18 September 2016, Sunday

From Kamloops (The name Kamloops comes from the Secwepemc word T’kemlups meaning “the meeting of the rivers.” Kamloops is on the meeting point of the South Thompson and the North Thompson Rivers which, together, create the Thompson River. This info is from a tourism site about Kamloops) we take the TransCanadian Highway, Route 1, west and then southward along the Thompson River Valley. The Thompson River eventually joins the Fraser River. The highway shares the canyon walls with not one, but two railways. The scenery remains beautiful. It is well worth the extra 70 km of driving to travel this route as opposed to the faster four lane highway 5. Interestingly, the Fraser River’s headwaters flow from the Robson Glacier in Mt Robson Provincial Park where we were camping only two weeks ago.

After travelling down the Fraser River Valley we find ourselves among the even taller peaks of the Cascades. From here the wide valley gradually flattens out as we approach Vancouver. We arrive at our B & B and find the combination to the keypad on the door (provided by our host via email) is not working. Luckily our host, Anne, is upstairs and hears us fumbling around with the lock. She quickly corrects the problem and shows us to our room. She also suggests a neighborhood pub for dinner. O and I are quite happy not to have to get back in the car to drive again.

We Skype with S and K after dinner, and then spend the remainder of the evening reading and blogging.