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Okanagan Falls is situated in a valley which is bordered on either side by craggy, pine-covered mountain’s which range in height from several hundred meters to just under 1000 meters. They provide a majestic backdrop for the tiny town which is nestled between Skaha and Vaseux Lakes.
In winter most of the mountains are snow-covered and ensure a late sunrise and an early sunset as the ranges block the rising and setting sun. We have a perfect view of these ranges from both the front and the back of our house and I have often looked wistfully at them and imagined myself climbing them.
Well today I did more than imagine I decided to climb one!
There is this one mountain that backs onto our house. It is different from the rest as it isn’t covered with pine trees. In fact it is bare rock and craggy in the main. You can’t miss it as it dominates the town of OK Falls especially as it has a telecommunications tower sitting atop.
For months I have been saying that I am going to climb it. I knew I could do it as it wasn’t a hand over hand climb more a steep pathway to the top. Now when I say a pathway I don’t mean a formed path. The paths that I used to the top were made by big horn sheep and deer. They aren’t always clear and defined but they are visible and usually cleared.
So around midday I set off with Matilda to conquer the mountain. I followed a well-worn path through the conservation area until I branched off onto a distinct an animal trail. It was a steady climb for me as Matilda ran in all directions several times flushing out herds of deer.
The animal trails sometimes lead into multiple trails so I often had more than one choice. Regularly the trail would peter out, though I would always find another one a few steps away. It was a simple process really as I knew I just had to keep heading up.
I had already done a 5.5 kilometer workout earlier in the morning but my stamina and my knees held up remarkably well. The climb took about 25 minutes with just one scant pause. I got to the top puffing and panting but in great shape.
The view was fantastic as you could see all the way to the town of Penticton some 15k’s away. I sat for a while and took in the vista always worried that the dog would chase a deer or a shadow and fall off the top of the mountain.
Whilst there the weather started to change and a light rain fell and that was my signal to head back down. Going up is tough but down is harder because of the stress it places on my knees. I am pretty used to it now and watched my footing as I often took short cuts and strayed off the track.
We were up and down in less than 2 hours and I was pleased to see that Matilda was looking a little frazzled. I felt great and now every time I raise my head to look to the top of that mountain I will know that I have climbed it.
Our house is on the third road About two thirds up
From the bottom looking up
It has been a quiet time the past few weeks since our return from Vancouver. Spring cleaning and household chores have been the order of the day. The weather continues to warm each day and buds on the trees are about to burst open. The twentieth of March was officially the first day of spring here in Canada.
Our only excursion of note in the past couple of weeks has been a trip to Omak in Washington State for a grocery resupply. There was a slight delay at the US border as they appeared to searching more cars than usual and asking a lot more questions than they usually do. Otherwise it was a relaxed 90 minute trip to Wal-Mart.
Even though Omak is relatively close to the Canadian border it seems to be a world away in many aspects. Probably the thing I notice the most is the Latino influence. Walking around Wal-Mart Spanish appears to be the dominate language and many of the grocery lines are emblazoned with Spanish. The people are friendly enough the place just has a different feel to it. Of course seeing all the guns that are for sale and available in Wal-Mart reminds me that I am in the midst of a gun-toting society.
The cost of living in the USA is incredibly cheap. Groceries and clothing are inexpensive when compared to Canada or Australia. You can buy a modern, well-appointed four bedroom house for around $250,000. Add to that incredibly low interest rates of around 2% compared to nearly 8% in Australia and housing is affordable. Gas and cars are much cheaper as well. Wages are generally lower than Australia, but if you are on a good wage in the USA it would be a very cheap place to live.
So loaded with booty we made our way back to Canada and had no trouble crossing the border. We worked out that we save around $80 or so shopping in Omak and now that the US and Canadian dollar are at parity it is a good saving.
I have had some late nights over the past few weekends watching the Super 14 Rugby, the NRL and now the AFL. It is a constant struggle to try and find live streaming of games. Some of the Super 14 games are on Setanta Sports but to watch the AFL and NRL I have to try and find a live stream.
