Saturday, September 30, 2006:
Ten WK Nats met at Nelson's Safeway, eagerly anticipating the walk down the Fort Shepherd-Nelson (Burlington Northern) rail trail. The weather was glorious and Mother Nature was resplendent in her autumn colours. The trail is easy and well-used, a low grade down to the lake---though it seemed much steeper on the way back! The trestle bridges are pretty awesome; "hats off" to whomever is responsible for all the work! On the shoreline (we think), we determined where the former rail tracks led to the lake in order for the train to be loaded onto barges and transported down to Creston, and onward east. Just around the corner we came upon a lovely beach where we lunched and relaxed. Thanks to Julia Roberts for all the information --historical and present-day environmental. Much enjoyed and appreciated!
Nell Plotnikoff

Saturday, October 7, 2006:
Five Nats showed up for the extended Elephant Mountain hike. Elephant Mountain increases the Pulpit Rock hike by 900 ft, bringing the total elevation gain on this steep hike to 2000 ft +/-. Golden Crowned Kinglets flew down to greet us within arm’s reach of the lower trail, and we saw several Clark's Nutcrackers on the higher portion of the trail. Jerry and Verena went a little way beyond the upper view point and saw a Pine Grosbeak, but the raptors and Blue Grouse that showed up during the recce failed to make a second appearance. ,The weather was beautiful if a bit breezy at the summit, so we had to stay and take in the scenery... darn... north east down the West Arm of Kootenay Lake and west toward Bonnington, with Nelson and the south side communities spread out below us. While the first half of the trail is moderate we will have to class the second half as strenuous. In the future the high elevation species observed on such a short hike (2.5 hr up & 1.5 hr down) will probably see more visits from fit Nats.
Michael McMann

Saturday, October 14, 2006:
Nine Nats hiked to Violin Lake in glorious warm Fall weather. A pileated woodpecker gave us a noisy send-off at Webster School. Although the forest was quiet, except for the usual chickadees, the Fall colours were worth the effort. We didn’t see any large mammals – were all the bears in town? On the water were ring-necked ducks and green-winged teals. Hairy woodpeckers, siskins and crossbills were heard, as was our official BC bird, the Stellar Jay. We noted that knapweed is growing at the edge of Cambridge Reservoir. On our way back, we did a garbage collection of beer cans, etc. It was a much more enjoyable hike for Pamella than the week before when, alone, she had a frightening encounter with a threatening brute on two wheels.
Gwen Nicol

Saturday, February 4, 2006:
Eight Nats braved the elements and turned out for the annual snowshoe hike to the Plewman Ridge cabin. The going was difficult through deep snow, but each member took turns breaking the trail. Although the area has many rabbits, squirrels, bobcats, lynx and grouse, only cat prints were seen. Everything was covered by the fast falling snow. A number of chickadees were seen, and a flock of birds flew by, but were not identified. Lunch was enjoyed and clothes dried in the comfort of the heated shelter. Since a number of black bears are denning in the area, a suspected den was spotted on the hike out. Vapor was coming from the vent hole, but no further investigation was undertaken. Although the hike was long because the leader became lost at times, [tongue planted firmly in cheek] it was still an enjoyable outing.
Harvey Pitman

Saturday, October 21, 2006:
Ten naturalists met at the weigh scale on Hwy 3 in Ootischenia on a beautiful autumn morning. After a bit of car-pooling, Margo said she'd lead us to the Waterloo Trail head. She made the drive interesting by taking a couple of wrong turns, but we eventually got on the right road. From the end of the pavement to the point where we left our vehicles and started the hike, the dirt road progressively deteriorated. It took us nearly an hour to drive about 6 km. As it happened, we took the wrong fork in the road at one point and had to spend some time searching for the beginning of the hiking trail. We then hiked for an hour or so, scaring up quite a few grouse along the way. For our lunch spot, we chose a couple of big logs on a gravel bar in the Columbia River. While we were eating, a bald eagle soared overhead. Following lunch we decided to head back to the cars, rather than venturing further along the trail. This proved to be a bigger challenge than we expected. Everybody seemed to have a different idea as to the whereabouts of our vehicles, so people fanned out in all directions hoping to stumble across them. Margo was the first to locate them, followed closely by another five members. A search party was formed to find the remaining four members of our group. They were soon located and we proceeded on our way home. Although it was a somewhat disorganized outing, I'm sure we all learned something from the experience and will do better next time.

(The hike leadership went through a number of incarnations, until Margaret Knudsgaard bravely volunteered to do it. She had never been in this area and it had been a long while for our ‘guides’. As it was all brought together at the last moment, none had the opportunity to do a recce. Unfortunate that everyone but the reporter had a grand time.)
Bill Bennetts

Saturday, October 28, 2006:
Ten people gathered for a hike along the Mel DeAnna Trail. The morning was overcast, but the precipitation held off, making for pleasant walking conditions. Fall colours were showing and much of the trail was carpeted with fallen aspen leaves and larch needles. We botanized and birded. Bird species seen or heard included Mallard, Pileated Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Three-toed Woodpecker, American Crow, Common Raven, Steller's Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Song Sparrow and Winter Wren. The group stopped for lunch at the shelter at the far end of the ponds, where our youngest guest took an unexpected plunge while exploring a rocky ledge. Sincere thanks to all who stepped up with dry clothes, hot drinks and bear hugs for the chilled child!
Janice Arndt

Saturday, November 18, 2006:
For some odd reason, the Salmo area seems to have its own quirky weather, especially in November. All eight Nats were surprised that the Sheep Creek Road east of the village had such an accumulation of snow – the second time we ran into this in as many times trying to hike this area. We managed to drive 7.5 km up the road, then had a lovely, amazingly quick, walk along the road for another 3 km, with the creek and the squirrels both noisily keeping us company. Our birders were not overworked, but a pileated woodpecker was sighted before we even left town! We viewed the ruins of the mine at the Waldie Creek junction at 10 km, and wondered among us about its history. The campsite a half kilometre further up the road was a pleasant spot to have our lunch, and enjoy the creek and the lifting of the overcast. The kids challenged each other in a rock-skipping competition, and one of the members was enthusiastic in her plans to revisit the area next summer to camp and fish with her grandchildren. The easy, pleasant walk was enjoyed by all, and the leader was heartily encouraged when she suggested organizing a hike in the milder seasons in ’07. Thanks, group!
Margo Saunders