A day at the beach

Hello Everyone, The drive from Creston to Nelson, along the shores of Lake Kootenay is a beautiful one. The mountains aren't as high as in other places I've been, but have a rolling green look that, combined with views of the water, make it well worth the extra time it takes for this route, as opposed to the more direct line on the Crowsnest highway. We left Kimberley in the early afternoon, and had planned to spend a bit of time in Creston before getting to Nelson, but it was just too hot to walk around with a black coated dog. So we forged ahead. You have to take a ferry across Kootenay lake when you take the scenic route, which added to its appeal for me. Arthur and I had about 45 minutes to kill when we got to the terminal, so we made a beeline for the beach. It was just what we needed, cold clear fresh water, though the beach itself was quite rocky. Being a Friday afternoon, it was busy, with two groups in particular standing out. One was participants in a multi-day mountain bike race. Imagine every variation on the basic model of white male, 25-45 years old, medium height and athletic build, and you'll probably piture it correctly. There were some ladies there as well, and perhaps because there were fewer of them, they did not come in a variety of types. They were uniformly hardcore. Where the guys ranged from being ripped to mildly in shape, the ladies were all ripped. I'm not sure what that says, but I'm glad they didn't ask for my lunch money. Also there, and fitting most stereotypes you might have, was a group of bikers, the motorcycle kind. There were at least a couple dozen, and these weren't weekend warriors. A few had Hell's Angels patches, all were beefy and heavily tattoed. They were nice enough, didn't cause a ruckus or anything, and mostly just stuck to themselves. There were some ladies in that group too, but unlike their mountain biker counterparts, none from this group had her own bike. Finding a place to stay for the night has been a bit of a challenge. We had to stay in the overflow parking lot of a provincial park last night. Still cost the same as a regular site, but since I don't plan on staying there long, figured it was worth it. It was dinnertime when we pulled in, and driving in the blaring sun had given me a headache. A nice guy in a local bike shop told of a pull off outside of town that I plan on using tonight. No one will bother you there, he said. "Except for the occasional Griz," he added as an afterthought. "Yeah, perfect, nothing to worry about then," I replied, before exhaling worriedly. 

Wes

Photos

The first is of Arthur and I (behind the camera) chillin' on the beach. The second is of our walk back to the truck.