To Do
Around The Guest House
- Year-round, our driveway is a 1/2 kilometer forest walk with two running creeks. It offers a beautiful drive in and out (though a little bumpy!), and lovely adventuring with children.
- Walk the forested path from your house down to the river-side road that offers a quiet hour-and-a-half walk, by marsh, river, beach and forest habitat. We have seen beaver, deer, black bears, heron, eagles, osprey, and many other animals here. We can equip and educate you to be safe in the wilderness that surrounds you here.
Indoor Activities
Swimming – Nelson has an excellent public pool with the following special features: family change room, shallow and warm kids leisure pool with ‘lazy river’, water slide, hot-tub, sauna and steam room.
Climbing – Gravity Adventures
Bowling – Savoy Lanes
Movies – Civic Theatre
Live Theatre – Capitol Theatre
Movie Rentals – REOs Video
Restaurants – Over 40 local eateries provide anything from Mexican, Indian, Greek, Thai to Canadian steak dinners with famous Alberta beef.
Touchstones Museum and Art Gallery
Shopping – Craft Connection is a favourite for locally-made goods
Winter Dec – April
Backcountry and Resort downhill and cross country activities for all levels abound.
Whitewater Ski Resort – Dec to early April – check out their plans for development… get here while we are still a hidden gem. Gear can be rented. Powder Magazine calls Whitewater, “One of the best powder mountains on the continent.” And, Ski Canada has rated Whitewater to have the Best Deeps, Best Bowls and Best Glades.
Red Mountain – Under 1 hour drive from us, big vertical, great steeps and top rated for glade skiing. At Red, visitors can choose from 87 runs spread across two stellar mountains that feature everything from wide-open groomers to steep, powder-filled glades. With more than 1,685 skiable acres and 880 meters (2,919 feet) of vertical terrain serviced by 6 total lifts, you can explore new terrain on every run for weeks.
Commercial Hot Springs
Ainsworth Hot Springs – under 1 hour drive away from us (and a beautiful short drive up the Kootenay Lake), this commercial hot springs features a large outdoor pool overlooking Kootenay Lake, in addition to a hotter (104 F) cave loop and cold plunge pool (40 F). There is a good restaurant there as well. Just a note, that although young kids are allowed, they do not allow jumping off the deck or use of any flotation devices (e.g. life jackets etc).
Nelson Nordic Ski Club – Dec to April – drop in is $10, with extensive trails on beautiful terrain. Let us know if you need gear.
Baldface Lodge Cat Skiing – Late Dec – April – many other backcountry operations can be found within the Nelson region.
Snowshoeing – Ask for directions to several good spots, and let us know if you need gear.
Skating – rec centre schedule, and if the weather is right, a small rink on a shallow march a short walk from our guest house.
Spring April – June
Hiking – good shoulder season trails are minutes from your door. For a more adventurous day, take the Kootenay Lake free car ferry across to Pilot Bay and hike the peninsula.
Summer July – August
Hiking – World-class hikes become accessible. We have the ultimate Kootenay hiking guide book available for you. Some of our faves are Kokanee Glacier Park, Mount Gimli, Monica Meadows and Jumbo Glacier Park [threatened by commercial development so get to it while still pristine].
Birdwatching – Listen for baby eagles and osprey, watch them when they learn to fly, and see their parents duke it out with other birds from your own deck. Hummingbirds and swallows love our garden. Visit the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area.
Bear Viewing – Nearby in Goat Range National Park, bear biologists take you to a safe and unobtrusive distance from grazing grizzlies. Contact the Valhalla Wilderness Society.
Cross-Country Mountain Biking – Seven Summits trail.
Fall
Birdwatching - flickers and others migrate by your house.
Salmon Run – Kokanee Creek Park is home to spawning salmon every September around Labour Day.
