magical Shuswap 2009-2010 edition
the
ART & NATURE by Laurie Carter
a special publication by
magical Shuswap the
is published by:
Byrne Publishing Group Inc. #10-1753 Dolphin Avenue Kelowna, B.C. V1Y 8A6 Phone: 250.861.5399 toll-free 1.888.311-1119 Email: info@okanaganlife.com Website: www.okanaganlife.com
6]caSP]ObW\U LEGENDARY VACATIONS ON SHUSWAP LAKE
Printed in Canada. Š 2009 Byrne Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved. May not be reproduced, in whole, or in part, without prior written permission. Publisher J. Paul Byrne Creative/Editorial Director Luke Redd Senior Editor Laurie Carter Associate Editor Karen Slivar Associate Art Director Andrea Williams Ad Production Coordinator Jocelyne Proulx Administrative Director Becky Thorn Office Assistant Chelsi Middleton Account Executives Brian Malmas Jim Murphy Story & cover photo Laurie Carter
Visit us online at okanaganlife.com for more information and links to our Shuswap advertising partners
3f^S`WS\QS =\S ]T 01Âa :SUS\RO`g /RdS\bc`S DOQObW]\a Our passion has been providing our guests with some of the best memories of their lives while enjoying all that our incredible lake has to offer. Evening campfires under the sparkling night sky, floating on water toys during the day in warm blue waters, or taking a hike to see one of the breathtaking waterfalls - you’re the Captain of this adventure.
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Lynn Erin lives and works in her scotch creek gallery, fireweed art studio. She loves the BC landscape and presents her impressions in bold acrylics. But even her watercolour field sketches are worth framing
I
’m a woman on a mission. Every year I show up for our Shuswap getaway armed with a spreadsheet of likely locations tucked into the map case. My husband Bruce doesn’t even bother to roll his eyes when I announce my latest quest. It makes no difference whether I’m after farmers’ markets or fishing lakes, wineries or hiking trails, antique shops or marine parks, we always find something unique. For those occasions when my must-see list doesn’t strike a mutual chord, Bruce has a strategy: acceptance and a good book. I notice one on the seat between us this morning as I scan addresses in the village of Scotch Creek. This year, I’m into art.
Friday I’d seen the signs for studios and galleries on previous forays as we traced the shoreline of Seymour Arm on Shuswap Lake, but there was always another objective and we never stopped. Today, I pull into the parking lot of a tiny strip mall. Bruce
opens the latest John Grisham. At the top of a wooden staircase at the side of the building, I find Lynn Erin arranging pieces in her Fireweed Art Studio. Light pours into the room through two windows that dominate adjacent walls, illuminating a four-by-six canvas hung as a room divider to separate the studio from a tidy kitchen beyond. The image is arresting — a nest of baby ravens demanding attention. “I call it Lucky Seven,” says Lynn. “The nest was successfully moved during a hydro construction project. I love ravens. But I’ll never do one that size again because it doesn’t fit into the back of a truck.” Looks terrific to me right where it is. Lynn agrees that the big canvas works in the studio/living room of the apartment she shares with her teenage son. Lynn moved to the Shuswap in 1990 from her childhood home in Gillam, Manitoba, and embraced the scenery of British Columbia. I work my way around the room, admiring her bold acrylics and realize that other artists are represented as well: Kathleen Raven pottery and a collection of stunning pine needle baskets and beadwork on leather by Verna Ohryn. Lynn proudly explains that Verna is her mother and that she donates 15 per cent of the proceeds of her work to the Stephen Lewis Foundation. Bruce marks his place and sets the book aside when I climb back into the car. He’s quite happy to hear about Lynn and her work second-hand as we drive north through the late-August sunshine. Near Anglemont we see a sign for Native Art. This gallery isn’t on my list, but … . A sharp left at Fraser Road. Brown cattle munching brunch in a green pasture pay as little attention to our passing as they do to the view of Shuswap Lake and Copper Island in the distance. Nature in Stone Gallery shares the view. A grey stone grizzly prowls the neat front garden. A lively pooch Photo by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
Art dogs and a coy little granddaughter help warren zant show me the coastal and Interior Salish works on display at Nature in Stone Gallery, Anglemont
prowls the interior. Mr. McGee, one of five resident art dogs (mostly pound rescues), joins the tour as co-owner, Warren Zant explains the legends behind some of the pieces. I love sculpture and can barely resist stroking the smooth curves of an Abraham Anghik rendition of the story of Sedna, the goddess of sea creatures. But the $10,500 price tag stays my hand. Specializing in Interior and Coastal Salish art, the gallery also showcases more moderately priced items ranging from bighorn sheep and moose antler carvings to bronze sculpture; drums and leatherwork to delicately painted Christmas ornaments; recycled glass and resin trivets to Bill Reed-style Inukshuks. Bruce is through another chapter by the time we start to retrace our route. He pitches in, scouting house numbers in search of Giovanna’s Glass Creations. Scanning the roadside, I’m distracted by an eagle perched on a fencepost, then an owl and another and another. I ease onto the narrow gravel shoulder, grab my camera and jump out — t his time Bruce is right behind me. No need to panic, though. These birds aren’t going anywhere. We marvel at the initiative of the local artist who saw potential in bare fence posts. The birds are weathered as grey as the wood from which they’re carved, but the detail is striking. I’m just tucking my camera
