June 03, 2015

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Summer 2015

R E V E L S T O K E

Inside: 2. Downtown history

3. Jumping Creek Pottery 4. New rock climbing areas

6. Natural Escapes Kayaking 8. Tree Construction

PHOTO: Paddling on Lake Revelstoke with Natural Escapes Kayaking. ~ By Alex Cooper

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10. Street Festival preview 12. Summer events listing

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Brown Bag History

FOR YEARS, CATHY ENGLISH, THE CURATOR OF THE REVELSTOKE MUSEUM & ARCHIVES, HAS BEEN TELLING STORIES OF REVELSTOKE’S PAST AT HER BROWN BAG LUNCH TALKS. SHE’S TOLD HUNDREDS OF TALES COVERING TOPICS FROM BUSINESS TO POLITICS TO SPORT TO CRIME. ON JUNE 25, SHE WILL BE RELEASING BROWN BAG HISTORY – REVELSTOKE ORIGINS, A BOOK COMPILING 12 OF THESE TALKS. HERE’S AN EXCERPT ABOUT THE SHIFT OF DOWNTOWN REVELSTOKE FROM FARWELL, NEAR THE BIG EDDY BRIDGE, TO ITS CURRENT LOCATION CENTRED ON MACKENZIE AVENUE. ~ BY CATHY ENGLISH

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C.B. Hume’s General Store was the largest in the BC Interior when it was built in 1903. ~ Photo from the Revelstoke Museum & Archives

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s a result of the Farwell dispute, the CPR moved outside of the lands granted to Farwell and established their yards and station farther east, at the base of Mount Revelstoke. The location is still the same today, although most of the original structures are gone.

Businesses started to spring up along Track Street, close to the station.

Among them were Bourne Brothers General Store, which opened in 1889, and Frank McCarty’s butcher shop in 1891. C. B. Hume’s General Store opened on Track Street in 1892, after he bought out the stock from his cousin, J. Fred Hume, who sold out and moved to Nelson.

Mount Mackenzie was named in 1887 after Alexander Mackenzie, the second Prime Minister of Canada and Mackenzie Avenue was also named after him. The block from Victoria Road to First Street was very swampy, and gravel fill and logs had to be added to make the street usable. Several homes were built in the first two blocks in the 1890s and these were later moved as Mackenzie Avenue and First Street became a more desirable business centre than the original Front Street area. It made sense for businesses to be closer to the station so that they were not paying additional shipping charges to get their wares to their stores.

The Kootenay Star of February 6, 1892 decried the fact that the CPR would not sell land in their station townsite to residential owners: “The great drawback at the station is the refusal of the railway company to sell any of its land for residential purposes. Long leases may be obtained, it is true, but that kind of ownership does not find much favor in this province…

Let the company reserve what lands it needs, or will need, for its yards and repair shops, whether it be 180 or 200 acres, and sell the remainder in residential lots. A handsome town could be laid out in the vicinity of the station, and the land at present occupied by charred trunks and given over to silence and solitude could be made the scene of busy life and bustling activity. The dog-in-the-manger character at present displayed is not becoming for such a vast and wealthy corporation as the Canadian Pacific.”

In October of 1893, a Roman Catholic Church was built on leased land at the northeast corner of First Street and Mackenzie Avenue. The priest, Father Accorsini, had a large mission territory to cover and was not able to come to Revelstoke every Sunday. He felt that it was time to build a church in town, rather than conducting mass in private homes. He began fundraising among the local congregation, and they soon had enough to build their church. By 1899, the land that the church stood on had been sold to C.B. Hume, and that year the church was moved to the corner of Fifth Street and Mackenzie Avenue, where side wings were built onto it. When a new church was built in 1964, the old church was used as the parish hall until it was dismantled in 1983.

