Sand burning underfoot followed by the cool relief of a mountain lake,
for many visitors the Kootenay
Rockies are an ideal mix. Orchards, sand, water and mountains
intertwine under a benevolent climate dishing out sultry summer days on
lakes that reach past horizons.
| |
 |
| |
A
B.C. Mountain Lake 1 |
Unlike much of the
rest of Canada, cherries and apples happily grow in the southern reaches
of the Kootenay Rockies. Farther north, lush forests rife with berries
carpet mountain slopes. Running nearly the entire length of this distance
lies Kootenay
Lake.
The central fixture
of the region, Kootenay Lake was once the only means of regional transportation.
Ferries and boats transported the mineral riches of the mountains and
orchard fruit to railheads farther north. Today, the lake's boats are
overwhelmingly for pleasure.
Fishing poles and
waterskis dominate the lakes, beaches, marinas and docks. Along the streams
which feed the vast lake, hikers follow the turbulent waters nearly to
their source in the high mountains peppered with parks.
Fresh, green and warm,
the local environment is a magnet for artists. The region's main centre,
Nelson, has built
up a well deserved reputation as a creative hot spot. A wealth of coffee
houses bubble with artists, and each street is a diverse mixture of galleries,
shops and restaurants usually housed in buildings a century old.
ORIENTATION AND
CLIMATE
The Kootenay Rockies
are vast. The region stretches north hundreds of kilometres from the U.S.A.
border to just south of Revelstoke,
and connects the Okanagan
to the Canadian Rockies.
It encompasses mild, well-populated valleys and reaches high into the
cool thin air of the mountains.
To the east and north,
near secluded Duncan Lake, a small constellation of glaciers rebuild their
ice every year with intense snowfalls. Tracking westward towards the Arrow
lakes and Slocan Lake, the weather stays cooler than most of the region
and more moist, though summers can be hot and dry. Moving south along
Kootenay Lake, the climate tempers with every mile. On the northern stretches
of Kootenay Lake roadside berries are common, content with warm summers
and winters that rarely see -10°C (14°F).
Farther down the lake,
near Creston, the
climate begins to seriously warm up. Fruit stalls start appearing next
to the road, and once Creston breaks the horizon summer becomes the lengthy
season it should be. During July and August mean temperatures in this
valley town hover comfortably around 20°C (68°F) with peaks pushing 30°C
(86°F). While winter's coldest day in Creston barely freezes a thin layer
of ice in a bucket, the surrounding mountain peaks are a different story.
Warm air from the Pacific slams into these mountain peaks unleashing vast
amounts of moisture as snow. Some local ski hills see more than 12 m (40
ft) per year.
TRANSPORTATION
A well developed highway
system links the region to the rest of Canada and is the most common means
of exploring towns, lakes and vistas. In the south, Highway #3 meanders
east to west skimming the U.S.A. border. This scenic road follows the
twist and turns of the valleys and touches some of the region's largest
towns such as Creston and Castlegar.
Splitting off the
#3 at Creston, the 3A drives north along Kootenay Lake and then west to
Nelson after a ferry crossing (all the region's ferries are free). From
there, travellers can follow the shores of Slocan Lake and then Upper
Arrow Lake north to Nakusp.
Reaching the Kootenay
Rockies by plane requires a touch down at the Castlegar
airport where Air Canada brings visitors in from Calgary and Vancouver.
By bus, Greyhound
Bus Lines provides twice daily service to the east (Calgary, Lethbridge,
etc.) and twice daily to the west (Kelowna, Vancouver, etc.). Local motorcoach
companies offer luxury tours of the area.
| |
 |
| |
A
Kutenai Sturgeon-nosed Canoe2 |
HISTORY
From the end of the
last ice age until the ravages of smallpox in the mid-1800s First Nations
were the stewards of the land. Plying the lakes and rivers in unique sturgeon-nosed
canoes, the Kutenai and Lakes people lived directly off the plentiful
fish, game and edible plants.
By the late 1800s,
prospectors had emerged from beyond the wilderness in search of riches.
They found them not in stream beds harbouring gold, but in a silver-lead
ore (galena). Earthly wealth propelled the local economy but just prior
to the First World War prices dipped and the economy faltered. The Great
War's insatiable demands helped revive local fortunes momentarily until
the veins petered out entirely in the 1920s. Long dormant now, the miners
left behind a tangible reminder in the names of local communities, such
as Silverton,
and in a wealth of ghost towns, historic mines and the century-old homes
that grace Nelson.
Once the miners left,
forestry emerged as the primary industry. From this new wooden bonanza
emerged the town of Kaslo.
Far up the reaches of Kootenay Lake, the town was well past any roads.
 |
| The
S.S. Moyie Steamship Museum 3 |
|
Logs had to be transported
by water and the community was tied to the rest of the world only by steamship,
a legacy remembered today in Kaslo's S.S.
Moyie Steamship Museum.
While fruit farms
never became a driving engine of the local economy, they have been a constant.
In the early days of the last century a blight extinguished the hope of
many cherry orchards leaving behind smaller operations to carry on. Today,
these orchards cater to the region's burgeoning tourist sector keeping
children's hands and car seats smeared with cherry juice.
NATURAL ATTRACTIONS
The inescapable natural
beauty of the Kootenay Rockies is its singular asset. A turn in the road
invariably brings a new vista on a translucent lake, or a peak aspiring
to sky's purity. In the mountainous heights of the region there are no
less than 11 substantial provincial parks securing delicate alpine meadows
and glacier streams for future generations.
Some parks are deep
in the wilderness and only accessible by foot or horseback. Purcell
Wilderness Conservancy, for instance, has no roads, but for the
intrepid the reward is a stunning trek through a mountain landscape.
