Zuckerberg Island

On a hot, sunny Saturday afternoon, my dad and I walked to this local historical site, where my sister-in-law is working for the summer. Fuller story here. Information about the site can be found here.

Suspension bridge to the island, which my dad helped build when he was in the military. It's fallen into disrepair now, but might be repaired in the future.

Zuckerberg's house.

Detail of the front porch, and the famous "mask" that adorns the archway above. Creepy.
Remnants of the pit houses used by the Sinixt people who originally inhabited the island.

Arrow Lakes

Both the Upper and Lower Arrow lakes are part of the Columbia River water system. We are very fortunate to have many lovely, large-ish lakes here in the Kootenays, and the Arrows are my favourite, in addition to Slocan Lake.

Upper Arrow, from the Galena Bay ferry, July 2005. The ferry is part of the highway system and riding is free of charge.

Lower Arrow Lake at sunset, from Syringa Creek Park.

Rising Waters

Here is what the Lower Arrow Lake looked like (at Syringa Creek) on May long weekend, when I was out there then.


During my recent camping trip, I couldn't take a picture from the same spot, because this very spot was completely underwater. Here is a photo from the trail I took to get to the beach back in May.

The reason: late melting from surrounding mountains. Pretty incredible, if you ask me.

Wildlife Shots

I went camping last weekend for the first time in 10 years. It was awesome. I also managed to get some decent pictures of a few camping creatures I saw during my stay.

A big bug. I have no idea what it is, but it liked the toilet stall in the women's can.

Columbia Ground Squirrel. Isn't he sweet? He was quite brave and spent some time in out campsite cruising for left-overs.

Here, he's drinking left-over grape juice from my sister-in-law's cup. He got purple whiskers.

Butterflies at the beach. Gorgeous!

I have more photos to post in the coming days.

Pictures of some of our camping grub are here.

Cool...

Sometimes, I wish I were a water bird...Like when it's 35C and sweltering out, for instance. I could just jump in the lake and cool off...

Alas, I must settle for a fan.

These pictures were taken in Lakeside Park, Nelson, BC, on Saturday.

Juno: The Shopping Bag Shots

It Was a Dark and Stormy Night...

Last night a series of thunderstorms rolled through the area. Spectacular!

I took these pictures back in March. This is the Osoyoos tourist centre.

Rossland's Bank of Montreal

A couple of months ago, I posted about Rossland's historic Bank of Montreal building, which is currently for sale. I've come to love old buildings and old architecture, and today I had the opportunity to go inside this old beauty for the first time in nearly 15 years. I used to bank at this location until I left town, but that was before I learned to appreciate a historic building for what it was, and well before our digital camera era.

This weekend is Rossland's annual Spring Wing Ding, and the old bank is being used for an art exhibit featuring local artists. I am not the biggest art aficionado in the world, so I was trying to discretely take pictures of the interior detail the bank is so well-known for while trying to be interested in local artists. Some of the art was actually OK; some of it was God-awful.

Exterior of the building.

This is an example of some of the original plasterwork in the main part of the old bank. Also, note the arched windows, which are very cool.

This is the fireplace in the manager's office.

Someone remarked that this would make an awesome bar.

The foyer, looking out the front door.

More pictures here.

Images from Bear Country

These were taken two nights ago. The dumpster is located across the street from my brother's house. This is my first bear sighting of the season!

Pictures from Syringa Creek, Victoria Day Weekend

We Haz Blooms

Forsythia, Dandelion, Pansy.

Trail

Shots of the bridge, a close-up of the water, and a local coffee bar.