C.B. Hume built his beautiful brick store on the former church site in 1903, and by 1910 it was the largest department store in the interior of B.C., in terms of both building size and amount of sales. It continued to operate until the 1930s. In 1963, the building was purchased by the Royal Bank of Canada and the exterior was completely rebuilt. It was rebuilt again in 1967 after a fire destroyed much of the original structure.

www.revelstokereview.com | 3 hen she was 16 years old, Revelstoke-based potter Kaitlin Murphy came across the book Handmade Tiles by Frank Giorgini. She immediately fell in love. “I just wanted to be a tile maker,” said Murphy, who grew up in New Denver.

At 19,Murphy took a night class in pottery and soon after started a tile making business. She supplemented her income by landscaping for some homeowners in Victoria, where she was living at the time. By coincidence, she happened to be landscaping for a group of retired professors who were well known within the ceramics and pottery circuits, among them Robin Hopper.

“They told me, you’re too smart to be cutting people’s lawns,” said Murphy. “I realized that to get good at something it’s so much better to have formal training.”

That inspired her to attend the Kootenay School of Arts where she received a diploma in Art, Craft & Design, specializing in ceramics.

Fast forward to today, and it’s likely you’ve seen Murphy’s latest venture, the mobile business Jumping Creek Pottery, rolling around Revelstoke at some point.

“It’s (the trailer) selling them a little bit of me. I made it thinking, ‘What’s my demographic?’ I learned from Robin that the most important aspect of having a business is selling an experience,” said Murphy, who built the trailer along with another female carpenter.

Currently, Murphy supplements what she makes from her pottery by working as a carpenter during the winter months. She was inspired to begin working on her carpentry ticket in the summer of 2006.

“There were crazy forest fires,” said Murphy, who was living in Silverton and selling pottery at the time. “It killed tourism. I made money the last two weeks of July and the first two weeks of August, and that is what I lived off of all year. I made no money that year.” t 27, Murphy closed down her pottery business and began labouring on a crew. It was a harsh reality for her to go from being in a place where she was seen as a cool and funky potter, to being just another labourer in a mainly male-dominated environment. And while it’s obvious she has a keen sense of enthusiasm about carpentry, pottery remains her first love.

“I’d say it’s 80 (per cent pottery)/20 (per cent carpentry),” said Murphy. “I know carpentry will never leave my life. I’ve always been inspired by it. I like the structural mechanics of it.”

As for pottery, Murphy’s current attempts to create a mobile business in Revelstoke has meant many hours spent filling out application forms, and with a limited budget, creating a publicity campaign has been challenging.

This is part of the reason she ran a Kickstarter campaign this past winter.

She was inspired after seeing what a similar campaign had done for her friend Doug Sproule’s Rogers Pass guidebook.

“It was awesome. It was a successful campaign. I got a lot of good publicity out of it. I could never pay for that kind of publicity,” she said.

Murphy is applying for a city mobile vending license. She has put in nearly 100 hours trying to find a place to set up.

While her goal is to set up as a mobile business in Revelstoke this summer, she says if this doesn’t happen she’ll go back to the Sicamous location she was at last summer.

“I’m going with optimism that I am going to set up in Revelstoke.”

Stay tuned and look for the tiny house with the Jumping Creek logo.

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Photo by Keri Knapp

Photo by Agathe Bernard

Photo by Agathe Bernard

Roaming pottery

KAITLYN MURPHY IS A POTTER AND CARPENTER WHO BUILT HERSELF A TRAILER TO HIT THE ROAD AND SELL HER WARES. ~ WORD & PHOTOS BY MELISSA JAMESON

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STREET FEST 2015 SCHEDULE Date June 26 June 27 June 28 June 29 & 30 July 1 July 2 July 3 July 4 July 5 July 6 & 7 July 8 July 9 July 10 July 11 July 12 July 13 July 14 July 15 & 16 July 17 July 18 July 19 July 20 July 21 July 22 July 23 July 24 & 25 July 26 July 27 & 28 July 29 July 30 July 31 August 1 August 2 & 3 August 4 & 5 August 6 August 7 & 8 August 9 August 10 August 11 August 12 August 13 August 14 August 15 August 16 August 17 August 18 August 19 August 20 August 21 August 22 August 23 August 24 & 25 August 26 August 27 August 28 August 29 August 30 Advertised band

