A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

I didn't upload this photo today as it was already posted here. Is that really coming up on being two years ago? Although I'd been blogging for over twenty months at that time, I did not have a place for just sharing photos. In fact it was this trip, and wanting to share it with others, which prompted me to investigate photo sharing websites. This was when I found Flickr. That was over 3,300 photos ago. I've never looked back ... well, until today!

Labels: Flickr, Okanagan

It was a year ago yesterday that I took some pictures on a trip over the mountains to BC's Okanagan region. After getting home, I sought a better way to share them than email. I discovered a site that has substantially changed my life. I'm approaching the one-year anniversary of being a member of Flickr.

It has changed my whole perception about digital photos. Photos aren't of much consequence unless they can be shared. I have been doing just that. I've decided that scanning and adding pre-digital photos is important for my collection too.

Another milestone occurred yesterday in my relation to Flickr. I uploaded my 2000th image. It was a photo of Hick's Lake, BC from our trip to Harrison Hot Springs over the weekend.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Flickr, Okanagan, road trip

Visiting the fruit and vegetable shops are a pleasure this time of year. While during the winters we rely on imports, August is the optimum time for local fruit. There are still cherries in abundance. What some people in other places may not know is British Columbia also produces a large variety of Okanagan fruit.


Even wild blackberries despite their rogue reputation can be delicious.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip

In order to add a quick photo today, I raided an image from this week's trip to the Okanagan.

This is a reststop on the Route 1 (Trans-Canada Highway). The city of Kamloops, BC is at the end of this lake. In the opposite direction the lake extends another fourty kilometers too.

We are blessed with a province with a diversity of geography. If one drives a mere half day away from the coast, there are all sorts of different climates and vistas.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip

It was already time to head home. Before hitting the road, we ate a traditional breakfast at a little greasy spoon. We drove along through Kamloops and stuck to Route 1 through the desert, grasslands, and finally thick forests of the coast. The mini-van showed around 1300 kilometers for the total trip by the time we'd parked here at 8:00 pm.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip

The second day saw us driving up the valley. We did winery tours and had a nice leisurely picnic lunch at a roadside BC park. This was my day to drive. Although we thought we might stay in Kelowna, the crowds prompted us to continue along to Vernon. After a short evening shower, we saw the most intense rainbow that I've ever witnessed. The night was spent in a somewhat cheaper suite. Everything all seems to work out well without reservations of any type.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip

It was a good day. We were able to pack the rented mini-van and get on the road by 9:15 am. After sliding out to the city of Hope, we took Route 3 to Osoyoos. It was 35 degrees Celsius upon our arrival. We stayed on the third floor in a suite overlooking the lake.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip, Tim

There's recently been talk (and email) from the guys. We're all considering taking a trip for a few nights in mid-June. The Okanagan is one suggested destination. I love heading over the Coastal Mountains and seeing just how quickly we can go from the Lower Mainland's temperate rain forest to the semi-desert of that area. It's a leisurely, half-day drive. The particulars of a plan haven't been ironed out. Yet if it develops, I'm sure it'll make for a good time.


This is a digital picture taken on a 2002 trip when my camera
was nearly new.

Labels: British Columbia, digital camera, driving, Okanagan, road trip

I love our summertime diet when so many local fruits and vegetables hit the market. Blog readers from from far-away places, may not know that British Columbia's Okanagan region is famous for the production of apples, cherries, apricots, plums, grapes, pears, and peaches. This in turn, has led to a burgeoning wine industry too.



I also wanted to take this opporunity to state I've made a slight improvement in the search feature on this blog. The search link has always listed the pages containing the search item. Now, however, when a link is followed, the page should advance to the first appearance of the word. In testing, I wished to see the frequency of some vocabulary and I picked fruit. The number indicated after the type of fruit shows the number of pages that contain that reference:

apple - 4
apricot - 0
banana - 1
blueberry - 0
cherry - 4
lemon - 0
orange - 1
peach - 1
strawberry - 1

Labels: driving, Okanagan, road trip

Shot back 3A to the Crow Highway through Princeton and past Manning Provincial Park. Got to New Westminster at 3:00 pm. The trip was about 1230 km (760 miles).

Labels: British Columbia, Okanagan, road trip

Travelled down the Okanagan Valley via 97B. Slept in Penticton.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip

Followed Route 1 rather than paying the toll to Kamloops. That route is more interesting and we enjoyed watching the forest turn to semi-desert. Slept in Sicamous. (The hamster ran on its wheel though.)

Labels: British Columbia, Okanagan, pets, road trip

It's past time for a short road trip. Jay has a few days off this week too, so we'll go away for a bit. We've not spent very much time in the Thompson-Okanagan region. It's around 500 km (310 miles) to Salmon Arm.

Labels: British Columbia, driving, Okanagan, road trip, travel planning

Bret and Joel, I know you're keen on old railroad biking. The fires here in BC are now destroying historic trestle bridges in the Okanagan.

Labels: Bret, Joel, Okanagan, road trip