ABC Wednesday
December 16th, 2015

The Letter is W
for Williams Lake

In our story about the towns of British Columbia we leave the south and travel to the Central Interior of the Province to Williams Lake, located in the region known as The Cariboo.

Williams Lake was named in honour of Secweperne Chief William, whose counsel prevented the Shuswap nation from joining the Tsilhqot'in in their uprising against the settler population.  The Shuswap had lived in this area for many thousands of years and were semi-nomadic travelers who followed the food sources during the differet seasons, returning every winter to their permanent villages and their sunken homes known as Akickwillie houses.

We go back to one of those infamous Gold Rushes that B.C. is so well-known for.  The area really opened up when thousands of gold prospectors entered the interior via the Fraser River valley in 1858, and for almost a decade the community grew and supported numerous prosperous businesses.

In 1863 a proposed road (the Cariboo Road) was expected to pass through Williams Lake, but the road builder, Gustavus Blin Wright, re-routed the trail through 150 Mile House, bypassing Williams Lake altogether and nearly destroying the settlement.  However, the railroad came to the rescue in 1919, linking the town to the rest of the province and Williams Lake prospered as a hub for cattle trade in the region.

So much excitement at the laying of the steel rails resulted in the community celebrating with a cowboy sporting event which was eventually organized into an official stampede, attracting the attention of competitors all over the country.  Today the Williams Lake Stampede is rated second only to the Calgary Stampede and has the best Canadian and US Cowboys competing.

...

and there is a statue in the town to prove it!

This is ranching country,

and the largest ranch in the area is the Gang Ranch, (now owned by a Saudi Arabian business man).

When our family who live some  fifty miles west of Williams Lake on a high Chilcotin plateau talk about going to town, this is the town they mean - Williams Lake....

It is a forestry town, and the pine needle bug left a trail through the country a few years back.

There are any number of sawmills in the town, as well as mining in the vicinity.

 It is a place of wild life and fowl, nature trails and campgrounds, and a wonderful country to visit.

A great number of years ago, 

the sheep Industry in B.C., and Charles, as a Director of the Company,
 played host here, in Williams Lake, to the AGM of the Canadian
Co-operative Wool Growers,

and we had a marvelous time!!

Some seventy miles away, just south of the Gang Ranch, is the

 Churn Creek Canyon, - a protected area.

pictures posted by Chris Harris

and stretching away to the west is the Chilcotin country with many small ranches, much wildlife,  and a wonderful solitude when you want it.  God's country I have heard it said.

Even closer is Scout Island, both a park and a nature area.  It consists of a beach, picnic area, boat launch and several trails through mainly natural environment.  Actually it is two islands that are connected to the west end of Williams Lake by a causeway.

There is a museum in town, and next time around I will tell you about the Xast'sull Heritage Village,

about twenty-three miles from Williams Lake.

In the meantime, click here to visit at ABC Wednesday
and learn more about the letter W

with thanks to Roger and Denise and all their WOW helpers.

V is for Victoria

ABC Wednesday
December 9th, 2015

The letter is V
for VICTORIA

V is also for Vancouver, Vanderhoof and Valemont, but I chose Victoria because it is such a pretty city and has probably more history than any other town in British Columbia.

Before the arrival of the Europeans in the late 1700s the Victoria area was home to several communities of Coast Salish people, including the Songhees.

The Spanish and the British began the exploration of the northwest coast of North America with the voyage of Captain Cook in 1767, and the Spanish sailors who visited Esqimalt harbour, just west of Victoria in 1790.

In 1843 the Hudson's Bay Company was looking for a place to establish a fort and chose a spot on the western shore of Victoria Harbour, calling it Fort Camosun, after the 'camosack' a type of wild lily native to southern Vancouver Island.

Later he renamed it Fort Victoria in honour of Queen Victoria, that elegant and doughty lady whose long reign has now been surpassed by Elizabeth the Second.

