Anyway, I finally made it onto the ferry, hungry and looking forward to drying off my feet. The ferry journey alone made it worth the wait, as we bobbed across the waves in an iron monstrosity the views just kept shifting, allowing a view all the way down to the southern end of the lake. Once on land, I stopped off on a couple more small stops, but the delays did have me a bit short on time, so I didn’t linger long. One good stop was the little lakeside beach not far from the ferry landing.
I had wanted to see Nelson for a little while, so even though it was a dog-leg out of the way, it was worth it. I found a nice local restaurant to eat some lunch, and got to stroll through the quaint streets. I have to say that the mountain towns in Canada do have a nice atmosphere, even if they are pretty cold in winter. There’s an impressive bridge that takes you in, and the town centre is cozy walk-able affair. Not too much to see, but it seems like a friendly place and probably a lot of fun to live in, small enough to know people everywhere you went, but big enough to have some variety in the venues and clientele. So after a bite and a walk, I have to admit I didn’t see too much, but they say first impressions count for a lot.
So, with time pressing and an AirBnB to get to, I hit the road hard, driving the winding roads through the Canadian mountains, past tiny club ski hills and frozen lakes, herds of deer and even the odd elk, it was quite a drive from Nelson to Fauquier, the nothing of a village outside of which was my place to stay for the night. It’s quite astounding when you drive through these areas of Canada, these aren’t even the remote places, but you can drive for hours and not see anything or anyone. The road leads you through valley and up over passes, through forests and past mountains. I can highly recommend almost any road through the Rockies, but those further from civilization do seem a bit more exciting – maybe it’s the knowledge that if you do have an accident, you could be stuck for a long time! Drive safe folks.
My AirBnb was run be a delightful German lady who ran tours from the location in summer, and wrote books in the little round huts style cabins she and her husband had built in the woods by her house. I stayed in one of those huts, a little basic amenities wise, but with lots of blankets it was a nice warm night. I was happy I didn’t need to head out to the bathroom in the night though, the rustic nature meant it was about 20 metres away through the snow. It was a pleasant night, and she cooked a delicious meal in the evening, and a pleasant breakfast as well.
By this point, I was looking forward to heading home, but I still had some distance to go. The road I was on ended in Vernon, the town down the hill from Silverstar resort so I was very tempted to head up and spend another afternoon on the hill. However the further west I went, the worse the weather got, and Vernon was a rather dreary mess, so I powered on through, northwards along the 97 and heading towards my favourite – the #1. It wasn’t long before I was back in Kamloops and heading up the hill to home.
Benjamin Duff
Verses Travel 