Thompson Nicola Regional District

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The Christmas vacation is now a memory and we have entered the second phase of our Kamloops adventure; the run up to Spring Break. Not that we gauge everything by school holidays, but it does give me some reference points for the blog. It was pointed out to me during our Pender visit that I had not published lately. So here goes.

The north side of the South Thompson River

In our trips back and forth between Alberta and Victoria we had driven along the south side of the South Thompson River many times. We had seen the formations in the hills and thought they looked “nice” but we didn’t appreciate what was there until we took the road that parallels the river on the north side from Kamloops to Chase. It seemed like a different world.

Paul Lake

The Peter and Paul peaks are two of the most visible geographic features in Kamloops. Because they are there, you can’t see Paul Lake which is just on the other side of the mountains, a short drive from the centre of town. Beautiful lake district with nice hikes to lookouts and really close to town. You would never guess how close when you are relaxing by the lake.

Regional parks in the city

There are many parks in the city limits and the Lac Du Bois Grasslands protected area is one of the biggest. You drive right past it when you are whizzing through Kamloops on your way somewhere else. It looks (and is) hot, dry and dusty (at least in the summer). We were amazed at the extent of the walking trails and how remote you feel while hiking along them. When you finally get to the top of the main “hill” you get a great panoramic view of the confluence of the Thompson rivers. And you realize how far it is to walk back to the car.

Adams River

The lower part of the Adams River joins Lake Shuswap just east of Chase. It isn’t very long but it is a major salmon spawning area. It was an "off year" this year but still worth a visit. Part of the river is a canyon; very popular for white water rafting and kayaking. We saw a few in the river and would love to have joined them.

Stake Lake

Just south of the city are several lakes with great campgrounds. For winter enthusiasts, Stake Lake has some great cross-country ski trails (we are told), some of which are lit for night time skiing. We hope to hit the trails if we can find some rentals but Dianne’s sinus infection has limited our activities so far in 2013. You can see the trails from the Coquihalla highway if you know what you are looking for. On our trip back from Victoria after New Year’s the trails looked great.

Sun Peaks

A big ski resort, it is very popular with Kamloopians (?) and visitors from around the world. We did a day trip just to see what it looked like. It reminded us a lot of Whistler. Lots of big chalets, restaurants and entertainment spots. Supposed to have good cross-country ski trails and reasonable rates in the shoulder season. We hope to try a weekend later in the year.

Ashcroft

Yet another place we bypassed all these years. It was the end of the line for the railroad for many years and was the jumping off place for many on their way to the gold fields such as Barkerville. It’s just off the highway and we enjoyed our visit (especially the cappuccino at the bakery).

Not exactly a Kamloops area story

I had driven down to Pender the week before Thanksgiving to take care of a few chores and Dianne flew down after school at the start of the weekend. After a great visit, we flew to Calgary to visit Dianne’s parents who were moving into a new facility. When it was time to return to Kamloops, Dianne flew “home” but I had to fly back to Victoria to pick up the car and then drive back to Kamloops by myself.

I must have had too many late nights because I was really tired on the drive. I stopped several times to pick up a coffee and was listening to a book on CD to help keep me awake. When I got to a rest area near where the Coquihalla toll booth used to be, I made a rest stop. But I was in the middle of a chapter and, just like when you are reading a book, you want to keep going until the end of the chapter. So I sat in the car and waited.

When I woke up it was starting to get dark. How long had I been napping? About an hour! Unfortunately, I had left the lights and radio on and now the battery was dead. No problem; I always have a set of jumper cables in the trunk. Except with all the packing and unpacking we had been doing with the move from Williams Lake to Kamloops all the winter emergency stuff was there but the cables were missing (I have since found them in the store room on Pender!), For those readers not familiar with this Coquihalla highway rest area, it isn’t in the middle of nowhere but it is right beside it. The good news was that a lot of people stop here. The bad news was the first two cars to stop were driven by people who didn’t speak English. The next car was driven by a chap who spoke excellent English but had no cables. A car with three women pulled in a couple of minutes later and the good news was they had cables,. The bad news was they were at the bottom of their Subaru Forester (just like my car) and it was packed to the gills with every imaginable piece of luggage. It would have taken forever to unpack and repack it. The next vehicle was a truck with cables! The only problem was they were tangled up in a rope in a real mess. I untangled them while the driver used the facilities and I was on my way shortly after. What a relief except in my hurry I forgot to use the facilities myself. The rest of the drive home was a bit uncomfortable. And not just because I don’t like driving after dark.

The Kamloops Nicola Valley

A great place to visit with lots of lakes hidden in the mountains. The views of the various river valleys are stunning. Getting off the major highway to see what’s over the next hill (usually another hill) is a great adventure. Living here has really changed our opinion of this area. we won’t be in such a hurry to pass through it once we are back on Pender and heading back to Alberta.

To be continued…

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Photos

Paul Lake
Was a short distance from town and a big hike up to this viewpoint.

Sign of the times
Great signage allows us to plan our trips

Salmon habitat
In the peak years this river is full of salmon. Long way from the ocean.

Same river
But just a bit upstream. Great for kayaking

Lake south of Kamloops
There are lots of lakes in the area.

More lakes
Most of them have some kind of recreational areas attached to them.

Stake lake
Glad they told us the ski trails were closed. Could have been a slow trip.

More cliffs
All around town are these sort of cliffs.

The cut
It's sights like this that make you think about how hard it was to put a railroad through the mountains. This is just a little cut but one of many.

Viewpoint
Is the hike to the top of this hill worth it? You bet!

Kamloops from above
Okay, so this isn't the view from the hill in the last picture; it is from the Lac du Bois Grasslands not too far away.

Grasslands
When you get up into the protected area west of Kamloops you get great areas of grass and not much else. Very peaceful.

Odd tree
I had never seen tress whose insides looked like this. Lots of them around here though.

North side of the south Thompson
The ridges are more defined when you get up close. Can't see this level of detail from across the river.

Where to now?
These canyons are so inviting. Sometime we must take this road just to see where it goes.

Another inviting site
This one would be a little more work as our car isn't off-road worthy.

The South Thompson
The Trans-Canada highway that we all know and love is on the other side of the river.

Fortress?
Your imagination can run wild with the formations that are visible when you are up close.

St Alban's Chruch
This beautiful little church is in the centre of Ashcroft. You'll never get to see if if you don't visit this scenic town, just off the Coquihalla.

Resourceful
It amazes me what the people could do in the "old days". You didn't just call up the movers and sit back. Hard work.

Fire Hall
This fire hall was built years ago when the original burned down. In China, we were always looking for example of irony. Could have used this picture.