Artist Community Band Lindsay May Sharon Shook Kenny Holliday Sean Ashby Devon Coyote Denis Severino Joanne Stacey Novascotiables Steve Palmer Mike MacKenzie Band Michael Wood Band Andrew and Zack Smith Dennis Severino Blackberry Wood Maritime Kitchen Party Mountain Music Duo Garry Kehoe Partial To Pie Mike Alviano Maritime Kitchen Party Twin Peaks Toby Sean Ashby Sarah Burton Band The Rev Dodge City Brotherhood Charlie Burton Relative Jazz Sister Speak Jessica Stuart Few Joanne Stacey Matt Duffus Tanner James 45 Minutes Uncorked Blackberry Wood Bob Rogers Jazz Majesty Willi Gaw That Girl and Earl Stacie Byrne Duo That Girl and Earl Jen Lane Cornstarr Kelvin Ketchum Sarah-Jane Scouten John Jenkins Sarah-Jane Scouten The Parson Jazz Coop Sharon Shook Robyn and Ryleigh Benny Walker Devon Coyote Stacie Byrne Duo John Jenkins Jodi Doidge is subject to change

Scaling new heights AROUND REVELSTOKE, ROCK CLIMBERS ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW CRAGS, CLIFFS AND WALLS TO SCALE. THIS IS THE STORY OF THREE AREAS THAT HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED IN RECENT YEARS, FROM THE TOWERING VICTOR LAKE WALL TO THE HIDDEN HARDMAN BLUFFS.

BY ALEX COOPER

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more details at www.revelstokeartscouncil.com

Manuela Arnold climbs at Hardman Bluffs. ~ Photo courtesy Ryan Williams

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he Revelstoke Rocks guidebook lists 282 climbs spread out over 13 crags, cliffs and walls. It’s a compilation of all the routes that have been formally established since Dean Flick bolted Bifacial Retouch at the Begbie Bluffs in 1991.

People had been rock climbing in Revelstoke since at least the 1960s, but Flick’s endeavour sparked an explosion in route development that is ongoing, with avid climbers scouting the woods for new cliffs to climb and explore.

Here’s a look at three of the newer areas to be established.

THE VICTOR LAKE WALL

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t was Dean Flick who first realized the potential of the Victor Lake Wall. The 360 vertical metre wall towers over the Trans-Canada Highway and CP Rail tracks west of Revelstoke. It’s the wall that Ruedi Beglinger, the dean of Revelstoke rock climbing, calls The Grand Wall of Revelstoke.

Flick, for years, worked on a route up the wall dubbed, fittingly, The Mission. With 13 pitches and a 5.11b rating, the route opened up the Victor Lake Wall to climbing in 2007.

From there, Beglinger took over, putting up 10 routes in the intervening years. “I wanted (Dean) to finish up the first route, the Mission, before I jumped on it,” he told me.

Beglinger’s first route up the wall was Ninth Symphony, a 5.11c he established with the help of Flick and Eric Dafoe.

His latest is Revelstoke Arete, which was still being worked on at time of writing. His favorite is Mystery, a 5.12c that goes straight up the middle of the wall.

“The route should make sense, following a natural line or terrain features that link smoothly,” he said. “It is like a song you write, or a musical. On the end it all has to harmonize, the route has to have a dynamic flow.”

The comparison to music is reflected in the route names like Ninth Symphony and Vertical Poetry.

For Beglinger, the key to a strong route is one that stays consistent the whole way up. The last route he completed was Vertical Poetry, a 5.10b that is the easiest on the wall.

“That route together with Mystery will give you the biggest feel of being on a big wall for climbing,” he said.

You can get more information on the Victor Lake Wall at the Revelstoke Rocks website.

