This morning I set out on the Rocky Mountaineer train with a group of media traveling to Echo Valley Ranch. While the train was simply our selected mode of transport up the Fraser Canyon into the Chilcotin Cariboo region of BC, it was well-worth photographing and documenting the experience.
Departing from the Rocky Mountaineer station off Terminal Avenue in East Vancouver, the route took us over CN and CP rail lines through New Westminster, Surrey, Harrison, Agassiz, Hope, and up the Fraser Canyon.
In the dining car, we met a man traveling from Cyprus who enjoys passing through BC every now and then on his way to Hong Kong. I think in this regard, train travel is far more social than air travel. You can sit and face your companions while enjoying your meal and interact with the staff who share historic tidbits, anecdotes, and make sure to clink glasses with every single passenger as the train departs from the station.
Truth be told, train travel takes much longer than the highways or even air, but it’s something worth experiencing. The comforting sway of the carriages, the waves from strangers watching as the train breezes through towns, and the unique scenery not visible from well-traveled roads makes for a relaxing and insightful ride.
While Ashcroft isn’t an official stop (passengers heading to Jasper or Calgary were spending the night in Kamloops) the train slowed to a halt to let us off so that we could hitch a ride to our destination. Echo Valley is located North West of Clinton, then about 35 kilometers up a gravel road along the backside of Marble Range Provincial Park.
I’ll be at Echo Valley for the next few days with limited access. Tomorrow we wake up and head to the Thai spa for yoga, which will be followed by a family-style breakfast in the lodge’s great room, then a horseback trail ride through Gold Rush country.
Heading into Week 6 of the BC Travel Tuesday series, we’re about half-way through the giveaways and getaways that have been lined up by backyardbc.com. In case you haven’t been following along already, we’re highlighting travel and hotel stays for locals.
backyardbc is a new travel website designed specifically for residents of British Columbia. Essentially a “be a tourist in your own backyard” program, participating hotels & resorts offer residents of BC exclusive rates and specials, designed to motivate BCers to travel more within the Province. Each offer has its own unique reservation code, and all bookings are done directly with our hotel and resort partners. Visit backyardbc online, on Twitter, or Facebook and see more of BC!
As I am currently traveling (and have scheduled this post for publishing) the winner of BC Travel Tuesday: Week 5 Watermark Beach Resort, Osoyoos will be announced later tonight. However, I will still reveal this week’s property in Kelowna and as a bonus, Kamloops too. Update The winner of Week 5 is Michael Florizone (as announced on that post).
Accent Inns Website (Kelowna), Website (Kamloops), Twitter, Facebook backyardbc listing (Kelowna), backyardbc listing (Kamloops) Location: 1140 Harvey Ave, Kelowna & 1325 Columbia Street West, Kamloops About: Accent Inns is a family-owned hotel chain that offers convenient and comfortable accommodation around BC. Kelowna is the hub of the Okanagan with outdoor recreation, wineries, and great golfing. Scenic Kamloops has traditionally been a pit-stop location for my family when traveling up the Coquihalla or Trans Canada highway although many are discovering it’s a great destination on its own with an emerging culinary and craft beer scene. Make either city a destination or a spot on your road trip map. Prize: 2 nights at Accent Inns in Kelowna and 2 nights at Accent Inns in Kamloops* Value: $400
To enter to win, leave a comment on this post and/or post the following on Twitter:
I entered this week’s @backyardbc @miss604 #bctraveltuesday contest #tt http://bit.ly/bctraveltuesday6
Gift certificates for hotel and resort stays will be sent directly to each weekly winner so they can arrange their visit personally with the property. Some restrictions apply, based on availability. Accent Inns offer cannot be used for stays in July and August*. Must be 19 years of age or older to enter and win.
Update The winner is Sarah C – congratulations!
View all posts in the series by following or subscribing to my BCTravelTuesday tag. Open to residents of BC.
Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings are playing Malkin Bowl May 27th. I admit, I had not heard anything from Sharon Jones before so I looked up the following video on YouTube:
And then I wanted to hear more:
Here you have amazingly solid vocals, deep soul, hip shaking funk, and to top it all off, the concert will take place in one of our city’s most beautiful venues in the heart of Stanley Park. Known for their incredible live shows, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings are a part of a revivalist movement for their genre (they even recorded their 2010 album on an eight-track tape machine).