I have had some success with the NRL but this weekend bombed out trying to find a “live” AFL game on TV. So there I was at 0245 in the morning watching 30 second score updates on Bigpond. Now that is dedication!
We wrapped up the week in Vancouver by paying a visit to the Vancouver Aquarium. The large crowd caught us off guard and we had to line up for 35 minutes to get in.
As aquariums go it is not that big, nor does it have the attractions you would find at other aquariums. The main problem appears to be a lack of space. All of the shows and in particular the dolphin show are confined to small viewing areas and you have to get there early to get a view of the show. No sitting just standing space which doesn’t help.
The star attraction is the Beluga whale, which are snowy white as they inhabit the waters to the far north of Canada. They don’t really put on much of a show except swim around the tank.
The Vancouver Aquarium is located in Stanley Park which is easily the prettiest part of Vancouver and at this time of year all the trees and flowers are starting to sprout and bloom.
On our last night in Vancouver we walked down a busy Robson Street to the Mikko Japanese Restaurant which is a famous eatery in the city centre. The walls of the restaurant are plastered with photos and autographs of all the famous people who have eaten there. The service, price and food were fantastic.
Robson Street was alive as we walked back to our hotel as the Opening Ceremony of the Para- Olympic Games had just concluded and the large crowd filled the streets that were also occupied by various stalls and performers. There was a real buzz about the place which was infectious.
We headed back to Okanagan Falls on Saturday morning stopping on the way at Chilliwack to have breakfast. It was a great trip over the Rocky Mountains, most of the snow has gone now and it is really only clinging to the higher altitudes.
On our latest visit Vancouver we were determined to see some sort of theatrical performance and it didn’t really matter what it was. We scoured the internet and the local guides and we found once again that Vancouver was short of interesting live performances.
For a while it appeared that the choice was going to be the eighties band Heart but I baulked at the price. The worst seats in the house were eighty odd dollars whilst the better seats were well over 100 bucks. No way was I going to pay that sort of money for a band that had its heyday 30 years ago.
In the end after a long search we decided to go and see a play at a theatre that was located in North Vancouver. Tuesdays with Morrie is a play about a professor (Morrie) who is dying and a former student who visits him after seeing Morrie on a TV show. After a 16 year gap the student decides to visit his former professor to apologise for not staying in contact with him as he promised. The one off visit turned into regular weekly meetings each Tuesday. Sounded okay.
For once we got out of the door in good time. No need to rush and hurry time was on our side. The traffic through Vancouver city flowed freely even though some of the inner city roads had been blocked off for the Para-Olympic Games.
The GPS (who has been christened Amelia) was in fine form as she directed us toward the theatre.
Right turn she directed and we received the familiar whistle in acknowledgement that we had made the correct turn. Amelia then gave another direction but this one just didn’t appear to be right as all around us were railway tracks and disused buildings, the area was totally rundown and ominous.
We re-entered the theatre address and tried again. This time she led us on a loop which led us straight back to the same point. The excess time we had up our sleeve was starting to evaporate and worry set in as the theatre had a strict policy of no late entries. As I had already paid for two tickets I could see my money being wasted.
Tammie though driving insisted on helping me navigate and this of course caused several problems such as running a stop sign and stopping in the middle of an intersection to look at the GPS. Around and around we went.
We stopped at a gas station and the people inside had no idea where the theatre was.
With time running out we gave Amelia one more try and she led us straight back to the same derelict area. We saw a shabby group of men stopped by the side of the road and Tammie slowed the car as if she was going to ask them directions. Thankfully once she got a good look at them she sped up and continued on.
Tammie once more decided that she could navigate much better than I whilst driving proceeded to drive through the same stop sign once again we had only just got beyond the stop sign when the reflection of blue and red lights shone through the car.
An RCMP patrol car had spotted Tammie drive through the stop twice as well as observing her stop in the middle of the intersection. How could he not stop her?
The guy was friendly and took immediate pity on us as middle-class suburbanites who were in the wrong place. The cop said that we were in a very bad area that should be avoided and of course there was also the matter of Tammie’s apparent disregard for stop signs. He quickly pointed us in the right direction and said that it was lucky that we hadn’t stopped and asked the three fellows up the road as they were obviously up to no good.
