.martha trip part 5 .08.21.16.

In the spirit of not spending a ton of money on this trip as I just bought a new camper; we opted to do something that doesn't cost money! Walking! 

I googled "hike" and found Myra Canyon Trestles and Crawford Falls both didn't seem to be too long so we decided we would try it out! 

First on the list Myra Canyon Trestle bridges. Remember what I said a few posts ago about Google maps misleading us? I believe it was in .excation part 7

Well that may have happened again. In all fairness Google was leading us to the destination I had entered. Plus we learned that Martha is able to handle hills (and paths) a lot better then we figured she could! 

Once again we were driving along and all of a sudden Google told us to turn right. From what I could see there was no turn, so we turned around and came back, then we saw this---

Doesn't look like much of a road hey? That's because it's not. It's a trail, most likely meant for ATV's and Horse's. 

Fun fact! If you google map Kelowna to Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park it will literally map you to the center of the park. Google thinks it's a road, when clearly it is not.

Well, what's an adventure without a little bit of mystery? So we proceeded. The gravel path quickly turned to a very bumpy grass road. The first bump hit hard!! All of the cabinet doors burst open and I heard a very loud smash. Some of the cabinet doors have mirrors on them so I assumed it was just one of them breaking. Easy fix-- so we carried on. Not without taking a video first mom and dad wouldn't believe us if there wasn't video evidence. 

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The trail smoothed out, and then immediately began to get narrower. At this exact moment 3 dogs came running directly for us. 

****I have a pet peeve, people who don't leash their animals. Currently I was the one in a big camper van on a walking path, so I won't complain about people who don't leash their dogs.****

I also have a crippling fear of animals getting ran over by vehicles. So I immediately stopped the van and made the executive decision that we needed to turn around. Just then two graceful (old) women came down the path on horseback. The puzzled look on their faces only reaffirmed my decision that we needed to turn around. They came to the window to ask what we were doing and why we were up there in a van. After giving us directions to get to the trestle bridge parking they began to tell us horror stories about people on the news who had driven off cliffs because they were following google maps/GPS systems. Old people 🙄 

Once their (unleashed) dogs were clear from my wheels we inched forward and began to make an Austin Powers 3 point turn. We were turned around we headed to try to find these dang trestle bridges, when all of a sudden the dogs reappeared. I slammed on the breaks and heard the glass sliding in the back. M turned around to look, turned out the loud smash we had heard was actually the microwave plate. We hadn't noticed that it could have been the microwave because when we turned around to assess what may have broke the door was already closed! 

Anyways we finally found our way up to the trestles and walked to the first two! The views were amazing, I'd like to one day come back and do it again. Maybe on a bike next time though, the whole path is about 12km one way!! Too much to walk. Plus I have a sissy sister who did not enjoy walking across the bridge, she is a scared cat! (Love you M, I don't mind your sissyness)

Off to Canyon Waterfalls we went! It was close by and seemed to be an easy hike with a pretty view of the waterfalls! Google led us through a very residential looking area.. I was confused, and maybe slightly frustrated with the incompetency of Google today. 

Turns out that the waterfalls are in this field beside a ritzy neighborhood. 

I guess I should have read the reviews on this "hike" because you essentially have to scale the side of the hill to get down to it. So we admired it from above and strolled back to the van.

Our feet were absolutely filthy and we needed some supplies for the van (like a new microwave plate) so we went to town. Here's a few pictures we took while messing around in Homesense and Dollarama! 

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​ By this point we were so exhausted and just wanted to get to a beach! We found this really great campsite right on Okanagan Lake called "Princess RV park" we had a beach front campsite for the night! 

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We got to enjoy maybe half an hour of swimming before a huge storm rolled in! What better way to wait out a rain storm then taking a nice hot shower?! We finished off the night by playing "Speed" and listening to the storm roar outside.

There's something so comforting about NOT being in a tent sometimes! Every once and a while on this trip M and I would turn to each other and say "Hey, you know what?? We're not in a tent, we are in this sweet camper van!"