THE HARDMAN BLUFFS

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he Hardman Bluffs don’t provide the epic, big-wall climbing of Victor Lake. What they do offer is a wide variety of multi-pitch climbing high above a valley overlooking the Upper Arrow Lake.

“When we got there we got super excited walking back and forth acrose the cliff and scoping out the lines,” Ryan Williams told me. “It’s a big cliff.”

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THE JORDAN RIVER BLUFFS

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Climbing on the Victor Lake Wall. ~ Photo by Ruedi Beglinger

avid Sproule first laid eyes on the Jordan River Bluffs more than 10 years ago, not long after moving to Revelstoke. He stared at the big cliff line form Turtle Mountain, across the Jordan River.

The bluffs lie on the flank of Frisby Ridge, accessed via a short hike through the woods from the forestry road that leads to the famous mountain bike trail.

On his first visit, Sproule hiked in and rappelled down the face. He couldn’t believe the quality of the rock. “I called the first route Gold Rush,” he said. “It’s good quality quartzite.”

He and his friend Darek Glowacki have been working on the area since 2008 and they’re just about ready to go public with a route map of the wall on the Revelstoke Rocks website.

“We’re working on a three-pitch rim and we’ve got about 16 pitches of climbing — mostly sport, some mixed,” Sproule said. “It’s a quality crag.”

Work on the wall has been slow and deliberate, with the two balancing work and family with establishing new routes. It’s taken hundreds of hours to develop what’s there, Sproule estimates.

“It’s pretty rewarding, taking a blank canvas and creating this network of routes and rapp lines and ledges,” he said.

The routes range in difficulty from 5.8 to 5.10d. “It’s adventurous mixed climbing,” he said.

There’s potential for many more routes, including longer ones starting lower down, and harder ones up high. Sproule said he’ll leave those to others.

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Williams, along with his brother Nick and wife Manuela Arnold, have been developing routes on the bluffs since they first laid eyes on it in 2011.

They recently released the first guide to the area to the Revelstoke Climbing Coop Facebook group.

They waxed poetic about both the quality of the rock, as well as the setting. It’s about 30 kilometres south of town on Highway 23, plus seven kilometres of logging road and a few minutes of hiking before you pop out on top of the cliffs.

“You’re walking through the forest and then you pop out and get these gorgeous views down south,” said Manuela.

“It’s right on the edge of the valley,” added Ryan. “It feels like you’re walking off this face.”

So far, the trio have established 26 routes, most of which feature two pitches. They have plans to set up about 100 pitches of climbing when all is said and done.

“It’s super exciting, the whole process. Crashing around in the bush, looking for these crags, finding a lot of junk and finally finding something really good. It’s investing a lot of time and effort,” said Nick. “Hopefully people get out there and climb what we’ve done.”

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Escape on the lake NATURAL ESCAPES KAYAKING TAKES PEOPLE ON TOURS OF THE VAST, QUIET LAKES AROUND REVELSTOKE IN HOMEMADE, HAND-CRAFTED VESSELS. ~ WORDS & PHOTOS BY ALEX COOPER

PHOTOS: This page – Terry Beitel paddles in front of the Coursier Creek Falls as they tumble in Lake Revelstoke. Opposite page – Natural Escapes’ kayaks are all given Norse names.

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light breeze floats along the surface of Lake Revelstoke, lifting up small waves that float south. I paddle slowly against the flow, my hand-crafted kayak slicing through the choppy surface of the cold water.

Snow-capped mountains rise above. Behind, the lake spills over the Revelstoke Dam, while the trio of Mount Begbie, Mount Tilley and Mount Macpherson crown the horizon.

I’m out for a tour with Natural Escapes Kayaking, a local outfitter that offers trips on Lake Revelstoke and the Upper Arrow Lake on home-made, hand-crafted boats.

Joining me are three travellers making a pit stop in Revelstoke while on their way from Vancouver to Banff and back with the Moose Travel Network. There’s Steph, from England, Grace, from New Zealand, and Hayward, from the Netherlands.