away when Bruce points to a sign directly across the road: Stained Glass Creations. “Think we’ve found you’re next place,” he says and settles into the passenger seat. Giovanna’s studio occupies what was once the porch of a 1940s squared-timber cabin that’s wedged between the road and the beach, effectively screened by a thick growth of cedars, spruce and acacia bushes. It’s an open space dominated by a huge central work table with another workbench under the picture window overlooking the lake, shelving for raw white ceramics, and stained glass creations filling every available inch of wall space and hanging in random profusion from overhead hooks. “I’m such an art nut,” says Giovanna as we discuss her 35-year career. “Painting, pottery, ceramics … . Once I took a class. The first thing I made was a lampshade. The teacher gave me a job. Otherwise, I’m self-taught.” Her commissions go all over the world and she’ll do any motif a client wants. Angels and nativity scenes are popular, but living so close to the Adams River, there’s no escaping the brilliant red sockeye. Several fish swim from
Keep a sharp eye out for Giovanna’s art glass studio near Magan Bay. Along with signature sockeye salmon, look for stained glass screen bugs, pottery turtles, freeform bowls, elegant vases and kitchen ware in a funk y country design featuring sheep and roosters
Photos by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
SquilaxAnglemont road hugs the north shore of shuswap Lake’s Seymour arm. Check out the non-stop action on and near the water
ceiling hooks and light illuminates another in a side window. Bruce has the seat tipped back when I emerge. Time to take pity on the guy (though he assures me he’s having a great day). I stop at a little roadside park in Celista and together we collect our picnic basket and set up on a table under an aspen with a 180-degree view of the crescent beach. There’s plenty of entertainment. A blazing red boat makes a series of stop-and-start passes, charging ahead to lift a wakeboarder out of the water, creaming along for a hundred metres, then suddenly settling when the black-clad figure on the tow rope disappears. Short pause, repeat. Highly diverting. So is the party in full swing on a dock just south of the park and there’s a constant stream of traffic in the boat launch area. With enough breeze to stir the air and enough shade to dull the early afternoon glare, it’s a good place to sit and veg. We’re in no hurry. I’ve covered everything on my list for the day. All we have to do now is drive to Salmon Arm and check into the hotel. We toodle back along Squilax-
Anglemont Road and almost make it to the Trans-Canada. But one more sign snags my attention. At the junction with the road to Talking Rock Resort, I notice Little Bear Giftshop & Gallery tucked into a storefront in the gas bar. Owner Margaret Anderson is tweeking a display of birch bark baskets by Hayley Bowie of the Shuswap First Nation. She tells me that baskets by elder, Mary Thomas, have sold out, but she also carries a variety of necklaces and beadwork, medicine pouches, moccasins, dolls, art cards and Bradford Exchange collectibles. Along with the shop, Margaret conducts workshops on how to make and paint drums. Again we set out to cruise straight to the hotel, but nearing Tappen we think, what the heck. Recline Ridge and Granite Creek wineries are just a few kilometres out of our way. Quick detour. I have a real soft spot for Recline Ridge Ortega and I’ve been disappointed in the past when they were sold out. But this year we manage to corner a few bottles along with a Siegerrebe. At Granite Creek, there’s almost as much
margaret anderson features the work of local shuswap artists among the collectibles in her little bear giftshop & Gallery three wineries prove the shuswap isn’t too far north for viticulture: Recline Ridge vineyards & Winery, Granite Creek estate wines and Larch hills winery
Photos by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
interest in the preserves as the wine. Jo-Anne Baldock, who pours and chats, says that berries go into the jelly pot together with, say, a Cab Syrah. “I’ve had times when we were putting labels on the warm jars,” she says, “and the jelly sold before it was set.” A blueberry wine jelly accompanies us to the car. Now straight to the hotel. Almost. Tappen Road threads among beautifully kept farms. We pass green pastures with herds of black and white Holsteins fuelling up for milk production, stubbly hay fields dotted with giant round bales and golden acres of head-high corn. I love farm country. “Just one quick stop?”
