Vancouver Shipyard District

The Capilano RV Park is practically under the Lion’s Gate Bridge and next door to North Vancouver’s largest shopping mall.  It is also right on the Spirit Trail bike path that runs to the Shipyards in one direction and all along the shoreline for several kilometers in the other direction.

Our first evening we biked to the Shipyards where there are tons of restaurants, bars, breweries and a market area that includes a fresh Farmer’s Market every Saturday.  There are two splash pads for kids and an open amphitheater for live music every weekend.  

Saturday morning found us biking the other direction to another market along the shoreline with lots of fruit, veggies and other goodies.  We rode through the shopping district but not much of interest there except a carry out Japanese Sushi market.

Monday morning we were in the waiting room of the Urgent Care Clinic at 8 AM. Six hours later John was seen by a nurse practitioner about the pain in his left buttock that travels around to the front and down to his knee and ankle.  She recommended that he take some anti-inflammatory meds, do some stretching exercises and see how he’s doing in two weeks. If not better she recommended an MRI which will tell what is going on.  When we got to the underground garage where we had parked we found a $70 parking ticket and then when we started the car it had no power steering and lots of red lights.  An hour later we were at the only Jeep dealer in North Vancouver where we left the car.  Not a good day but at least we have our bikes and everything we need is within biking distance.

E. C. Manning Provincial Park

Kelowna is a lovely place to visit but we were ready to move on a day early and John was able to get us a wilderness campsite in E. C. Manning Provincial Park in the Northern Cascades Mountains.  Ahh! Fresh air, cooler weather and quiet, no traffic noise, no sirens, no truck engines blasting past.

As soon as we got set up we went to the visitor’s center, then drove up a small mountain to take in the view.  But the campground drew us back for a lovely evening without a campfire (none allowed as it’s too dry).

The next day we chose to hike around Lightening Lake.  We thought it would be about a 3 mile trek but it turned out to be about 6 miles and we got caught in pouring rain for the last mile.  I was not happy as we thought we would beat the rain so we didn’t bring our rain jackets.  But overall it was a lovely walk and the lake was so calm and peaceful - nothing like its name.

Knox Mtn., Mission Hills and Mission Creek

We try to get a little exercise everyday and to visit interesting parts of the city.  For instance, on Sunday, even thought it was pretty hot, we walked a ways up Knox Mountain in downtown Kelowna.  It’s a popular hiking destination as well as a lovely park along the lake front.  We didn’t make it to the top as John’s leg was really hurting but the views of the lake from up high were pretty and we could see the layout of the city.

Several people have recommended that we should visit Mission Hills Winery Estate and Bell Tower, not just to try their wine but to explore their expansive estate.  We did it one better and had a wine paired lunch on their open terrace with views of the vineyard and lake on one side and the mission style buildings and the bell tower on the other side.  Their wines were good and the food paired well with them.  It was a lovely afternoon.

The weather, as I said earlier, has been hot so early on Tuesday we walked along the Mission Creek Trail but this time it was away from the city.  It was a lovely walk with shade trees, flowering bushes and a gurgling stream.  John’s leg is still bothering him so we stopped often to take in the quiet and peacefulness of the area.

Dog Days of Summer

My interpretation of Dog Days is to take it easy and find things to do when it’s hot.

One day I did laundry while John worked on the bike tire, we went grocery shopping and basically just hung out at the RV.  The next morning we rode along the Mission Creek park trail which was a good 8 miles down then back up.  We are so glad we have e-bikes on those up-hill rides! It was a very pleasant ride on shady paths next to the river.

A private wine tour in West Kelowna filled our day on Thursday.  The first two stops - Quail’s Gate and The Gallery Vineyards - had beautiful tasting rooms and some decent wine so we got a few bottles.  Our lunch at Nineteen Steakhouse overlooking their golf course was very nice.  We could easily have taken a nap but we had two more wineries to visit.  Neither one had very good wine but one was on the lake shore and the other was run by First Nations people. 

The Farmers Market opened at 8 on Saturday and we were there at 8:30 so I could get some fresh, fresh peaches!  Then we headed south along the west side of Okanagan Lake through Peachland and Summerland to the southern point of the lake at the town of Penticton where we had reservations for a wine tasting and a tapas lunch.