Tickets for this concert are currently on sale and they’re all general admission, all ages, lawn seating. It’s an early show, starting around 5:30pm on the 27th and guests Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears will be opening the show.
I have two tickets up for grabs if you would like to win your way in, here’s how to enter:
While on a photowalk through Stanley Park recently I grabbed a few shots of the site of the Cathedral trees. New evergreens reaching up to the sky from their oversized stumps just off the Cathedral trail, I realized that I haven’t yet shared the tale of the Seven Sisters.
The group of majestic trees was axed decades ago as they were getting too big, too old, and could have been a hazard for park visitors. As the plaque above states, in 1986 they were replaced with a newly-planted batch of evergreens. However, if you’re into local folklore, there’s another part of the story about the Seven Sisters that is a bit more… spiritual.
1905 – [Woman among the Seven Sisters. Archives Item# LP 253.
“There is a well-known trail in Stanley Park that leads to what the white man calls the “Seven Sisters”, and I always love to call the “Cathedral Trees” – that group of some half-dozen forest giants that arch overhead with such superb loftiness.” Pauline Johnson (Legends of Vancouver) wrote of the Seven Sisters in “The Lure in Stanley Park” – a legend told to her by local First Nations. It’s a bit of a scary story, as the “lure” is described as a “witch-woman” that haunted the park (and other parts of Vancouver along Burrard Inlet). She was punished and turned to stone, however the stone was still cursed by her power.
“The lure in Stanley Park is that most dreaded of things, an evil soul. It is embodied in a bare, white stone, which is shunned by moss and vine and lichen, but over which are splashed innumerable jet-black spots that have eaten into the surface like an acid.” When coming near it “…your will-power is dwarfed, your intelligence blighted, your feet will refuse to lead you out by a straight trail, you will circle, circle for evermore about this magnet…” wrote Johnson.
It’s not all doom and gloom though. To protect those who ventured into the park from the lure, seven of the kindest souls were turned into trees, lined up to protect park visitors. “At the end of the trail we must place so good and great a thing that it will be mightier, stronger, more powerful than this evil. So they chose from the nations the kindliest, most benevolent men, men whose hearts were filled with the love of their fellow-beings, and transformed these merciful souls into the stately group of “Cathedral Trees”. Johnson wrote that the trees are protectors. Regardless of belief in legends or lore, I for one am just happy the trees were replanted.
Pauline Johnson began writing her Legends of Vancouver based on her encounters and time spent with her good friend Chief Joseph Capilano. He’s the one who told her of Salish culture and local legends which she then wrote published in the Vancouver Daily Province from 1910 until 1911. Her book is actually in the Public Domain and you can pick it up at bookstores, on Amazon, or download for free using the iBook app on your iPhone.
One of the most influential bands of the 1990s, Pearl Jam is celebrating its 20th anniversary by (among other things) heading out on a Canadian tour this summer. If that’s not enough to get Pearl Jam fanatics and grunge lovers excited, they will also be touring with special guests (and musical pioneers), Mudhoney.
Source: Pearl Jam on Flickr
Montreal, September 7th
Toronto, September 11th and 12th
Ottawa, September 14th
Hamilton, September 15th
Winnipeg, September 17th
Saskataoon, September 19th
Calgary, September 21st
Edmonton, September 23rd Vancouver, September 25th
Bob Mackin from the 24 Hours tweeted this morning that September 25th is two years to the day of Pearl Jam’s last show in Vancouver.
You can secure your seat for $69.50 plus applicable service charges, with $2 from every ticket sold to be donated to the Vitalogy Foundation, which grants funds to non-profit organizations chosen personally by the members of Pearl Jam. According to the tour press release, Pearl Jam’s 20th anniversary will tour will be followed by the debut of Cameron Crowe’s film, Pearl Jam Twenty, accompanied by the release of a book and soundtrack album.
Tickets go on sale May 27th at 10:00am local time and you’ll be able to find more information on the Pearl Jam website.
