The Last of the Rockies

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It's going to be a short one today.

We left the hotel in Revelstoke, filled the car up with gas and after shopping got on the road. Our first stop was in Salmon Arm, at a park. I should say at THE park. Salmon Arm, like most places in the Rockies, is a small town on a lake. This one has a lovely little park on the lake with picnic tables, grass lawns, shade trees, and, of course, the lake. Oh, and a fountain in the lake. We had a snack by the lake and went for a short walk. We saw an osprey posing for us on a branch, some ducks and other birds, and even a couple turtles in the water.

After a rest from the road we continued on our way South. We tried another stop at Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park, but the trail was closed. We decided to go on to Othello Tunnels, two and a half hours away. The drive was long and tiring, over very high mountains. Signs on the road said to be prepared for sudden weather changes on the high road! It did rain a bit, but the views were still spectacular.

We finally arrived at Othello Tunnels. I recommend it, the place is beautiful! And free. We walked along a short, well maintained trail through old forest with moss covered trees, along the Nicolum river. We clambered down to the river, and the kids, of course, got their feet wet. We reached the tunnels themselves and read a bit about their history (they were built for the rail line from the coast to Kamloops for the silver and mineral mines in the late 19th and early 20th century). We wandered through the tunnels and over the bridges connecting them, watched the rushing river below, and even spotted some large fish trying to jump the rapids. Salmon? Possibly.

Have a look at today's vid:

Anyway, we made our way to the hotel in Harrison Hot Springs. It's a nice little town at the end of a lake. The Ramada hotel is less so. It's old, not properly maintained, and badly in need of some serious renovation. They will definitely get some feedback from this stay.

We went out for a walk on the lake and the kids treated us to an ice cream. The shop only allowed two taste tests for the kids! And the girl there said that since Ethan tasted Tamar's test (they shared), he 'wasted' his tries. How ridiculous! Tamar got her back by paying her in small coins, and counting them out one by one, occasionally dropping one and having to start the count again. And she found a couple quarters extra on the floor... Ha!

The lake is pretty enough, and it's just one night. Tomorrow we're off to Seattle!

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