Da Silva Vineyards is owned by a family originally from Portugal and they now owns a large portion of the vineyards in the area.  They make a lot of their blended wines the same way they do in Portugal by putting all the grapes together before crushing instead of mixing the juices.  We liked their white wines and had an okay Pinot Noir with our lunch.

Myra Canyon

Yesterday (Sunday) it was too hot to do much of anything except some wine tasting.  The first place we tasted 4 whites and 3 reds, but liked the whites better, so we each got a glass and ordered tacos from the food truck.  While we waited for the food we enjoyed live music from a soloist and her guitar. The next winery was more elegant but we did not care for any of their wines.

Thinking that Mondays are usually quieter days for sightseeing (it wasn’t) we loaded up the bikes and headed to Myra Canyon to ride on the Kettle Valley Railway Trail of Trestles.  This rails-to-trails was originally built in 1912-1914 to carry freight and passengers thru Myra Canyon.  The tracks were removed in 1980. The trail runs around the rim of the canyon so is relatively flat. It contains 18 trestles and 2 tunnels, several rock cuts and a few land bridges. In 2003 wildfires swept thru the canyon and destroyed or badly damaged most of the trestles. They have all been replaced or repaired.  Several are now steel trestles, the rest are all wood.

It was a cool day and even cooler in the canyon but such a pretty ride.  It was a good day until 2 km from the car John got a flat tire on his bike. We stopped 3 times to pump it up enough to ride. At the car John had tools and patches to repair the tube but we couldn’t find the hole.  So he got out the spare tube, punctured it trying to put it in the tire, and could not fix the puncture.  Still couldn’t find the hole in the first tube.  So we put the bike on the rack and hoped it would not fall off on the way back.  When we got into town we drove to Walmart to get a new tube, no luck there.  On the way to a bike shop the Jeep overheated! We found a gas station, got some radiator fluid and that’s when we discovered that the radiator cap was loose likely never installed properly from the transmission service right before we left Sedalia. By the time we got home it was after 6 but that didn’t stop us from have a couple of cocktails to take the edge off the bad day. 

Kelowna on the Okanagan Lake

The drive to Kelowna could have been beautiful except for the hazy, smokey air.  The Karma RV Park is part of a company that makes fruit juices, carbonated fruit drinks and vodka infused ciders from all kinds of locally grown fruits.  I’ve tasted pear, peach and cherry with cherry being my favorite so far.

 John has been having some serious pain down his leg and I suspect it’s a pinched nerve.  It finally got bad enough that he was able to call and get an appointment with a chiropractor on Friday. She tried some minor adjustments, gave him a brace and some exercises.  Until he can get an MRI, that’s about all she can do and in Canada it will be a year before he could get the test.  That’s not a typo - a one year waiting time!  Hope the brace helps!

This whole area is renowned for its fruits, vegetables and grapes.  We had expected flat country but it’s very hilly and mountainous.  The Kelowna Farmer’s Market is every Saturday and Wednesday and is huge.  Cherries are in full season and boy are they sweet!  It’s like eating candy!

I have to tell a funny from Saturday night. We ate at a nice restaurant then walked along the lake shore, watching people enjoying the evening .  Shortly after we sat on the bench a man about our age stops to talk to us - not with us but to us. And we’re not sure what all he is saying,  partly because we couldn’t understand him and partly because he made no sense.  As he walked off after 10 minutes of chatting I burst out giggling!  Oh my, what a character!  Then another man with his small dog sits down with us!  He throws a ball for his dog who immediately runs in the opposite direction. He did have a conversation with us, nice guy.  When he leaves, we get up, I’m still giggling, and John indicates we should leave before any more crazy people sit by us!  Good evening!

Golden Rules

We walked back to the RV in rain on Monday evening after the big Stampede Show and woke to more rain as we traveled across the Rocky Mountains through Banff and Lake Louise.  It was very disappointing not to see those majestic mountains and to get mud all over the RV because of construction on the Trans Canada Highway 1!

We stopped in Golden for two nights before going on to Kelowna.  It rained both nights but not during the day.  Golden is a ski town in the winter and a nice quiet place to visit in the summer.  They have a lot of mountain biking trails but a nice bike path circles the town and follows the Kicking Horse River. The river is a glacial river so it looks very muddy but it is running really fast.