Leading the way is Terry Beitel, a retired phys-ed teacher who owns and operates Natural Escapes with his wife Wenche. They’ve been running the business for 16 years.

“It came out of my passion for building the boats,” Terry told me on the way to the 5 Mile boat launch north of the

Revelstoke Dam, where we started our tour.

Terry was taught how to build the boats by a fellow teacher at Revelstoke Secondary School. He built one for himself, then another for his wife, then one each for his three kids.

He was going to have a trailer built to carry them, when the idea came to start giving tours during the summer, when he wasn’t teaching.

The boats are made out of thin pieces of birch or oak plywood using a technique called stitch-and-glue construction.

The wood is cut out and bent to shape, then sewn together using copper wire. Fibreglass is added to strengthen the joints. The result is a slick and elegant, and natural looking kayak.

Natural Escape’s fleet consists of more than 20 boats, including several plastic kayaks that feature rudders which make them easier to keep straight. The boats all have Norse names, a tribute to Wenche’s Norwegian heritage. They have names like Viking Queen, Odins Maiden, Lokis Leketoy (Loki’s Plaything), Jotuns Hjem (Giant’s Home) and Alfheim (Elf home).

My boat is called Ormen Lange — Long Snake.

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ur tour starts north of the dam, on Lake Revelstoke — a 150-kilometre-long expanse of water that sees very little traffic. The water is a cool nine degrees celsius, but with the temperature hitting a record 31.5 C that day, it acts as a natural air conditioner.

We’re given a short safety briefing before taking off. Sitting on the concrete boat launch, we’re taught how to get in and out of the boats, and what to do in case someone capsizes. That latter bit is crucial for Terry — Natural Escapes rents out kayaks, but only if you can demonstrate how to do a rescue.

Finally, we don our lifejackets, put on our rubber sandals, grab our paddles and hit the water. One by one we paddle away to the north, with Frisby Ridge to our west and Mount Revelstoke National Park to the east. We head off towards distant snow-capped mountains, into a blue, green and white landscape. Our destination is a waterfall where Coursier Creek ends its journey from high up in the Selkirk Mountains.

The paddling is fairly easy and the boats handle well despite the choppy surface. In a town known for extreme

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sports, it makes for a relaxing afternoon. Terry says most clients are European, but some also come from down under.

Many have never kayaked and for them the four-kilometre, 1.5-hour tour is a tougher workout. “By the end, most people are feeling it and their arms are sore because most people haven’t paddled before,” says Terry.

We stick close to shore to stay out of the waves and make paddling easier. It doesn’t take long until we round a bend, where the thundering waterfall is crashing into the lake.

Terry sets up close to the falls and invites us to get up close so he can snap our pictures.

This is one of three main trips offered by Natural Escapes. They also take people onto Lake Revelstoke near Carnes Creek, where the reservoir carves a channel into the mountains. A popular trip later in the height of summer, when the water in the Arrow Lakes is higher, is down south, from the Six Mile area across to Begbie Falls. “Our favourite area is south of town, but its only available when the lake comes up,” Terry tells me.

With our tour to the waterfall over, we head out into the middle of the lake to take advantage of the winds while we head back to the boat launch. From here, we can see the source of Coursier Creek more than 1,600 metres above in the snowy peaks of Mount Revelstoke National Park.

The Begbie and Macpherson massifs dominate the horizon as we speed towards the boat launch. With the wind at our back, it’s an easy paddle back to shore.

Glacier House Resort 1870 Glacier Lane, Revelstoke. +1 250 8379594 www.glacierhouse.com

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Cathie and Michelle aim to provide the best services possible!

We specialize in innovative hair colouring techniques.

Great Canadian Tours are offering ATV and Motorbike rentals. They have two BRP Commanders and two KTM’s available. You can hire them by the hour, the day or even a week! Or take a tour with one of their certified guides.

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We now carry Kevin Murphy hair care, a large assortment of hair appliances and Cherry Blooms for eyebrows.

An Experience of Shear Style Awaits You!

