RonnieAdventure #0059 - Days 8-14, Las Vegas-Alaska-Las Vegas 2013 Trip

WEEK 2

DAY 08. – Taghum, South Slocan, Crescent Valley, Shoreacres, Glado, Thrums, Castlegar, Christina Lake, Grand Forks, Carson, Greenwood, Midway, Kettle Valley, Rock Creek, Westbridge, Beaverdell, Rutland, Kelowna

 I’m certain that there are more 8% grade roads in British Columbia than anywhere in the US. It seems like we are continually going uphill or downhill. Not real good for fuel economy – especially when pulling a trailer!

 We have found that in Canada the best Information Centres are located in museums; so we stopped at the Grand Forks Museum for some tourist information, but unfortunately the museum was closed. However, located on the museum grounds was the log cabin that served as the first Customs Office in the area from 1884 to 1897. It was interesting just to look through the window at the period artifacts.

We also stopped at the Greenwood Museum/Information Centre, which was open, and they provided us with great information on British Columbia. The museum was very interesting and informative!

 

DAY 09. – This was a catch-up day and we spent the morning doing laundry and grocery shopping.
 

In the afternoon we stopped by the internationally acclaimed Geert Maas Sculpture Gardens and Gallery. Geert Maas is a multi-talented artist that works in wide variety of mediums, including, but not limited to, bronze, aluminum, stainless steel, stoneware, acrylic, lacquer, and oils. He is considered to be one of Canada’s most dynamic and versatile artists. Since it was a slow day, Geert gave us a personal tour of the Gallery.

 

 

DAY 10. – Winfield, Lake Country, Vernon, Spallumcheen, Armstrong, Enderby, Salmon Arm, Tappen, Sorrento, Chase, Pritchard, Monte Creek, Kamloops, Knutsford.

We started the day by visiting a cheese factory in Armstrong. After watching an interesting movie on how to make cheese, we were treated with a number of different cheese samples. Of course, we also had to purchase a few things while we were in their retail store, and then we snacked on a delicious cranberry muffin that had just come out of the oven in their bakery.

Cheese Factory

On the way out of town we stopped by the Log Barn, a down-sized Wall Drug Store type tourist attraction, but we didn’t make any purchases.



 

Log Barn Tourist Attraction

 

Old Building at Log Barn

 

Old Log Barn

 

DAY 11. – Kamloops, Merritt, Hope, Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Surrey

As we started driving we could see a storm front moving in and as we climbed in elevation the fog became thicker and thicker, reducing visibility to a few hundred feet. Fortunately, all of the traffic on the road  slowed to a reasonable speed. Occasionally the Fog would lift and we could see the towering snow-covered sheer granite cliffs on both sides of the road. It would have been great to stop and take pictures, but there weren’t a lot of pullouts along the long and winding road. Plus, we typically couldn't see the pullouts until we had passed them.

After arriving in Surrey and unhooking our trailer, we drove down to White Rock for dinner. White Rock is just across the bay from the USA and is a high tourist destination in the summer months. At the old train depot, which is now a museum, we were treated with the arrival of a freight train that passed by. (There is no passenger service to White Rock.)

The town of White Rock takes its name from a large white rock on the shore of Semiahmoo Bay. Geologists describe the rock as a “glacial erratic” because the rock was original located in the Coast Mountains and dragged to its current location by a glacier about 11,000 year ago. Early sailors used the rock as a land maker when they sailed into the bay.

In late afternoon, we had fish & chips at the World famous Moby Dick restaurant, which was then topped off with a homemade ice cream cone from a shop a little farther down the street. While we were eating, the tide started going out, leaving some unique patterns in the sand. People also used the wet sand to make some very detailed sand castles. Although not as exciting as Deadliest Catch, it was also interesting to watch people catching crabs from the pier.

 

White Rock at Semiahmoo Bay
 

Train Depot/Museum

 

 Train at White Rock Station
 

 Pier at White Rock
 



 

 

 

 

 

 

DAY 12. – It rained hard all morning, so we stayed around the campground and tried to catch up on a few things that we have been saying we would do tomorrow.  After lunch it cleared up and we drove to Grandville Island in Vancouver. It was a nice place to visit, but crowded. We also rode around the harbor on the water taxi, which is nice way to see various parts of the City from the water, including the Winter Olympic buildings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 DAY 13. – In 1827 The Hudson Bay Company built Fort Langley on the Frazer River to trade European made items for furs, salmon, and cranberries from the First Nations people. Fort Langley is considered to be the birthplace of British Columbia – nine years before Canada was formed! The Fort has been restored and is now a National Historic Site, staffed by people in period dress that demonstrate blacksmithing, barrel-making, historic weapons demonstrations, and various other interpretive programs. You can also pan for gold, where I found two small flakes on my first pan full of gravel.

 Next stop was the BC Farm Museum. This is a great place to visit, even if you are not a farmer. The multi-level buildings are loaded with various types of mechanical items that were used by city dwellers, as well as farmers.

However, the most surprising find in the area was the Museum of Flight, which has the only Handley-Page Hampden WWII bomber on public display in the world. Of the 1,430 Hampden’s manufactured, it was thought that they had all been destroyed during the War or sold for scrap shortly after the War ended. Then in 1958 old records were discovered that in 1942 a Hampden with only 100 hours flying time had crashed in the ocean near Patricia Bay and was reported to be completely intact when it sank. Using sonar, the wreck was located in 600 feet of water and raised with the help of a miniature submarine. Amazingly, there was still air in the tires, the compass still worked, and the greased bearings and drive chains still moved freely. Then, in 1991 a second Hampden airframe in reasonable condition was located in Russia and returned to the UK. However, the second aircraft it not on public display. 

 



Also on display at the museum is a Sikorsky S-55 Helicopter, which brought back many memories. When I was stationed in Goose Bay, Labrador, I had the opportunity to fly with the RAF in an S-55 while we were on a search and rescue mission at the far northern tip of Labrador. Despite the hazardous flying conditions, we were thankful to make it back safely.

 



DAY 14. –
Today we found the best RV Park that we have encountered on this trip. The facilities are way above average and the location is spectacular, situated in an area surrounded by high snowcapped mountains. The campground is less than 1 km from Bridal Veil Falls, the 6^th highest waterfall in Canada!