Some of the Kilpoola area is managed by BC Nature Trust and the Nature Conservancy of Canada. It is designated as an important birding site. From Highway 3, we took the turnoff to the Old Richter Pass Road and then onto Kruger Mountain Road. We were hoping to see lots of autumn colours, and we weren’t disappointed; although, a complete change has yet to occur.
At the first lake (no name) we anticipated seeing turtles but none were visible. We did, however, see a very pretty pink water lily that immediately caught my eye. It was identified as a Water Lady-thumb, (polygonum natans).
Numerous dragonflies flickered in and out of the marshy part of the lake; it was neat to watch them with binoculars. The most interesting aspect of this lake was how it mirrored a Monet painting.
Our next stop was Blue Lake, a rather large, tranquil lake. We scared off a couple of Mallard ducks and saw a Says Phoebe, as well as, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet flying above us in the tall pines.
At Kilpoola Lake, we parked the vehicles and when we got out, we were immediately assailed by the strong pungent scent of sagebrush. We took a short walk along the edge of the lake, admiring the scenery. This is a beautiful grassland area. Two fishermen in a boat occasionally broke the silence in an otherwise very quiet and peaceful environment. Here, we saw American Coots, Gadwall Ducks, and Pied-billed Grebes. On the way back, we met a couple biking along the trail. Biking this area is a good way to see and appreciate what nature has to offer.
Leaving Kilpoola Lake we went up to the next lake which also has no name. Here we saw hundreds of ducks, but too far away to be identified. We could have walked toward them, but we did not want to frighten them away.
The group’s comments on the Kilpoola area were, “The scenery is just spectacular.” “It’s just so beautiful.” “You can hear the silence; it’s so peaceful, so restful”.
We left this wonderful area and proceeded on to our next stop, the wildlife observation site on Vaseux Lake. The new three tier bird blind is a great improvement. It is a good observation site, but again the birds were too far away to identify.
Finishing our little expedition, we stopped at Tickleberry’s to enjoy a treat.