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If you are interested in advertising in the Revelstoke View, or would like copies delivered to your retail location, please call Mavis Cann at 250-837-4667 or email mavis.cann@revelstokereview.com.

250.837.2830 202 Campbell Avenue, Revelstoke

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KIDZ ON MAIN (Formerly Quite The Pair)

your one stop kids and baby shop

Boys & Girls, including Baby Gear.

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REVELSTOKE, BC

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FERRY SCHEDULES

Sustainable homes

SCHEDULE OF ARROw LAkE FERRiES Columbia (Max - Cars 80) Shelter bay to galena bay

daily revelstoke side 5:00am- 12:00pm (Last Sailing) Every Hour on the hour

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daily Nakusp side 5:30am- 12:30am (Last Sailing) Every Hour on the half hour

Dangerous Cargo Sailings Tuesday & Thursdays Revelstoke Side 9:00am & 2:00pm Nakusp Side 9:30am & 2:30pm

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FAUqUiER on the hour and 1/2 hour - NAkUSp NEEDLES On the 1/4 after the hour and the 1/4 to the hour - EDgEwOOD First Ferry 5:00am - Last Ferry 10:00pm Shuttle Service 10:00pm- 5:00am

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ADAmS LAkE CAbLE FERRY 24 Hour Shuttle Service

WaterBridge Ferries Inc., Nakusp B.C. Tel: 250-265-2105

GREG HOFFART OF TREE CONSTRUCTION AIMS TO BUILD HOMES THAT BENEFIT THE ENVIRONMENT. ~ BY IMOGEN WHALE

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hen Greg Hoffart was a kid, he would venture into the yard of local builder Emile Rocher. It was the 80’s and Emile had solar panels everywhere, including walkways. “I always thought it was from the future, that he had gone in a time machine and brought some back,” Hoffart said.

With such a friend (and later work mentor), along with Hoffart’s wonderfully idealistic philosophy of helping change the world for the better, it should come as no surprise that the owner of Tree Construction does his best to build socially conscious homes.

The most visible example of his work is the duplex he built at the corner of Eighth and Downie in Revelstoke’s Southside neighbourhood. The home is designed to reduce heat loss in winter and stay cool in summer, all while minimizing energy consumption.

The homes he builds are efficient and cheap to heat. “The result is a beautiful house because being a high performance house requires attention to detail,” Hoffart says.

The idea of a sustainably developed home was

first envisioned in the 1970’s in Saskatchewan, where the hope was to build a home costing very little to heat. It was revamped in the 1990’s in Germany. By 1996 a Passive House Institute was created, along with a building standard. The goal was to passively heat a home. Once built, passively heated homes (PH) have little maintenance or breakdown costs.

The extra expenses coming from building a PH depend on fuel, material and labour costs, along with the complexity of the structure. According to Passive House Economics, a case study on PH homes by Malcolm Isaacs of Construction Maison Passive Inc., in association with Olejar Architecture, four homes were built with a net extra cost from $18,000 to $39,000 to achieve the PH standard in Canada. However, it should be noted that the long term savings in energy bills ultimately saves the homeowner more money than the extra costs of building.

“People here think PH is unattainable because our winters are not like European winters, which is incorrect,” says Hoffart. “Still, I don’t aim to

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Opposite: Greg Hoffart (standing in the foreground), with the Tree Construction team. Above: Greg Hoffart at work building a home. ~ All photos contributed build to the PH standard here, though it’s possible, but I do smaller systems that don’t break the bank, that strive towards that standard, but still utilize a fire place.”

How does Greg achieve low cost utilities homes?

“I aim to reduce upkeep costs substantially by putting together a high performance layer,” Hoffart explains. “I don’t need to design the home, but I hope home owners are willing to make simple changes that don’t cost too much and ultimately, save money.”

These simple changes include the orientation of the house to capture sunlight, higher quality windows (“You’re buying them anyways,” he points out), and much higher insulation values.

