September 5 to 11, 2008

September 5 to 11, 2008

Friday ; This morning the Escapees B.C. Okanagan Chapter 33 Fall Rally concluded after "hitch up breakfast". As we were planning to depart for a few days of camping and exploring around the B.C. Interior we discovered that our friends Ron and Mary were planning to do the same. We agreed to travel together today. We left Lacarya Golf Course & RV Park in Clearwater and drove a very short distance to North Thompson River Provincial Park. We drove through the campground, and while it was nice, we decided we would rather go on to Green Lake Provincial Park. We drove south on Hwy. 5 to Little Fort where we stopped for a few groceries, then turned west on Hwy. 24 heading for 100 Mile House. At Lone Butte we turned south towards Green Lake Provincial Park on Emerald Bay of Green Lake. It was a very nice campground and we got campsites side by side, right on the lakeshore. Very pretty !

We had a late lunch, then < ahem > some of us read and napped for awhile. We went for a long walk around the campground, lakeshore, and picnic grounds of the provincial park, stopping at the children's playground to allow Bo to play on the slides. HA HA HA ... what a funny little dog. I lit a campfire and we sat around the campfire chatting until it was time for a late supper. Since Ron and Mary had fed us lunch, Joanne and I prepared supper for the four of us. I barbecued sausages and Joanne made perogies and a salad. We spent the evening chatting in our trailer, then I helped Ron fix his malfunctioning fridge.

Saturday ; This morning we prepared for departure from Green Lake Provincial Park then chatted with Ron and Mary for awhile before saying goodbye to them. They were headed in a different direction than us today, because they live at the north end of the Okanagan Valley and we live at the south end. We drove along Green Lake until we reached Hwy. 97, known in this part of B.C. as Cariboo Highway. We travelled south on Cariboo Hwy. 97, stopping to refill with diesel at Cache Creek. At Cache Creek we turned south onto Trans Canada Hwy. 1 following the Thompson River through the Thompson River Canyon. Very scenic ! Just before reaching Lytton we stopped at Skihist Provincial Park. Very pretty park, quite high up on the side of the Thompson River Canyon, looking down on the Thompson River and the highway and rail lines running alongside the river. I read and napped. We walked around the park, taking photographs and giving Bo an obedience training session. I worked on a couple of minor repairs on the trailer. The need for minor repairs / adjustments becomes almost a daily occurrence as soon as we start travelling. Harvey ( the trailer ) is now ten years old. Late in the afternoon I lit a campfire, and we sat around the campfire reading. AHHHHH ... very relaxing ! Since we had such a nice campfire going we decided to cook supper over the fire, something we haven't done in a long time.

Sunday ; Today was a lovely, sunny, warm day. We slept late this morning, then departed Skihist Provincial Park heading south on TCH 1 following the Thompson River and then the Fraser River. The highway passed through quite a few tunnels as it wound its way through the Fraser River Canyon. Our intention was to stop for the night at Hope, at a private campground that we stayed at a few years ago. When we arrived there we found that the campground had changed ownership, and their rates had increased exorbitantly. We left ! We decided to stay at a local provincial park campground instead, but somehow we missed the entrance to the provincial park. It was such a lovely day, and we were well rested, so we decided to just keep driving until we were home at Riverside RV Park Resort. From Hope we headed east on Crowsnest Hwy. 3, past the Hope Slide, through Princeton, and all the way home. AHHHHH ... nice to be home !

Thursday ; Today was sunny and warm. A great day for Dan Air Flight 404. I left home early this morning headed for Penticton. First stop was Parker's Chrysler Dodge Jeep where I dropped Lanoire off for her 96,000 km. service. Parker's drove me over to Southern Skies Aviation at the airport for my Mountain Performance Course flight no. 4. Flying Cessna 172 C-GXTN ( X-ray Tango November ), we flew from Penticton through the Nk'Wala Mountain Saddle, and followed the Marron Valley towards Apex Mountain. From Apex we followed Hwy. 3A along the Keremeos Creek Valley to Keremeos, then turned west though the Similkameen Valley to Riverside RV Park Resort. We circled the park once at low altitude, then continued through the Similkameen Valley to Stemwinder Mountain at Hedley. We flew over Stemwinder Mountain, over Nickel Plate Lake and Nickel Plate Mine to Apex Ski Village, then back to Penticton following Shingle Creek.

During today's 1.6 hour training flight, we practiced flying at low altitudes through narrow valleys and canyons, making minimum radius turns, practicing engine failures / forced approaches, and experiencing the illusions that can occur flying in the mountains. Coming out of Marron Valley, and seeing Apex Mountain straight ahead, my instructor told me to climb over the top of Apex. I flew for awhile towards Apex, climbing, until I finally realized that it was not possible to climb over Apex flying directly at it. The rapid rise in terrain / steep mountain sides rose faster than a Cessna 172's ability to climb. An important lesson to learn for flying around here ! Twelve pilots in the last twenty years have died trying to climb over Apex Mountain by flying directly at it. We flew down a narrow "dead end" box canyon behind Stemwinder Mountain, and when I had mountain a few hundred feet in front of me, and to each side of me, the instructor pulled the throttle to idle, simulating an engine failure. YIKES ! ! ! Where the hell was I supposed to make a "forced landing" ? ? ? I performed a minimum radius turn, and contour crawled right along the edge of the canyon trying to take advantage of whatever convective currents rising off the mountain sides that I could find. WOW ... I managed to glide right along the inside edge of the canyon, all the way out of the canyon back to the Similkameen Valley where there was ample opportunity to make a survivable forced landing.

Most of today's flying was low level valley flying, at a maximum altitude of 1000 ft. AGL, with my wingtips a maximum of 200 feet from the sides of the mountains rising another 4000 to 6000 feet above my flying altitude. While I have obviously acquired "mountain performance" flying skills, I still find it somewhat unnerving !

My investment advisor / stock broker picked me up at Southern Skies Aviation and we went to a Thai restaurant for a luncheon meeting. I put the finishing touches on the extensive changes I have made to our investments this summer. The extensive losses we have experienced to our investment values over the last 18 months, particularly the least 2 weeks, have us worried !

Norm dropped me off at Parker's where I waited for the truck service to be completed. WOW ... over $1000 for fluids and filters ! Expensive truck ! As the service advisor was reviewing with me the work done today on the truck he discovered a very minor leak from the pinion seal at the rear differential. < sigh > I will have to return in a couple of weeks to have the pinion seal replaced. Oh, well, this is only the second very minor repair that Lanoire has needed in over 96,000 km., and both the minor repairs were covered by warranty.

I ran some errands in Penticton, before driving home to Keremeos. Whew ... what a long day !

DSK