This time Bruce does roll his eyes, but he’s stoic. Eventually we make it to the Prestige Harbourfront Resort. A two-storey window wall brings Salmon Arm Bay into the lobby and we discover a mini-version of the same experience in our room. Sliding glass doors reveal the wetlands, a near fluorescent green stretching to the silver blue lake, and a horizon defined by the silhouette of the Fly Hills. Not 50 metres from our balcony, two osprey sit atop a pick-up-sticks nest. Drop suitcases. Rummage for cameras. Jockey for position on balcony. A precocious teen chick, as big as its parents, cheeps loud demands for food. Mom tears off bits of fish and drops them into its mouth with her beak. We stand with cameras poised, waiting for that superb action moment of outstretched wing and take-off. Eventually she obliges — while I’m swapping memory cards! The sound of Bruce’s motor drive whisking off five frames a second nearly kills me. But I can’t maintain any kind of pique with such a riveting spectacle. I’m intrigued by the sight and sounds. We’re clearly eavesdropping on an important conversation — and it’s not just between the two birds in the nest. Dad does a flyby then settles high in a tree away to our left by the Salmon Arm pier. Ee-eep, ee-eep, ee-eep — t he calls and answers fly back and forth above the marsh. Directly below, people stroll past on the boardwalk and we notice others clustered on a patio with a view. Continuing our bird watching over a beer and some food sounds appealing. We withdraw to the hotel’s Sand Bar Pub, order up some Crannog Ale, brewed locally in Sorrento, and a selection of wings. It’s comfortably warm as the sun begins to slide toward the hills and we’ve got front row seats for the action on the boardwalk and in the nest. The show comes complete with colour commentary from an
salmon arm lies in a belt of rolling farmland that makes for some very contented cows the wetlands in salmon arm bay provide ideal habitat for nesting and resting as 250 species of birds make this their summer home, winter haven or a stopover during migration season. Stroll the boardwalk for close encounters without damaging the fragile environment
osprey watching is seriously addictive, especially from the vantage point of a balcony on the city’s biggest bird blind, the prestige harbourfront resort
Photos by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
opinionated crow who alternates perches between the iron railing in front and the roof peak above. The light turns mellow (and so do we). Back on our balcony, we crack a bottle of Ortega. Oddly, the ospreys appear to have vacated the nest, but now there are herons to watch as they glide in for long-legged landings and settle for the night. We stretch the wine until the Milky Way spills across the indigo sky.