Stampede Showdown

When we were in Fredericksburg Texas last fall we met a nice couple who live a couple of hours north of Calgary.  I reached out to let them know we were near and they very graciously drove down and took us out to lunch.  We spent a delightful several hour with Dave and Marilyn.

The evening show included Chuck wagon races, relay races, and a very elaborate Grand Stand Showdown.

There were nine heats for the chuck wagon races with three wagons in each heat.  These competitors will race three more nights to determine a grand champion and tonight was just the beginning.  It is quite interesting to watch.  Each wagon has four horses followed by two outriders - men on horses who help “load” the wagon before they take off racing. The wagons have to circle a barrel and then race around the oval.  Best time was 1 min 11 sec.  That is fast!

Then the Horse relay race where men and women raced bareback around the track, jumped off and onto a different horse. Once more around the track and then onto a third horse.  And the horses didn’t always want to do what the rider wanted.  Very exciting!

Then just as its getting dark they roll a stage and lighting system to the front and an extravaganza of a show begins.  The stage has a rotating circle, fire, water and elevating platforms on either side.  They feature a live band, singers and at least 150 men and women dancing with a total light show enhancing all that they do.  The very end is a huge fireworks display going off while the music and dancing is in full swing.  So much happening all at once!

Stampede Rodeo

Since Saturday is a free day for us John took advantage of being in the big city to find and buy a new bike rack. The old one is not traveling well and we are worried the bikes are not riding safely.  Turns out the best rack available is made in Springfield, MO!  And it is very nice with a ramp, locking cable, and tail lights.

That afternoon we decided to visit the Stampede.  What a mad house!  We ended up getting fried chicken sandwiches for lunch since that was the shortest line.  The carnival covered every street around and between the buildings making it very difficult to see where we wanted to go and what to see.  We ended up in an air conditioned arena to watch draft horses!  

Canadians are very aware of the Native Americans or First Nations who lived on this land first so a large part of the Stampede grounds houses the natives in their Teepees and a stage for their dances.

When we left the fair grounds, we walked downtown until we came to a very inviting restaurant that was thankfully air conditioned.

Sunday afternoon we watched some very exciting and professional rodeo.  Bareback bronco busting, saddle bronco busting, bull riding, barrel racing and cow roping.  Yaaaa Hooooo!!

Yaaa Hooo!!

Parade Day!  We’re up bright and early to catch the train to the center of Calgary for the opening parade and the first day of the Calgary Stampede.

View from RV. 

The parade may have started at 9am but it did not reach us until almost 10:30. During that time several different cultural groups walked by and performed danced from their home countries.  Almost every other entry in the parade was a marching band from schools, colleges, police, and armed services.  My favorite were the bagpipers.  Of course there were floats and lots and lots of horse entries.  So many, in fact, that street sweepers were part of the parade entries.

An FMCA club has arranged all the things we will do the next five days so that we can find others of our group in the crowd we were all wearing lime green hats or visors.  Since we were sitting together for the parade our hats brought a lot of comments and interest from those folks walking in the parade.

The official yell of the day was “Yaaa Hoooo!!”   On the count of three — One! Two! Three!   Yaaaa HOOooooo!!!

Medicine Hat

We only spent two nights in Medicine Hat but found it to be a nice city to visit, partly because it is covered with biking trails. This city was established on the Alberta River so many of the trails bordered the river.

A very unique feature of Medicine Hat are the sculpted brick murals around town. James Marshall was commissioned by nuns at the Catholic Church to do a series on the Stations of the Cross.  From there he created several more murals for the city and has now done over 300 all over Canada.  One mural depicted the city recovering from a catastrophic flood in 1995.

Regina

We arrived in Regina (rhymes with vagina) on Canada Day so once we had the RV set up we headed to the park called Wascana Center where there was a big celebration. We walked almost 3 miles around the central lake while enjoying people watching, listening to music and taking in the crafts.

The Legislative Building or what we would call the Capital was at one end of the park. The next day we toured the building and learned about their government.The building itself was lovely, having used 7 different types of marble in its construction. Its green marble columns were beautiful.

Regina is also the home of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, their training center, horse brigade and an informative museum. It was a well done museum illustrating the Mounted Police beginnings and it history.