This morning, we got up early to go for a hike. I knew it would be cold and that it might rain, but I didn't expect it to snow. The trail was high up in the mountains and of course the rain turned into snow. I'll write another article about the hike tomorrow but this one will focus on what the weather conditions led me to do.
The air up high was cold enough for snow but the ground in October was still too warm for the snow to settle. So it started melting and there was slush everywhere. My hiking shoes are old shoes I bought in 2018 and they are definitely not made for walking through slush. Long story short, the melted snow seeped into my shoes and soaked my socks. At every step, I could hear the sound of shlup, shlup in my shoes :)
However, the hike was so much fun! The trail was actually an old railway line built in 1914 and officially abandoned in 1978. Today, the old railway line is used as a hiking trail. Along the trail, there are high trestle bridges and tunnels that are remnants of the old railway. They made the hike even more fun and amazing. I completely forgot about the water in my shoes and the cold on my face. I just kept going and going for almost 12 kilometres.
However, when we got back to the car, I started feeling uncomfortable because my feet just wouldn't warm up. My body was using body heat to evaporate the water in my shoes instead of making my feet warmer.
Take this advice from me: when your clothes are wet and you're feeling cold, the first thing to do is take off your wet clothes and put on dry ones. Even just drying the moisture off your skin and staying shirtless is better than keeping your wet clothes on! Just wrap yourself in some dry sheets or towel and you will feel warmer soon.
On the way back to Kelowna, I knew I needed to buy a good pair of hiking shoes. My old ones are not only not waterproof, but they've also lost their grip. I've slipped on ice and rocks so many times because of them, sometimes pretty badly, hehe. I'd been putting this idea off for a long time, probably just waiting for the right moment to do it. And today was that day!
We stopped at a sports store and I went hunting for my dream hiking shoes. I found a couple of pairs to try on but when I took off my boots, I realised I couldn't try on the new shoes with my completely soaked socks. Luckily, the shop had all kinds of socks available for customers to try on shoes.
I found my boots and I actually fell in love with the socks I put on to try them on! So I ended up buying a pair of wool socks to keep my feet warm in winter, whether I'm hiking or skiing.
I'm so happy about my unexpected shopping trip today :)
October 10, 2026
Big White, Canada