Top of the World
Elevation: 2,080m
Words by: Jessica Vliegenthart "The Roll Model"
Photos by: Mary Putnam
As promised, too many excellent adventures to be shared with only one post, so I’m coming in hot with Part 2: Parents’ Day Out.
It’s been a year, hasn’t it? And I mean that both literally and figuratively. A year since the world went into variations of lockdown, a year of sticking extremely close to home, and a year of every. single. day. with our two beautiful children whom we love and adore to the ends of the earth but also from whom we would DEARLY LOVE to take a small break.
So we DID, and it was delightful and refreshing and exactly what we needed.
As always, we hit the slopes first thing in the morning, actually catching first chair (turns out this is possible when feeding and clothing and emotionally regulating two small children is taken off one’s plate!). Getting outside into nature, with space to breathe and space to think is always what the doctor orders for me. The morning was perfect, even if a lot of it was spent talking about the kids, scoping out runs the kids would like, and maybe kind of sort of missing the kids (maybe).
Next up, after a great morning on the slopes, a brand new adventure for us: Dog Sledding! I’ve been a lot of places and done a lot of things, but I’d never tried this - even though it’s available almost literally in my back yard. The verdict? What a COOL experience. Highly, highly recommend and fully think it’s something that every Canadian needs to do for an appreciation of this unique mode of transport.
The crew at Mountain Man Sled Dog Adventures were great (both human and canine). We were introduced to all the dogs - told all of their names and histories, and educated on the care and keeping of the teams before we got underway. The dogs were raring to go, so we loaded up without much delay to hit the trails.
From an accessibility standpoint, dog sledding is a pretty great way to experience the winter woods. The drivers offered to move the sled if necessary (there is a hard pack road nearby if the deep snow poses a challenge) and also offered to assist however I needed. The transfer is a big one, but doable - and especially doable with a helping hand.
We zipped through narrow trails, climbed hills, went over rollers and had a blast. We were out for an hour, and the dogs loved every second of it. When we got back to the start, the guides brought out a big bucket of beef fat and let us give each good doggo a treat. I can’t wait to go back. If you haven’t done this, you should!
By this point, the hot tubs at the Sun Peaks Grand were calling our names. Even though we’ve skied Sun Peaks for years and years, we had never actually stayed at the Grand during the winter months, and so I had never used the hot tubs. It goes without saying how a great a soak in a hot tub is after a day out in the snow, but I found it totally delightful to be able to see the lifts and watch the skiers go by as the mist from the hot tubs swirled up. Maybe it’s the delicious feeling of knowing your work is done for the day and all that’s left is sweet sweet R&R.
With dinner fast approaching, we threw on some Actual Adult Clothing (a rarity in these work from home days) and found ourselves a table at the Steakhouse at Sun Peaks Lodge. Our first child-free dinner out (and maybe our first dinner out?) in at least 6 months. Absolutely GLORIOUS. The food was delicious, locally raised, and the wine menu also full of BC award winners. It’s a personal rule of mine that if there is Creme Brulee on the menu, I must order it (so I did) but that didn’t stop me from a little window shopping at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory on the way back to our room. Just to take notes, right? A truly scrumptious way to top off a full day of top notch fun.
After so long of being at home with our kiddos, the whole day felt like we were playing hooky - having a blast less than an hour away. Sun Peaks is so close to Kamloops, but also deliciously far away, and perfect for a Parents’ Day Out.
Highly, highly recommend. So much so that we booked some additional weekends before we left - and this time we’ll bring the kids!
Continue reading about The Roll Model's visit.
Part 1: A Guide Part 3: Family Fun