Saturday
Joy oates and linda vogel feature canadian art and handcrafts at loriginals gallery in salmon arm photos identify the african artists whose work is displayed at gondwana Gallery a couple of doors down the street
Amber light floods the room. Still snuggled under a cozy duvet, I notice that the osprey nest remains empty, but five herons are wading through the shallows like mini-dinosaurs. By the time I brew coffee and carry my cup outside, the young osprey is back, loudly demanding breakfast. Bruce emerges with his 500mm. With that big boy, he can catch the glint in the chick’s eye. Might as well leave him to it and go for a downtown art tour. It’s an easy walk from the harbourfront to the shopping district. I stop to admire a forest of freeform sculptures, catch a busking juggler’s act and stroll along Lakeshore, anchored by its historic 1929 Merchant’s Block. An ornate Victorian screen door attracts my attention and I realize that it belongs to Loriginals, one of the shops on my spreadsheet. I’m standing before a tall case filled with tooled leatherwork when a quiet voice at my shoulder asks if I’m looking for anything in particular. I fall into conversation with Joy Oates who explains that she and co-owner Linda Vogel are focused on items handcrafted in Canada and featuring local artists. The leatherwork is done by Murray and Annette Anderson from Salmon Arm. Unusual metal and porcelain pieces are crafted by Peter and Erika Postel from Blind Bay and another Salmon Arm artist, Jim
Jurasek, paints the watercolours. Joy ushers me around and introduces Linda. The partners emphasize their determination to maintain the Canadian craft specialization because visitors expect it. Joy says, “People come year after year, from Canada and Europe.” As they walk me to the door, I speculate that I’ll become one of the faithful. A few steps down the street, the theme couldn’t be less Canadian. A trio of painted giraffes gawk out the front window of Gondwana Gallery amid an assortment of hanging drums. As I push through the door a heavy pall of incense assaults my nose. I really hate incense — puts me right back in the 60s, gives me a headache. Normally I’d do an instant about face and head for fresh air. But there’s so much cool stuff, must explore. A tall, lanky guy wearing a wide grin strides toward me. I can see he’s a man with a story. Owner Tibout Glazenburg and his wife Marlene lived in South Africa before moving to Canada. “We became familiar with local artisans and assisted them in marketing and selling their wares,” he says. “For many, this is how they make a living.”
Photos by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
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marlene and tibout glazenburg support african artisans with a fair trade approach on their annual buying trips
lori talerico is a free spirit whose wide ranging interests are obvious. She loves living and working close to salmon arm bay
Now the couple returns each year, continuing to buy direct from the artisans. Tibout says they support 27 families in this way, plus two orphanages through local fundraisers. “We only buy handcrafted items directly from the artisan on a fair trade basis — no sweatshops, no child labour,” he declares. “We pay up front. No consignments.” Tibout talks fast, trying to get it all in, then he slows, quietly lifting the photo of an artist from a jewelry display. His face clouds. “Many of them have AIDS,” he says. “We never know who will be there next year.” But the mood instantly shifts when he moves on to the djembes — drums from Ghana. Seems Tibout is a drummer himself — teaches drumming in Salmon Arm. Right! Glad I ignored the incense. There’s just one more stop on my list before lunch. Talerico Fine Art Gallery and Artist’s Studio occupies a
space in a new cluster of lowrise shops, offices and condos on Marine Park Drive adjacent to the pier. Lori Talerico settles me in a chocolate leather sofa in her studio/gallery/living room and plies me with tea and freshfrom-the-oven coconut cake. The walls are hung with a variety of themes: cat portrait stories in oil; spiritual paintings in watercolour; and mixed media, like bark on handmade paper, often with a buffalo worked in. Lori is obviously a free spirit. She takes drumming lessons from Tibout (how’s that for coincidence), enjoys travel and often sees the funny side of life. “That’s me in a bathtub in Hawaii,” she says, pointing at a roly-poly caricature. Lori likes to work on location. “These are all pleine airs,” she says, sweeping her hand Vanna-style over half a dozen empty frames on the wall. All sold. A member of the BC Naturalists, Lori is over the moon at being able to live and work so close to the bay. “I fill my binoculars full of tears watching the grebes,” she says. And she spends much of her time with easel and canvas in the marshland — which means