From Waterton to Vancouver Island

On our way west, we make a stop in Fernie (probably Verny's hometown). As we approach the outskirts of the town, we notice the local brewery, which promises a lot. Spontaneously, we decide not to cook today. At the campground check-in, we learn that the brewery does not serve food. But there are plenty of options in Fernie, and almost all restaurants feature Fernie Brewing Company products. Fernie is a paradise for bikers and hikers, with rugged and beautiful mountains surrounding the small town. In the evening, we use the campground's bikes to cruise to 2nd Avenue and try the local Indian cuisine and craft beer at Himalayan Spice Bistro. With full bellies and satisfied, we ride back through the darkness.

The next morning, the weather is better than forecasted, so we head to Island Lake Lodge early. It serves as a starting point for many beautiful hikes. Above the lake, there are three peaks grouped together: Papa Bear, Baby Bear, and Mamma Bear. Of course, we want to hike to the top. We sweat our way up the Spineback Trail until we reach the ridged backbone. On the way up, the weather changes. We quickly make our way back down. It's lovely to enjoy a fine snack, excellently served, in the protection of this beautiful loghouse, now with cold wind and drizzling rain. On the way back, I can't resist finally dealing with the wilderness on my head.

From Fernie, we drive to Christina Lake. The idea is to break up the journey to Vancouver Island into two longer segments to be able to stay in one place for two consecutive days twice. Instead of just driving, we want to do something. Christina Lake is not that exciting, and the weather is getting colder. 50% of us want to try kayaking on the lake one morning as a change of pace. After tough internal negotiations, we agree on a maximum of two hours of paddling. Wild Adventures rents us a double seater kayak and allows us to drop off and pick up at the marina. This way, we can explore the northeastern lakeshore, which accesses Gladstone Provincial Park from the lake, and search for the rock drawings of the Sinixt (Arrow Lakes People). On the way, we even manage to get out of the kayak without assistance and get back in without getting wet. Not bad for our second outing. Strengthened with a curry pearl couscous from Verny's exclusive cuisine, we head towards Osoyoos in the Okanagan Valley. On the outskirts of town, we buy fruits and cherry tomatoes that won't survive three hours. Very delicate! Osoyoos is the driest area in Canada. The 'Osoyoos Indian Band' (a 'unified government' of the indigenous tribes of the region, the Syilx) was able to establish the Osoyoos Indian Reserve in the Indian Act of 1877. 32,000 hectares of Sonora Desert landscape, surrounded by weathered mountains and dotted with sparkling lakes. But the coolest thing is that Chief Clarence Louie is fully committed to economic self-sufficiency. Among other things, they engage in wine production, operate a winery, a four-star resort, and a 9-hole golf course. Nk'Mip ('in-Ka-meep' pronounced, meaning 'Bottomland') was named Canada's Winery of the Year in 2016. Well, we have to see that and ... exactly, try it. Thanks to the fact that we crossed a time zone during the drive (going from mountain to pacific time, we gain an hour), we make it to the winery before closing and dive directly into tasting the best wines in the 'QwAM QwMT Tasting Gallery' ('kw-em kw-empt', meaning 'extraordinary achievement') of the house. We even open a bottle of Syrah from the Q&Q series to accompany our dinner. During the night, it rains intensively at times. In the morning, it drizzles. At the beautifully made Desert Info Center, we admire the exhibits and are glad that we haven't come across any black widows or rattlesnakes, which are prevalent here. At one of the many fruit stands, we replenish the fruits and vegetables we have eaten. The drive to Manning Provincial Park takes us through mountains and valleys, forests and canyons. Despite the rain, it is a beautiful drive. The mud on the road to Lightning Lake Camping briefly reminds us of the Dempster Highway.

What is probably the worst thing that can happen during a drive in the camper?
After parking at the campground, getting out of the car, walking through the rain to the camper's door, and instead of entering the dry interior, we are faced with a small nightmare. A jar of tomato sauce - which we have been carrying as an emergency food since Seattle - has fallen from a small box above the sink. In clear suicidal intent, it has spilled onto the floor, leaving shards and perfect tomato sauce stains to generously cover the interior with sticky and staining juice. A real mess. The tomato pieces look particularly good on the mosquito net at the door. It's a true mood lifter to do a little spring cleaning in the rain. It rains again overnight. When the rain is still falling happily from the sky the next morning, we decide to cancel the planned hike. Since the forecast also predicts rain for the next 2-3 days, we abandon the park and drive in pouring rain to Hope, B.C. (Rambo Town, where it also rained in the movie). The goal is the local branch of the post office. We need to figure out how we will ship our no longer needed materials back home. After visiting the post office, we need a decent cup of coffee. But at the sandwich shop, we realize that we didn't understand anything. Even the website of the Canadian Post politely remains silent when it comes to determining the allowed package size. So we return after the break, and voila! Now we understand. After the second store, we are also proud owners of a used cardboard box that potentially suits our return shipment. The rain continues incessantly, we need a dry place and Wi-Fi to plan the next few days. Plus, we want to make bookings for Portland, Seattle, and the trip to Winnipeg.

In Starbucks, we meet a Swiss couple and chat for far too long. In the dark, we head to Chilliwack. All the campsites are at least 20 minutes outside of town, and we still need to cook. Since it's getting late, we head to the Walmart parking lot. We're not the only ones. The next morning, we finally continue in dry weather to Horseshoe Bay in Vancouver to take the BC Ferries to Nanaimo.

The Ghostrider Legend: 

https://fernie.com/about-fernie/fernie-legends/the-ghostrider/

Nk'Mip:

http://www.nkmipcellars.com/About-Us