Today was strictly a travel day. After a good night’s rest in Hope, BC we awoke to a beautiful clear blue sky with a light breeze and a 70 degree temperature. As there was no rush to get on the road, we took our time getting up, showering and getting ready. Foraging for breakfast was real easy as there was a McDonald’s McCafe right across the street where we could get a light breakfast and a cappuccino. (I never understood why McDonald’s didn’t have more McCafes in the states – it seems like they missed the boat there.)
After breakfast, we took off, leaving the CAN 1 trans Canada highway for BC 3 which is a beautiful highway through the Cascade Mountains. It is a four lane highway for most of the way to Princeton, but then becomes a two lane highway for most of the remaining distance to Osoyoos, BC which is close to the US border on US 97. There is little traffic along this road and it is a truly pleasant drive through (yes, truly) BC wine country.
We had been advised by friends to visit the Nk’ Mip (pronounced Enkameep) winery in Osoyoos which we dutifully did. It is the first winery established by indigenous peoples in North America. They have built a beautiful facility and produce some truly excellent wines. After sampling several, we, of course, had to purchase a number of bottles. At first, we were a little concerned about importing them back across the border but, as it turned out, the border patrol didn’t even ask about what we were bringing into the US. We would gladly have paid the duty, but were relieved when they just waved us through wishing us a good day.
East of the mountains, the weather started warming up and driving south on US 97, it was up to 99 degrees. We reached the town of Chelan, WA which is alongside Lake Chelan about 6 PM and located a very pleasant motel a few blocks from the lake. For dinner, we heated up leftovers (French dip sandwiches) from last night’s wonderful dinner and the food was as good as it was last night. Together, with the wonderful fresh strawberries we picked up at a roadside market and a glass of red wine, it made for a delightful dinner.
Following our dinner, I wrote up today’s travels, downloaded photos from Peggy’s cellphone and posted the blog while Peggy worked on her IRB study. Very soon, we will be tucking ourselves into bed for the night.