Second “zoo” of the trip

November 27, 2017November 26, 2017 / Greg / 1 Comment

When my wife and I plan trips together, there is a lighthearted tug of war over one topic. My wife will ask “can we go to the zoo there?” and I’ll reply “you only get one zoo trip a year.” We share a laugh and continue on with the trip planning. Sometimes the zoo is a no brainer, like in San Diego. I think technically, I didn’t even count that as the year’s zoo. I’m not dead set against zoos, per se. I’m an animal lover, but with some notable exceptions, once you’ve seen one zoo, you’ve generally seen all zoos.

When we planned out our trip to Kelowna, there were two places my wife wanted to visit that looked suspiciously like zoos. We laughed a lot at exceeding the year’s quota in 5 days and I may have requested 2018 to be a zoo-free travel year. The first “zoo” was fun and had me snuggling with a baby walaroo. The second “zoo” wasn’t even really a zoo at all, and it was probably my favourite part of our Okanagan trip that didn’t involve wine. The Arion Therapeutic Farm, a short drive from downtown Kelowna, was in essence a small working farm and conservation park for animals. Before even meeting any of the four-legged inhabitants, the place had me hooked with its sheer beauty.

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Touring BC wine country

November 20, 2017November 19, 2017 / Greg / 1 Comment

Upon returning home from five days in the Okanagan I wondered to myself “why haven’t I visited here before?” My wife and I have traveled to some very interesting wine areas in the world – Sonoma and Napa in California, Champagne and Burgundy earlier this year even – so there really isn’t an excuse why we waited this long to visit the premier wine region in our own country. Making up for lost time, one of the first wineries we visited in the Okanagan was Summerhill Pyramid Winery, just outside of Kelowna.

This visit was as much for the view from their winery over Okanagan Lake and to have lunch at their restaurant. Luckily for us, we had a beautiful day to sit outside on their patio to have our meal.

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More than just wine

November 13, 2017November 13, 2017 / Greg / 1 Comment

When I hear “Okanagan”, the first thing that comes to mind is wine. On my trip there in August, I visited a lot of wineries and sampled liberally. But I also found ample time to pop into some craft breweries and bars in and around Kelowna for a taste of the Okanagan’s rapidly growing beer culture.

While making Kelowna my base for this trip, it allowed me to visit a number of breweries all within the city limits. Tree Brewing, right in downtown, is the largest craft brewer in the city with a wide distribution network. I was even able to get some of their beers when I lived in Nova Scotia. Their brewery’s taproom is a great space with multiple levels, different seating arrangements and a stack of board games. My wife and I pulled Yahtzee off of a shelf and she proceeded to take the title of Kelowna champion while I sampled a few delicious brews.

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How far away is Kamloops?

November 5, 2017 / Greg / 1 Comment

We woke up in Kelowna on an August Sunday morning without a firm idea of what we were going to do that day. Over a coffee at the hotel, the plan started to form around the idea of having brunch in Kamloops. My wife had found a really interesting place with a number of delicious sounding gluten-free menu items, and since I drag her to enough sandwich and beer places on our travels, I was 100% in on this one.

We built a loose idea of an itinerary before hitting the road. There was no debate on stop one – the Kangaroo Creek Farm was less than twenty minutes up the highway and was a bargain at $5 to roam around and play with animals. I mean, how could anyone not want to cuddle baby ‘roos?

I got to hold a baby wallaroo named Huggy Bear who was less than four months old. So cute, I almost wanted to carry him back to the car and drive off with a new member of our family.

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New and familiar

August 19, 2017August 18, 2017 / Greg / Leave a comment

For a long time, a bit subconsciously, I’ve focused my travels on places far away. I don’t think I ascribed a particular value to distance, but when planning trips I have had a tendency to think foreign, and with that, usually came a long flight or two. There’s still a lot of the world I want to see, but over the last year plus living in western Canada, I’m realizing that a lot of the world I haven’t yet laid eyes on and want to experience is actually within the borders of my own country.

My wife and I planned and just returned from a relatively short journey to the Okanagan Valley, in British Columbia, two provinces over. We’ve been married four years, and to celebrate our anniversary, we take an annual honeymoon. This one, honeymoon #5, smacked me in the face and reminded me how enormous, varied and downright beautiful and fun Canada is. Lush valleys, mountains, lakes and rivers were the backdrop. Wine tastings, outstanding food, craft beer (for me at least), two animal parks and a couple of days of road trips were the activities. Throughout it all, this trip satisfied the need within me to explore while also comforting me. During an internationally turbulent week politically (aren’t they all these days), it was good to be away, yet still be at home.

I’ll write a lot more about our Okanagan experiences but know I loved every minute of it. The sights, tastes and experiences were new, and in an inexplicable way, familiar too.