that gallery hours are random. “Ring the bell,” she says, “and if I don’t answer, check the boardwalk.” I realize that we’ve been visiting for 40 minutes. Lori makes me feel like I’ve dropped in on a friend. She waves me off at the door and I hurry the few steps to the hotel to collect Bruce for lunch. I’ve heard about a little Euro-style eatery downtown called Hedi’s Wine Bistro. We elect to walk and easily find the spot on Alexander Street. The narrow interior is sleek and chic in lime green and plum. We sit on a pair of wicker settees with plump pillows at a wrought iron, mosaic topped table flooded with light from the broad bow window. Multi-level shutters screen us from the coffee bar and raised dining room in the rear. It’s well past the lunch rush and Reiner (partner of Hedi) is Photos by l aurie carter
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njoy friendly faces, funky spaces and unique places. There’s something for everyone to discover in downtown Salmon Arm. Downtown Salmon Arm boasts unique shopping, fine dining, casual cafes, galleries and live entertainment along its city streets. The downtown abounds with floral baskets, community green spaces, public art, waterfront parks, and a worldfamous bird sanctuary. On Wednesday evenings all summer long, stop by the Twilight Market in the Ross Street Lot, where you can shop for local crafts, produce or a unique souvenir of the Shuswap. From the market, head over to the waterfront for Wednesdays on the Wharf, a showcase of local and regional music talent. It’s a free show not to be missed. On many summer days, you can take in the sounds of local musicians who entertain passers-by. Children from near and far enjoy the water park and playground located in Fletcher Park next to City Hall. Unique to the downtown is Marine Park and the bird sanctuary. Bird watchers come from far and wide to observe migratory and native species under the cover of blinds and vistas from the world’s longest inland curved wooden wharf. Stroll quietly along the newly-created boardwalk and enjoy the beauty of this protected environmental area. Early morning visitors to the wharf will recognize the
special advertising section
drums of the dragon boat teams training in the bay. Visit during the long weekend in July and watch the annual dragon boat festival unfold. Other annual events include Spring Fever Celebrations, Canada Day Children’s Festival, Downtown Market Days, Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival preview concert, Paint the Town art show and auction, Rocktoberfest on the Ross Street Plaza, the Downtown Halloween Treat Trail and the CPR holiday train. For year round event information, visit their website at www. salmonarmdowntown.com. Whether you enjoy a quiet stroll, some retail therapy, gourmet moments or musical interludes, there’s something for everyone to discover in downtown Salmon Arm.
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glad to answer my question about roesti, a potato option I’m curious to try with my schnitzel. “That takes 15 minutes,” he warns. “It’s made fresh.” We’ve got time. Bruce picks up a Salmon Arm Roots & Blues Festival brochure from the newspaper/magazine rack and we settle in with a Larch Hills Riesling to check out this year’s program. The sound system delivers bistro eclectic — cabaret to beer hall. Hedi starts the food parade with a thick bean soup. Reiner follows with the mains. I taste the roesti — a crispy-outside-soft-inside potato pancake with onions and herbs — and try to identify the flavours. Parpika, for sure, marjoram, cloves? Reiner smiles coyly — maybe. I tuck into my virgin schnitzel (no breading) — a lso with paprika and that elusive something — and a certain heat from the roesti begins to catch up. Hedi drops by offering sour cream. Oh my. And the “oh” lasts right through a must-have apple strudel, made exclusively for Hedi’s by the Blue Canoe Bakery. At night the restaurant is transformed with white tablecloths and menu additions like Jaeger Schnitzel and the region’s only fondue. But I can’t even contemplate another mouthful of food. Good thing we’re walking. We need to wear off a few million calories, and we stumble into an unscheduled find. A sidewalk sandwich board announces Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe and a bright red finger points to a trail of yellow footprints that lead into an alley. Beyond a patio of redpainted cobblestones we enter a narrow passage lined with oddments like a mounted deer’s head and treadle sewing machine, then move into a large open space filled with furniture, jewelry, dolls, kitchenware and collectibles of all sorts. Proprietor Joyce Skinner has been running the shop for 14 years and she loves the history of the location. In