Accessible via five
dirt roads, Kokanee
Glacier Park is far easier to tour but defers to no place in terms
of beauty. At its core, the park cradles Kokanee Glacier, a gleaming chunk
of ice that can be seen from as far away as Nelson. Surrounding the glacier,
streams spill down sharp mountain ravines holding still for a minute or
two in small, perfectly clear lakes and ponds. For the summer hiker coming
up from a sweltering day down at the lake, this cool high getaway is a
charming relief.
Still more accessible
is Gladstone
Provincial Park. Its recently built Texas Creek Campground caters
to RVers and tenters travelling Highway #3. The park is also a key local
wildlife refuge. Kokanee salmon spawn nearby, while bear and moose share
the natural beauty with campers. Perhaps testifying to the sense of place
found in Gladstone, indigenous people left their mark in pictographs at
Christina
Lake.
With a further eight
large provincial parks to explore, the Kootenay Rockies region is all
but inexhaustible for anyone except the most committed traveller. For
the rest, a quick jaunt to the mountains during a stay by the lake is
a life memory.
Descending back down
from these mountain parks, the air thickens. The pace quickens as the
lake nears and the sounds of swimming, boating and children laughing start
to overtake the quiet of the forest. Kootenay Lake is not only the region's
namesake, it is the centrepiece. The lake's shores are a mix of rock,
beach and cove stretching long and thin 144 km (90 mi) north to south
and only 3 to 8 km (2 to 5 mi) wide. Campsites and cabins spot the water's
edge and fishers vie for the remarkable kokanee salmon.
Regarded as a delicacy,
the kokanee are descendants of sockeye salmon cutoff eons ago from the
sea. They now run only in landlocked freshwater lakes like Kootenay, sharing
the water with sturgeon, Dolly Varden and trout, including the world's
largest species, the Gerrard rainbow.
 |
| The
Graceful Lines of a Heron |
|
For bird lovers the
southern tip of Kootenay lake is the hot spot. Here, just north of Creston,
the land and water mingle in a rich wetland. Over 265 species of birds
nest or travel through this mix of reed, water and islands and the 7,000
hectare (17,000 acre) marsh is protected under the aegis of the Creston
Valley Wildlife Management Area. While birds prefer the cool fresh
waters of the lake, car-bound travellers are apt to seek a warmer dip
in some of the region's natural hot springs.
There are two well
developed hot springs right on Lake Kootenay: Ainsworth
and Halcyon
. Both have cabins, a restaurant and are excellent places to begin
an exploration of the region's cultural heritage.
| |
 |
| |
Nelson's
1909 Courthouse 4 |
CULTURAL ATTRACTIONS
Each wave of industry
has left its mark on the land and towns of the Kootenay Rockies. Most
spectacular, the mining boom of the late 1800s brought in enough wealth
to carve communities from the wilderness. At the heart of the region,
the town of Nelson was one benefactor and today retains a 19th century
feel on streets boasting no less than 350 heritage buildings. Many of
the buildings continue to serve their original duties as courthouse or
fire hall, but more than a few are now home to the town's explosive arts
community. Attracted to the warmth and beauty of this mountain town, artists
are endemic to the flavour of Nelson infusing streets with music and colour.
In summer months, local shops become galleries during Artwalk.
Monthly grand openings showcase 65 to 70 artists while musicians and stilt
walkers entertain on the streets.
Looking further back
into Nelson's past, the Nelson
and District Museum displays relics from First Nation culture
and the early settler days. Housed in the old city hall built in 1902,
the museum itself is a testament to the history of the region.
Remnants of bygone
mining days follow the lake out of Nelson. Old mine shafts protrude from
the occasional slope–their operational days remembered by local museums
in Silverton, Kaslo, New
Denver and Rossland.
In fact, the region has been dubbed the Valley
of the Ghosts reflecting the past wealth and glory of the region.
Though many towns have now found new life, some towns simply wilted away
leaving only ruins and memories.
In 1891, Sandon
began its meteoric rise to become B.C.'s largest city. The thrill was
short lived and today the town's remaining buildings are preserved as
a living museum, while the daily tools of life are housed in a museum.
SPORTING ATTRACTIONS
The waters of Lake
Kootenay are far from the only regional sporting attractions. Temperate
weather in scenic valleys are ideal backdrops for golf. Regional golf
courses leave players to enjoy a game in the shadow of mountains
and surrounded by the deep green of pine forests.
 |
| Finding
Plenty of Snow |
|
For skiers, the mountain
heights offer masses of snow at resorts such as Whitewater,
Red
Mountain and Powder
Springs, but for some the sequestered runs of a ski hill may not
be enough.
In a region boasting
no less than four mountain ranges-Purcell, Valhalla, Monashee, and the
rockies to the east-the Kootenay Rockies are perfectly placed for helicopter
skiing. Tours lifting off from Nelson hunt down deep pristine
snow in the pure white mountain peaks. Usually operating much closer to
the snow and from log cabins, the region also harbours a wealth of catskiing
tours.
For a less motorized
experience of the mountains, visitors may want to slip on a pair of crosscountry
skis or snowshoes, throw a bottle of wine, some cheese and chocolate
in the backpack and set out on a snowy trail into the panoramic beauty
of the Kootenay Rockies.
PHOTO COURTESY
- Kootenay Rockies Tourism ; A B.C. Mountain Lake; Kimberley, BC, Canada
- Arrow Lakes Historical Society; A Kutenai Sturgeon-nosed canoe; Nakusp,
BC, Canada
- Kootenay Rockies Tourism ; The S.S. Moyie Steamship Museum; Kimberley,
BC, Canada
- Kootenay Rockies Tourism; Nelson's 1909 courthouse; Kimberley, BC,
Canada
