We just came home from a 24 hour holiday today! After having friends join us for tea in the afternoon (who had an excellent time at the Creston Birding Festival), we left in our camper van for Summit Lake Provinical Park, located part way between New Denver and Nakusp. It was a very cool night and we didn't have much luck with birds, but there were a few around. Very frequent heavy showers had discouraged some campers, but plenty of fishing folk partially filled the campground. Birds sited were: common mergansers, one pair of shovellers, a few bufflehead (one male surrounded by females), a bald eagle, a loon, and several Canada geese. We tried out the new awning for the camper van and it seemed to work effectively. I was able to read while outside, but it was too cool to stay out for long.
In the morning, we had another look around the campground for birds and then headed to Nakusp for a walk along the promenade and then up to the hot springs for a dip. It's a small pairs of pools but it was quite lovely as the clouds began to dissipate and sun prevailed. We visited the Heritage Nursery in Nakusp and bought a barberry for the Trail residence. After lunch back at Summit Lake, we then headed towards New Denver, stopping for a walk at the Snk'mip Marsh. Disappointingly, the birds we mostly observed were mallards, Canada geese, robins and fortunately, a lot of rough-winged swallows! And the best place to visit of all, was the Kohan Garden in New Denver. The photo shows why!