1910, this was a men’s bathhouse. She indicates where a brass drain is hidden by the flooring and says the wood beneath the fireproof material on the pillars is carved with women’s names — as much of a curiosity as her stock. Retracing the yellow footprints, we make for the waterfront. Bruce wants me to see the Tom Brighouse Nature Centre where he watched a terrific video of the grebes’ famous mating dance this morning. Surprisingly, the door is locked, but a note taped to the window announces that “Mike” is on the pier. He’s easy to identify, what with the tripod-mounted spotting scope and all. I latch onto what he’s watching — a pair of osprey perched on a square green navigation marker. Suddenly a shape unfolds, the great wingspan momentarily spreads then streamlines as the bird torpedoes into the water — rising with a silver-sided fish in a death grip. The hunter lights on a lower spreader of the mark, safely removed from the other bird who watches from above. A third swoops in, slowly folding its wings as it settles next to the watcher. I’m glued to the action, Photos by l aurie carter
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told you ospreywatching is addictive
heron-watching, too. usually a rare sighting, these birds are practically commonplace in salmon arm bay lively ceviche with fresh cut salsa and lighthearted presentation start a meal at cabana vallarta
exchanging exclamations with Mike and shooting digital bursts through my 300mm lens (churlishly thinking how much better Bruce’s shots will be with his 500). At first I think I’m seeing two jealous birds waiting for an opportunity to cadge scraps from a successful rival. It slowly dawns on me, however, that the tone of the calls from the onlookers could be more encouraging than taunting. Probably anthropomorphizing, I tell myself, but when I voice my observation, Mike confirms that the lucky bird is this year’s fledgling. Mom and dad are conducting classes. This is fishing school. The birdlife is so varied — and so close. When I can tear my eyes from the drama on the mark, I see a huge heron standing just across the channel at the water’s edge. Canada geese poke about in the shallows and on the eastern side of the pier, another heron perches on a buoy. Mike has retreated to close up shop, so I have to hurry for a look at that video. He shows me the various features of the nature centre, which is open daily throughout the summer — books, videos, stuffed specimens, charts and photos — and offers a map of the nature trail that rims the
bay. New item on tomorrow’s list. I part from Mike and return to the pier. People are out in the late afternoon sun and a couple of families roll past, pedalling rented quadricycles with jaunty fringed shades. I catch up with Bruce and together we walk to the end of the gracefully curved structure where a bevy of houseboats have pulled in for the night. We dawdle back to the room and spend another peaceful hour on the balcony with a glass or two of Viognier. No need to worry about driving, we’re walking to dinner at Cabana Vallarta, a cute looking Mexican eatery we spotted on Hudson Avenue. With lively pumpkin orange
Photos by l aurie carter
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The Magical Shuswap
walls and brightly painted Windsor chairs, this place would feel summery any time of year. We order a couple of Dos Exis lagers and start munching nachos, served in a Mexi-doll basket, with fresh cut salsa. Bruce sticks with his perennial — chillis rellenas, but I opt for something different. Stuffed zucchini, with garlic, tomato, onion, zucchini seeds, peas and corn topped with cheese — good enough to convert a carnivore.
Sunday Sitting in bed with my second coffee, I watch a gangly, prehistoric looking heron, the echo of itself reflected in the still shallows. Suddenly it ducks and jerks its head — choking down a breakfast fish. Until this weekend, any heron sighting was a real pulse starter for me. But here I am, with no fewer than five in view and we expect to see more on the nature trail. It’s easy to find. A boardwalk ranges to the east of the pier, cutting across the marshes for an up-close look at species like redwinged blackbirds. After a short jog along a residential street, the trail picks up on the shoreline, like a country lane with a stripe of green grass growing down the centre and a canopy of leafy branches fending off the summer sun. We stop and read the interpretive signs and clomp onto a boardwalk that juts into the marsh with wrap-around views of Mount Ida, the Fly Hills and Mount Bastion under a very blue sky. Ducks and little brown birds surround us and, sure enough, there’s another heron. Two pairs of pheasants strut across the path in front of us. When we draw even with the spot where they disappeared into the rushes, the cocks start up in a flap and clatter of wings, their colours dazzling in the sunlight. At Christmas Island Bruce spots a muskrat in a pond and sets to work with that cursed 500mm.
