Exploring Northeast Vernon and the BX.

Our favourite cycling days are ones with warm sunny weather and great scenery.  We love to take time to explore interesting sites and visit inviting cafes and eateries. Sure the route could be done in one sweaty hour, but we prefer to savour the experience taking two or three hours. And there is no place better than the North Okanagan for such indulgent and interesting cycling!

It's 8 o'clock Saturday morning and the sun is warm on our backs as we head east along the shaded pathway through 25 Avenue Linear Park towards Highway 97. Our plan is to head north, but we take a quick cycle around Polson Park.

Karate Class in Polson Park

 An older gentleman, sporting a cowboy hat, is absorbed in feeding the ducks at the pond and a local karate club is holding a class behind gardens of pink flox and yellow day lilies.


We stop to admire the floral clock, and check the date which is changed daily, then head through the downtown, eventually following the bike path along 20 St.

 

Floral Clock at Polson Park

After crossing 48 St we veer off to the right onto BX Creek Trail. Here, nestled between residential subdivisions, is a boardwalk that follows the gurgling BX Creek, shielded from the urban noise by stands of tall Black Cottonwoods.  This is a "riparian ecosystem", a moist habitat for several endangered species.  A keen eye might spot a Western Toad, a Little Brown Bat,  a 12 Spotted Skinner or the exotic sounding Rubber Boa.

Boardwalk at BX Creek Park

 This cool and lush corridor connects Swan Lake to upper BX Creek.  And from here one can gaze toward a Great Blue Heron Rookery (aka "a colony of breeding animals") located in a stand of tall trees in front of the local Walmart.  This, apparently, is one of a very few breeding sites in an urban location.  Three nests were first spotted in 1968 and there are now over 40.  The herons nest in March laying 3 to 5 eggs that require about a month to hatch. Then the baby birds are launched at 10 weeks of age.

At Stickle Road we turn up to Pleasant Valley Road and head south to 46 Ave/BX Road where we turn east.  BX Road follows BX Creek.   Here is the site of the original BX Ranch homestead, now best known by locals for its large dog park.  The road is moderately steep but we are protected by morning shade and soon connect with East Vernon Road.  Near the corner is the BX Press Cidery and Orchard open for tastings and tales of the BX from  Friday to Sunday 11am to 5 pm.  Here we are entertained and educated, learning the origins of these infamous initials.
In 1864, during the Cariboo gold rush, Francis Jones Barnard purchased 6,300 acres from the crown  to fatten cattle and raise express ponies used on his stage coach runs from the Valley to the Cariboo.  The ranch housed Barnard's Express, the largest freighting company in BC, with routes covering over 1000 miles and second in size only to the legendary Wells Fargo.

Today the BC Press Cidery produces its cider from a large variety of apples grown on land that was part of this famous ranch.  We taste three varieties of cider, each with its individual taste and story, the Prospector, the Hostler and the Bandit.  We leave, each carrying two bottles of cider in our panier bags.

 

By the time we wind back through Vernon to our starting point on Okanagan Landing Road, we have clocked 25 kms, and the noon day sun is above us.  We've discovered hidden wetlands, the rolling valley that was home to one of BC's most famous ranches, and experienced the crisp taste of artisan cider.  And now it's time to get home and crack open a cold bottle of cider on the back deck.