Chronicles B. C. Breathtaking Canada Summer in the Canadian west
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have always wanted to visit Canada, but it’s one of the coldest countries on earth, and I hate being cold. It has summers too, of course. So I was delighted that our family road trip, up the Pacific Coast from San Francisco, found us just 15km south of the border in mid-August, when Canada is warmest and sunniest. Perfect! After a week on a ranch in eastern Washington state, we turned north on Highway 97 and crossed into British Columbia. Soon the scenery changed from dusty, rolling, cowboy country, to green valleys with narrow lakes, snaking along for miles between majestic mountains. Fresh fruit stalls and vineyards, busy lakeside beaches and campsites were everywhere. Were we back in California? No, the Okanagan valley: a premier wine region and popular destination for Canadian holidaymakers. We were heading to Sicamous, to rent a houseboat to explore Shuswap Lake. Shuswap is billed as ‘House-boating heaven’ because much of the surrounding area is only accessible by water; the lake remains relatively calm, nestled amongst the towering peaks; and the water warms up to a pleasant 23°C in July/August, despite being very deep. Our boat was spacious, comfortable and well equipped including camping chairs and a barbecue. At the back was a swim ladder, stairs to the upper deck and a water-slide ensuring hours of fun plunging into the crystal clear lake. After stocking up with enough food and water for the trip, and watching the video explaining how to operate the engine and beach the boat safely, we set sail. Once away from the busy marina, we spent four very relaxing days afloat. The lake was so extensive we only covered half
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