Beachfront in Kelowna

 On our drive to Vernon this summer, we took a break from driving to stretch our legs and enjoy the scenery in Kelowna. The downtown core beside Lake Okanagan is very popular and built up, with all manner of fancy boats and hotels, but they have done a good job of keeping the waterfront itself open to the public in large areas. This allows for some nice paths, food vendors, beach access, open-air piano spaces, public art, and a general feeling of community.

 The interior of the province also gets hotter than we are used to on the coast, but Kathryn was prepared (as always) and took the opportunity to go frolic and splash in the water.

 Jared and myself declined to get in the water, but had a nice wander along the lakefront and took a moment to pose for a picture with Ogopogo, the famous (however unlikely) lake monster of the Okanagan.

Hiking in Vernon

 We had a spare afternoon before the wedding in Vernon, and luckily Kathryn had booked a nice room at the Silver Star Resort. They cater to both the mountain biking and the snowboarding crowds (though clearly not at the same time) and have a rather vibrant colour scheme which Jared (as an art director) took a little while to comes to terms with. Kathryn and I expect that while its a little jarring in the summer, in the winter it must stand out for miles around in a sea of white and grey.

 The mountain bikers had lots of clearly marked trails to enjoy, but there were also some nice hiking trails from the resort up to the peak and back. After months of schooling and life in Vancouver, it was really nice to get away to somewhere wide and open for a few hours.

 There were several warnings about black bears and plenty of scat on the trails, but none to be found. Funnily enough, Jared carried a few rocks that he clacked together which he thought might keep the bears away and Kathryn and I worried would scare them before we could spot them. Then when we got back, people at reception told us that's a bad idea because territorial males will gnash their teeth and make a similar sound to show dominance. So we took a walk in bear country and worried we'd scare them off while simultaneously sending out a challenge call. City people, am I right?