We were grateful not only to have directions but to be off the hook with the police. We noticed as we backtracked that the policeman had stopped to talk to the three suspicious characters.
We then sped off towards the theatre Amelia now confined to the floor of the car in disgrace. The show started at eight sharp and we arrived at the theatre at five minutes past. Tammie parked the car whilst the girls and I ran for the front door which we found locked.
Several loud bangs on the door bought a woman to the door. We apologised to her profusely and asked if we would be allowed in. She looked at us in disdain and said she shouldn’t but would allow us in this one time but we would have to sit on the side of the theatre.
We eagerly agreed.
I had paid for two adult tickets but not for the two girls who I was told would be eligible for a special school discount which would bring their ticket price down from $24 to just $5.
The woman said she knew nothing about such a discount and I must be mistaken. I said no, I had discussed the ticket prices over the phone that morning. She said I was mistaken and the price was $24. I wanted to walk out of the theatre I was so angry but I begrudgingly handed over $48.
As I did so Tammie entered the theatre to inform me that she had backed into another vehicle in the car park.
The night just kept getting better.
We entered the theatre and we were indeed seated to the side. The show was interesting especially as there were just two actors on stage, a minimalist set and few props. One of the actors was 90 years old and when I later looked him up on Wikipedia I saw that he was being cast as an old man in 1970. When he played out the show’s death scene I was seriously worried that he wasn’t acting.
After the show we had scones and tea with the two actors which was both quaint and novel.
Awaiting me in the refreshment area was a hand printed sign which stated that I should report to the box office. I did so and was confronted by the women who had charged me full-price earlier in the night. She handed me an envelope which contained a $38 refund. Apparently there was a communication breakdown and I should have just been charged $5. Apologies flew left right and centre.
More good news arrived when we inspected the car to find that there was no damage done so that problem disappeared as well.
In the end it was a great night, lots and lots of stress at the start but the finale was excellent.
The weather in Vancouver reminds me of the weather in Melbourne. That is four seasons in the one day. When I went to bed last night the sky was bright and starry with not a cloud in sight but when I awoke this morning the weather was bleak with drizzling rain. Some parts of Vancouver even received a dusting of snow.
The rain continued for most of the morning and then all of a sudden the sun appeared and the Vancouver city was swathed in bright sunlight. The temperature rose and all was good with the world. But as the afternoon wore on the temperature dropped, clouds hid the sun and it once more became a bleak, cold city. No doubt it will rain again sometime soon only for the weather to radically shift again.
We had set off from OK Falls on Tuesday morning a half an hour late and had to rush to make the 10am deadline for the boarding kennel. Matilda, our dog boards with a lady called Heidi and she runs the kennel with Germanic precision. If you aren’t on time your dog can’t stay. She often boards up to 20 dogs at a time in her house and the place is always spotless. You enter the house and are presented with a group of free range dogs, but no mess and no fighting. If a dog does transgress retribution comes quickly.
Matilda has been there three times now and loves the place. Heidi says that she is a bossy dog but generally well-behaved. That lasts for about an hour when we reach home and she is soon back to her old tricks. I think Matilda needs constant doses of Heidi boot camp to keep her in check.
The four hour trip here was an easy one over the Rocky Mountains with no fog and driving snow this time, only bright sunlight all the way. It got down to -6c crossing the Rockies but the snow is slowly melting and in some places on the Coquihalla Pass there are spots that are now devoid of snow.
Our hotel is in central Vancouver just a few streets back from the main thoroughfare, Robson Street. Even so it is a little on the seedy side with several shops within view of the hotel offering peep shows for 25 cents. The streets around this part of town have quite a lot of homeless people begging or just hanging around. Today walking around the area a few were even sleeping outside a shop which is something that you don’t expect to see in downtown Vancouver.
It has been a very quiet time this past week. Nothing out of the ordinary has occurred. The weather continues to remain fine and sunny with the days warming. More shoots are springing from the ground and trees continue to bud.