“The cheapest energy is the energy you don’t need to use,” Hoffart laughs. “Passive energy allows you to use what is naturally occurring throughout the day.”

Greg builds to the R2000 Standard, which means it must meet certain levels of energy performance, indoor air quality and en-

vironmental responsibility. The standard is set by the Canadian Home Builders Association in collaboration with the Office of Energy Efficiency of Natural Resources Canada. It’s a voluntary standard beyond the building code requirements based on how a home performs rather than how it’s constructed. Additionally, one of the most important aspects of the standard is the energy target for space and water heating.

Currently pursuing a Masters in Sustainable Design from Boston Architectural College, Hoffart is also working on The Tree Energy Company. “It’s in beta right now, but the goal is to provide people with alternative energy needs, like solar, wind and biomass solutions.”

He heaves a sigh with the term alternative energy. “It’s just energy, from a different source,” he says. “When people realize that, I hope they will embrace it.”

For more information about Tree Construction and sustainable building visit treeconstruction.ca.

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Summer Street Festival soundbites For 66 evenings this summer, Grizzly Plaza will be filled with music. The Summer Street Festival is a long-running tradition where bands come to play for free for the evening. It brings out families, couples, and friends young and old. This year, the street festival runs from Friday, June 26, to Sunday, August 30. You can see the full list of performers in the ad on page four, but here’s a few of the highlights out of the eclectic collection of performers.

Sarah-Jane Scouten

Sarah-Jane Scouten has been singing since she was five, when she would sing along to folk songs on the radio. She had a natural voice that has stayed with her, complemented by the songwriting skills she has developed over the years. From B.C. but based in Montreal, Scouten’s music includes flavours of Lucinda Williams, Iris DeMent, the Old Crow Medicine Show and many other old-time performers. On her two albums, she merges folk traditions with modern themes, taking elements of roots music, Western swing, Appalachian string bands and a hint of the Maritimes, all the while adding her own touches. She plays on August 19 and 21.

Mike Alviano

John Jenkins

Mike Alviano is a singer songwriter from Vancouver Island. He has independently released five albums and taken his brand of simple and honest singer songwriter acoustic music on the road. For the past 10 years he has toured throughout Canada and into Europe playing shows at folk festivals, cafe’s, pubs, coffee houses and theatres. Catch him on July 18.

John Jenkins’ Smalltown Revival has been entertaining crowds in his home of Golden, B.C., and beyond for years. The duo is led by Jenkins, who sings and plays guitar, harmonica and drums; and Jackson Baker on bass and vocals. Together they play a mix of roots, rock, blues, funk and folk. They tour and record relentlessly, playing at concerts halls, bars and festivals in small towns and big cities. They’re playing the plaza on August 20.

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Nova Scotiables The Nova Scotiables are not from their namesake province — they’re actually from Calgary.

Their music is heavily influenced by Maritime and Irish music, though with comparison to the Dubliners, the Pogues, Great Big Sea and the Dropkick Murphys, you know they come at the genre with lots of energy. They promise a party that “will have the whole family sippin’ and jiggin’ in no time.”

Watch them play on July 5.

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Joanne Stacey Devon Coyote

If you’ve been to the Last Drop more than a few times in the last five years or so, there’s a good chance you’ve seen Devon Coyote perform. Whether it’s as a one-man band, or with friends backing him up, Devon Bjarnason always delivers a pure, rocking sound. This is your best chance to catch the band live if you’re underage or you don’t care for the bar scene. See them play on July and August 27.members with a passion for Now2-3, hiring team

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Joanne Stacey’s songs are starting to find themselves on radio playlists all over Canada, the U.S. and overseas. This Revelstoke country singer and songwriter recently released My September, her fourth solo album, and sixth if you include her two with Sister Girl. The songs were written in Revelstoke and Nashville, by herself and with friends. Her music exudes traditional country, but with a bit of modern-touch. She performs on July 4 and August 1.