viewing platform juts into the wetlands for a look at waterfowl and yellow-winged blackbirds pheasants scoot across the tree-shaded nature trail a side trail circumnavigates christmas island in salmon arm bay
Photos by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
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hanna & hanna orchards have been family owned for more than a century
broadview school is a focal point at r.j. haney heritage village and park in salmon Arm. but lunch at marjorie’s tea room in the basement is nothing like eating in the school cafeteria
I do a little circumnavigation, eventually approaching the pond from the other end where another heron is fishing. We spend nearly an hour watching the birds, finally admitting that we should push off. The trail continues for several more kilometres and there’s an observation tower as well, but we start back. For this army that marches on its stomach, we have plans for lunch and I also want to stop at the Hanna & Hanna Orchards Farm Market to pick up some apples. This is more than a fruit stand with the most elaborate bird houses I’ve ever seen, gazillions of wind chimes, lawn ornaments and edibles from ice cream to fresh-baked pies. And the scent of roses — brilliant. Hanna’s is the first place I’ve come across with a cut-your-own flower garden. But I’m after apples. These orchards have been family owned for over a century. I fill a bag, then pick up a couple of samples from bins with labels I don’t know — Paulared and Summer-red. I pass one to Bruce when we get into the car and bite into the other. Stunning! Back inside for a full bag of each,
wishing I lived closer for refills. But this is just the appetizer. We’re doing lunch at Marjorie’s Tea Room at R.J. Haney Heritage Village. This isn’t our first visit. In the past we’ve browsed through the filling station and fire hall, blacksmith shop and the old storefront with the gramophone collection and recorded gramophone music. The inside of Mount Ida Church is as simple and appealing as the outside and the schoolroom definitely stirs some memories. We still haven’t managed to work in a performance at the summer dinner theatre, but today we take time to tour the museum, a good call since there’s
Photos by l aurie carter
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The Magical Shuswap
Canoe Creek golf course
cool · crisp · clean
Dave Barr Signature Course
Enjoy the sights and tastes of a true cool climate winery. Handcrafted wines made from 100% BC grown grapes. Winner BestWinery of the North Okanagan OpeN 9am to 5pm daily year round 110 Timms Road, Salmon Arm, BC Follow signs from 97A or 97B highway.
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Enjoy a glass of wine on our licensed patio & picnic areas
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To l l F r e e 8 6 6 . 4 3 1 . 3 2 8 5 • w w w. c a n o e c r e e k g o l f . c o m 6015 Shaw Road, Salmon aRm, BC V1E 2w2 • GPS n50.65572 w119.21575
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250.835.2212 The Magical Shuswap
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18 Hole Championship Course 9 Hole Executive Course Ironwood Restaurant & Lounge
Hwy. 97B • 250.832.4727 salmonarmgolf.com
the malakwa suspension bridge was slung across the eagle river in 1915 to connect outlying farms with the community and school. the current version dates to 1940
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a new exhibit. It tells the unique story of entrepreneur, Percy Ruth, who with the help of local First Nations, collected seeds that reforested parts of Britain and Europe following the demands and destruction of the First World War. After that discovery, there’s lots to talk about over our lunch of tourtière and salad, thick beef barley soup with homemade bread and fresh baked pie. Sigh! Sadly, our Shuswap weekend is winding down. This year, we’re continuing east, so I won’t miss my favourite part, the peerless drive between Salmon Arm and Sicamous. Bruce is good about taking the wheel through this stretch; I suspect this has more to do with his sense of survival than a lack of interest in the lake and mountain scenery. I do tend to get a little distracted. We buzz past Sicamous, cruising the Trans-Canada, when the sign for Malakwa triggers a memory. Haven’t I read something about a Malakwa Suspension Bridge? I share the thought and Photo by l aurie carter
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The Magical Shuswap
ray’s rustick wood & things is one of those serendipitous shuswap finds. he dreams up his own designs, heads to the forest to collect his own raw materials and hand crafts every piece
Bruce takes the hint. Soon we’re bumping down a narrow road into the tiny hamlet and not only do we confirm that there is a charming little foot bridge slung across the Eagle River (sounds and feels like a bouncy old bedspring), but fate has delivered us to the doorstep of one more Shuswap artisan. You wouldn’t call the proprietor of Raye’s Rustick Wood & Things a marketing guru. His hand-lettered signs are as crude as his spelling, but who needs marketing when you’ve got style. Raye is a craftsman. His designs are his own, sketches and specs laid out in a worn spiral notebook on his loft worktable. The benches, pet beds, chairs, stools and kids furniture he creates are all built from the burls and standing dead pine (nice and dry) that he goes into the bush to select for himself. It strikes me that stumbling into this workshop is exactly the sort of thing that keeps us coming back year after year. No matter how much I plan, there’s always one more Shuswap surprise.