I think I tend to notice this more than the locals as it is strange to me to see trees laid bare of leaves and the gardens barren. Where I have lived in Australia the trees are non-deciduous and sometimes one hardly notices the change in seasons except for the temperature changes. Here in Canada the change is stark, you can’t not notice the change of seasons.
We drive to Vancouver on Tuesday as we have some business to attend to there. We will probably be there until Saturday. The main aim for the girls on this trip is to buy dresses for their forthcoming prom.
We wanted to see a show or concert whilst in Vancouver but the place appears to be a bit of a cultural wasteland at the moment. All we could find was a Heart concert on the Tuesday night we arrived. As I remember it Heart had a few mediocre hits in the eighties and I haven’t heard of them since. The women must be well into their fifties or older by now.
To see this band perform they were asking a minimum of $70+ with better seats well over 100 bucks. Unbelievable! I would rather spend my money on just about anything else. So at this stage we are still looking around for something interesting to do whilst we are in Vancouver.
Not being from around Okanagan Falls and having very little experience in the area it appears to me that spring has just about sprung here.
Each day the sun appears to be shinning more brightly and the daily temperatures are rising to around 10-12c. The bare trees are starting to bud and yesterday on my walk with the dog the flatlands and hills were covered with a spread of tiny yellow flowers that looked like buttercups.
The deer we encountered on that walk look healthy and fat and no doubt there will soon be some new additions to these herds shortly. People were in their front yards gardening or just sitting, taking in the warm sun.
When I was in the local commercial centre of Penticton yesterday I had my first sighting for the year of shorts and t-shirts and many of those wandering the streets were jacketless. I even turned off the car heat and wound down the window for some welcome fresh air.
I am still being told by those that know about such things that we will get one more heavy dump of snow before the season ends but I can’t see it happening.
Spring is here! I had my first experience at the local Oliver cinema last night and a multiplex it isn't! One lone screen with a decor that dates back to the at least the 1950’s. I liked it.
The cinema is large and could easily accommodate several hundred patrons so it was rather amusing to go into the male bathroom to find a lone toilet bowl. I was told that the female bathroom was the same. On a busy night my advice would be to lay off the sodas.
Ice hockey rules in Canada and that was evident with the gold medal match in men's hockey at the Vancouver Games on Sunday which has been declared the most-watched broadcast in Canadian television history.It appeared that Canadian’s who usually do not have the vaguest interest in ice hockey became sudden aficionados. It is something like Melbourne Cup day in Australia where once a year punters become sudden racing experts.
What sweetened the game for all Canadian’s was the fact that they were playing the USA and any chance that Canada has to get one over the American’s is much too good an opportunity to miss.
In the last few days before the game everyone had an opinion about the game and wanted to know if you would be at home watching it. When people heard my Australian accent they were keen to know who I would be supporting. They would then give me a series of quick-fire reasons as to why the Canada would be victorious.
Canada was still reeling after the defeat of their woman’s curling team the day before by the Swedish team. The Canadian’s had the game won but made simple mistakes to hand the game to the Swedes.
Curling was the second most watched sport at the Olympics and at the start of the Olympics I rubbished the game but by the end I was a fan. Embarrassing I know!
I watched the ice hockey game at home and I had to put up with the roars and groans of the pro-Canada fans. Everything looked fine as Canada lead with a minute to go. Backsides clung to the edge of seats and breath was held as the American’s launched attack after attack and were rewarded with 30 seconds to go by scoring a goal that leveled the scores at 3-3.
Canada collectively groaned.
Ten minutes of extra time started with both teams attacking. In the end it came down to a moment of brilliance from Sidney Crosby, Canada’s best player to score the winning goal. Our house and the rest of Canada erupted in joy. Another gold medal to Canada the most by any team ever at the Winter Olympics. The Winter Olympics were a success and better still they beat the USA at hockey.
Bragging rights for a few months at least.
It was interesting being in Canada for the Olympic Games and listening to the bias and parochialism day in and day out. After a while it became trite and Canadian’s were doing exactly the same thing they accuse American’s of being. Boastful and self-centred.
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