With the discovery of gold on the British Columbia mainland in 1858 the city became a port supply base for miners on their way to the Fraser Canyon gold fields and the city grew from a population of 300 to over 5000 within a very short time.  However, with the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway terminus in Vancouver Victoria lost its position as commercial center and began cultivating an image of 'genteel civility'.

The construction of the Empress Hotel by the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1908 contributed greatly to that impression.

and the establishment of The Butchart Gardens in an old coal mining site

Sir Robert Dunsmuir, a leading figure in Victoria, constructed Craigdarrock Castle and his son built his own grand residence, Hatley Castle,  which is now the Royal Roads University after having been used for several decades as a military college.

Craigdarrock Castle

Hatley Castle

Victoria is home to two major Universities and famous for its many museums covering everything from Aboriginal culture to science and nature.

It is also the home of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

Known as 'The Garden City' Victoria also has many historic sites and heritage architecture.

Brightly painted Victorian era shop fronts flank both sides of busy Lower Johnson Street - shops which were once home to hotels and stores supporting the gold rushes of the 1850s but which are now local boutiques and restaurants.

the biggest China Town north of San Fransisco

the inner harbour

and at Festival time

Yacht  races

and High Tea each day at the elegant Empress

Totem Poles

Whale watching

Lounging on the beach

A visit to the spas

A wonderful Pacific climate - what more could one ask!

I assure you, you will love it.  We were there many, many times

in our busy days,  mostly going to meetings and seeing government officials, 

but sometimes just visiting.

In these early days Charles was very involved with College business, 

and we were off to Camuson College, which was just being established.

It was a rush to leave home, the children and the farm, -

we were late getting the ferry and in arriving for our booking at the Empress.

The desk had let it go, thinking we would not arrive,

but when we did, at midnight, off the last ferry

they kindly gave us the 'bridal suite' up at the top of the Hotel!!

What elegance - the bathroom was enormous, all tiled with marble,

and the beds...pure heaven....

How to get there.....by ferry from Vancouver (a wonderful sail)|.   Or plane...

Come and be gently civil....

more great Vs here at ABC Wednesday, with thanks to Denise and Roger

and all valiant helpers.

Advent in Music

Most poignant and heart catching rendition I know of......

ABC Wednesday
December 2nd, 2015
The letter is U

U for Ucluelet

Pronounce it "Yew-Kloo-Let.

In the language of the aboriginal Nuti-chah-nulth it means " Safe Harbour"

from stormy seas...

Northwest Native Canoe

Ucuelet seems to have been a fishing village forever, - it was
a First Nations settlement when fur sealers first arrived in the 1870s
Archaeology traces the presence of the Nuu-chah-nulth here
to 4,300 years ago, so when visitors to the area so often
find a kind of spirituality with this breathtaking coast
it's no surprise.

Those who live on this edge of the world are irrevocably tied to the ocean.
The people fished for salmon, cod, halibut and shellfish
and hunted sea lions, seals and whales.

Ucluelet today has a small aquarium, but the nearby Wickaninnish Interpretive Centre
houses a collection of Nuu-chah-nulth artifacts.

Europeans discovered Barkley Sound in the 1770s, in pursuit of whales and seals,
but it took another hundred years for settlers to reach the 'edge'
and confront the challenges of daily living.

Since then Gold Rush miners, foresters, Japanese fishermen, soldier, dreamers
and entrepreneurs have all contributed to Ukee's 'rough and tumble soul'
Ukee is what the natives call the village

The new wave is tourists, and there is much for them to see and do
in this amazing natural community.

Whale watching

Bear watching

kayaking

fishing

surfing

camping and boating

or just making castles on the beach...

nearby is the Wild Pacific Trail, for hiking.

 a birdseye view of the village - downtown Ucluelet

copywrite noted

the lighthouse

You know you want to come!!!!

how to get there - a three hour drive from Nanaimo's Departure Bay ferry,
a five hour drive from Victoria, or for leisurely travellers a cruise of the
scenic Alberni Inlet/Barkley Sound to Ucluelet

For more interesting "U"s visit here at ABC Wednesday
with thanks to Denise, Roger, and their Utterly delightful helpers.