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Photo by l aurie carter
The Magical Shuswap
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The Magical Shuswap
Salmon River Rd to Hwy 97
MOUNT TAPPEN
MOUNT IDA
Hwy 97A to USA (5 Hours) via Kelowna
• • • •
•
• • • • • • • • •
Salmon Arm
Squilax
Recline Ridge Vineyards • Granite Creek Estate Wines •
Chase Trans-Canada Hwy to Vancouver (4 Hours)
SHUSW AP L AK E
LIT TLE
Prestige Harbourfront Resort Loriginals Gallery Gondwana Gallery Salmon Arm Roots & Blues Fest Talerico Fine Art Gallery Hedi’s Wine Bistro Larch Hills Winery Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe Cabana Vallarta Hanna & Hanna Orchards Farm Market RJ Haney Heritage Village & Museum Marjorie’s Tea Room Tom Brighouse Nature Centre Christmas Island
22 97B
Tappen
1
SA L
97A
R MA
A RM
A
WHITE LAKE MOUNT BASTION
MON
MA
Celista
CoPPER ISLAnD
Sunnybrae
Grindrod
Canoe
notch hill
Sorrento
Scotch Creek
• Fireweed Art Studio
IN A St. Ives
1
AR
M
ANSTEY MOUNTAIN RANGE
Trans-Canada Hwy to Banff (4 Hours)
GRAVEL RoAD
PAVED RoAD
LoCATIonS MEnTIonED In ThE EDIToRIAL
WATER ACCESSIBLE CAMPInG
A RM
M
Y ANSTE
Y SE
R OU
• Malakwa Suspension Bridge • Raye’s Rustick Wood & Things
Malakwa
• Nature in Stone Gallery
Sicamous
P
N • Giovanna’s Glass Creations
Anglemont
SH US WA
KE
OF
LA
RM
Manga Bay
• Little Bear Gift & Gallery
• Talking Rock Resort
theShuswap
@kËj k_\ nXp n\ gXZbX^\ pfli jkfi`\j k_Xk j\kj lj XgXik ¿ We’re proud to create The Magical Shuswap, our award-winning annual publication that celebrates an amazing region full of fascinating people and places. And we make sure it gets read widely by placing an abundant amount of stand-alone copies in visitor centres, shops and hotels as well as inserting it into our other annual publications: the Annual Valley Guide and Rainmakers: Thompson Okanagan. You can also find it online at okanaganlife.com
Visitors to the Okanagan Valley have come to rely on the Annual Valley Guide as their source to learn about the region’s towns, cities, attractions, dining, events and recreational opportunities. It can be found in all the best hotel rooms from Salmon Arm to Osoyoos. Rainmakers: Thompson Okanagan combines profiles some of the region’s most active and influential communityminded individuals and businesses with some of the best of our other publications.
After more than �� years, Okanagan Life continues to delight and surprise readers with its stories about the most fascinating people, places, lifestyle options and important issues within the Valley. Eight years ago, the circulations of Okanagan Life and Okanagan Business were combined, giving Okanagan Life one of the largest per capita readerships of its kind in North America.
Learn more by calling: ���.���.���� | �.���.���.���� | okanaganlife.com
SALMON ARM
❖
GRANDE PRAIRIE
❖
F O R T M c M U R R AY
Podollan Inns - Salmon Arm is situated just east of the Trans Canada Hwy and within walking distance to downtown. Catering to the most discerning guests, our rooms feature superior soundproofing, extra-comfy pillow top beds and down duvets, so you can enjoy a peaceful night’s sleep. The hotel is nestled in an 18-acre oasis with majestic views of Shuswap Lake, hiking trails, fruit trees, flower gardens, 2 hot tubs and a free-form tropical pool. Enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner at JAX Grill and Lounge. VISIT US ONLINE FOR SPECIAL PACKAGE PRICING.
146 0 T R A N S cA N A D A h w Y. NE, SALMON ARM , bc
PODOLLAN.COM
1-888-668-4180