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This summer in Revelstoke

June 12 to July 3

CELEBRATING THE YEAR OF CRAFT: WOOD, METAL AND LEATHER A new show opens at the Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre. The side gallery features Our Home, Their Home, an art show about wetland birds by Arrow Heights Elementary students.

The show opens Friday, June 12, at 6 p.m.

CANADA DAY PARADE The parade starts at the courthouse and heads down First Street before turning onto Mackenzie Avenue and heading for the post-parade festivities in Queen Elizabeth Park. Starts at noon.

July 10 to August 28

Saturday, June 13

MOUNTAIN PARADISE SHOW & SHINE The Revelstoke Vintage Car Club hosts its annual show in downtown Revelstoke.

Come check out the many classic rides from throughout the B.C. Interior. Randy ‘Elvis’ Friskie performs that night at the community centre.

Sunday, June 14

STOKED TO GET SPANKED Revelstoke’s premier mountain bike race returns, with the option of doing one or two laps of the 17 kilometre course. Shorter distances are available for younger racers. $45 entry fee.

Race starts at 10 a.m. for those who just want to spectate. Hosted by Skookum Cycle & Ski at Mount Macpherson.

June 26 to August 30

Wednesday, July 1

SUMMER STREET FESTIVAL Head down to Grizzly Plaza for live music every night from 6:30–9:30 p.m.

ART SHOW: CELEBRATING GARDENS A new members show at the Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre. The side gallery features Sky Blue Waters, by Tracey Kutschker, Lisa Figueroa and Linda Franklin. The show opens Friday, July 10, at 6 p.m.

Saturday, July 18

CANADA PARKS DAY Celebrate Parks Day at the summit of Mount Revelstoke with live music, arts & crafts and more. From 12–4 p.m.

Mount Macpherson. Visit dirtyfeet.ca for more information.

Saturday, August 29

TRAILSTOKE 5Peaks host its second annual ultra-marathon at Revelstoke Mountain Resort. This 55-kilometre race brings runners from the base of RMR to the alpine, covering about 3,000 metres of elevation gain. The race begins at 6 a.m. Register as an individual or team at trailstoke.5peaks.com.

September 4–25

ART SHOW: TOWNSFOLK A new exhibit

by Revelstoke artist Cherie Van Overbeke.

The side galley features Flourish & Flow, a joint exhibition by the Revelstoke Awareness & Outreach Program, and Forsythe House. The show opens Friday, Sept. 4, at 6 p.m.

September 5–7

GLACIER CHALLENGE SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT The fun is back for another year. Games during the day, music at night, all long-weekend long at Centennial Park.

85TH ANNUAL LABOUR DAY GOLF TOURNAMENT British Columbia’s longest running golf tournament is back, with divisions for men, women, and juniors. Visit the Revelstoke Golf Club website for more information.

Sunday, August 16

September 10–13

July 31 to August 3

NORTH FACE DIRTY FEET TRAIL RUNNING RACE Back for a second year, this race features 5K, 10K and 21K distances. At

BIKEFEST REVELSTOKE A weekend to celebrate biking, with group rides, races and more.

Saturday, September 12

EVA LAKE RUN Join in on a fun run to Eva Lake and back, followed by art activities, music and snacks. In Mount Revelstoke National Park.

AN EVENING WITH THE STARS Head up to the summit of Mount Revelstoke National Park to watch the stars and take a tour of the universe with the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

September 18–20

AXIS MUNDI HARVEST FESTIVAL A festival that combines music, art, mountain culture, sports and more. Events take place around town during the day, with concerts at night at Revelstoke Mountain Resort.

Headliners include Walk Off the Earth and Ashley MacIsaac.

Saturday, September 19

GLACIER GRIND A 48-kilometre ultramarathon in Glacier National Park, hosted by 5Peaks. Visit glaciergrind.com for more information and to register.

September 26–27

REVY RIDERS PAPA JOHN CLASSIC A dirt biking weekend, featuring group rides around the Revy Riders network of trails.

Red Bull is hosting a freestyle event downtown on the Saturday. Sunday features the family poker ride.

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