no time to take a break.  You stopped paddling, you went backwards.  Which may have been a better option.   Despite the extra work, it was still an amazing day with all sorts of bird life to see and no-one else on the river except us.  Outstanding. 

It doesn't get much better than being able to ski and kayak in the same day.  Patrick from Selkirk Sports here at Kicking Horse joined me for exactly that on April 27th.  It was a beautiful day and with the lifts already closed  but yet plenty of snow yet, for the season we skinned up to the top of one of the runs above Vagabond.  It took us about 2 hours to get to the top and about 10 minutes to get down(a few breaks to enjoy the scenery).  And then a couple hours later we headed down to the Columbia River which is a 10 minute drive and went kayaking for an hour or so.  Fantastic day.  Vagabond is  closed for another month and will reopen for the summer season in June.  Give us a call at 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge to book your stay. The skiing may not be in option but the kayaking certainly is.  The sightseeing gondola and grizzly bear refuge opens in June and goes until October.  Those are just a couple of the many things you can do in our area. 

We really didn't 't get any spring skiing at Kicking Horse this winter.  Except for a couple days, it was winter from start to finish.  But finally the warmer weather hit a few days ago and with amazing snow coverage Patrick from Selkirk Sports joined me for a skin up the slopes behind Vagabond.  We made it about half-way to the top and took about 1 and a half hours mostly skinning but in a couple spots we took our skis off and climbed up which made it a lot easier on the steeper terrain. After a short rest, we skied down which took us about 10 minutes with a number of stops.  Awesome day and a great work-out.  There may be one more trip up yet before we put away the skis. 

Another ski season is in the books here at Vagabond.  And wow.  What a great ski season we had.  Over 1000 cms of snow at the top of Kicking Horse which was a record.  And it is still coming down as I type this up. I managed to get up for 100 days of skiing this winter which is the most I have ever done in one year.  And most of those are climbs to either T1 or T2.  The video is from the second last day on April 14th.  I did go skiing on the final day but the visibility was very poor and my body said "enough is enough." One run down on the final day just to say I skied the final day.  We had some great guests over the winter with a great many of them returning year after year and a number have already booked their stay for the 2018-2019 ski season  Now we get a month and a half break to recharge and then we will reopen Vagabond in early June.  It already looks like it could be the busiest summer we have ever had.  I am looking forward to some great hiking, kayaking and mountain biking.  All we need now is to get rid of all our snow which may be awhile yet. 
Give us a call here at Vagabond at 250 344 2622 or email info@vagabondlodge.ca to book your stay or fill out the form on this page and I will get back to you.