Not to say that I don't still love tenting, but it feels much better to fall asleep listening to the storm outside instead of fighting the storm from inside a tent! We climbed in bed and listened to the storm run wild outside. It was the biggest storm I have seen in a while and I loved every second of it!

.martha trip part 4 .08.20.16.

** videos to follow, editing is time consuming**
Martha has some issues. 1. the fridge doesn't work on electric. 

The previous owner told me about it, but not until we were picking it up.. Which was late late at night. When dad was with us at Fort Steele we attempted to repair it, we weren't successful. The attempted quick fix also resulted in us losing the outside cover to access the fridge. Part of the adventure and learning experience right??? 
Well luckily the fridge slightly works when it's running on propane. Currently all of our fridge food has spoiled, but we are having quite the problem with our chocolate bars melting during the day! So we stopped to top up our propane tank on the way over to Penticton! (Then never even bothered to use it the rest of the trip) 
Today's adventure consisted of: Finding a campground that allows dogs, EXTREME jet boarding followed by a "relaxing" float down the canal between Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake! 
After finding a campground to stay at we set up the van for the day, plugged in the A/C and took off on a walk down to the beach to go jet boarding! M and I had gotten another deal on the "Get In the Loop" App which made this little adventure a little cheaper than expected! Score! 
Jetboarding was so much fun! It took awhile to get used to being propelled into the air by a stream of water, finding balance was definitely difficult! Once I got the hang of it, it felt just like snowboarding--- through the air! It was really so cool and I wish I could do it over and over again!! After watching the footage from the GoPro, I realize I am not as good as I thought I was at jet boarding. My dives look more like belly flops and I'm significantly closer to the water then I thought I was!
M seemed to grasp the concept/balancing of it wayyyyyy faster then it felt like I did! (Probably her background in snowboarding, and my lack of coordination)
She was especially good at exiting the water after diving! ---I was not so great at this! 

We immediately called Dad and raved about how much fun we had!! The jet board simply hooks up to a Sea-Doo and away you go!! We begged him to look into buying one for us to use back home. 
After that adventure it was back to the campsite to pack up for our float down the canal! Our campground was conveniently located at the end of the canal so we took a cab to the "Coyote Cruises" entry into the canal. A beautiful Saturday probably wasn't the best time to go to one of Penticton's popular attractions! The place was packed!! 

We had left our phones back at the campsite so the only way to get back was to float! We came up with a great system to keep ourselves together while we floated down the canal! The little boat we had bought on the previous trip made a perfect backpack holder, M held on to one strap of the backpack and I held on to the other. Flawless! Tia and Mia were quite used to the floaties by this time so they just relaxed in the sun. 
Welllll maybe that's not all true. At the beginning of the float we were just mindlessly floating not paying attention to anyone around us and not looking where we were going. As a result of that we ended up pretty close to the shore and Tia decided to jump ship, she was on M's floatie at the time. M was also holding the GoPro at the time. Being the helpful older sister I am, I opted to laugh at her struggle instead of helping! After all, the water wasn't that deep and Tia (my little Princess) could stand to swim a little. That taught us a valuable lesson, you have to watch where you're going or else you hit the shore or bump into people. 
Speaking of people, there was SO many people on the canal that day. It seemed like almost all of them had to say something about Tia and Mia being on the floaties with us. 
"Oh they're so cute"

"There's two of them?!"

"Are they related at all" 

"How old are they" 

"What are their names"

"They're so calm laying on the floatie with you" 

"Are you girls twins?" 
We heard that series of questions about a million times while we were floating. Not to say I'm not proud of my adorable dogs, but sometimes I consider carrying around a sign with me that answers that series of questions. For some strange reason strangers just like talking to me and M when we are out doing things. Maybe it's a sign that I need to be more friendly 🤔
Anyways, the float was taking forever. We had passed the Half way point and decided to stick it out and float to the end. Then the water slowed down significantly and the wind started working against us! 

We'd already been floating for about 3 hours and it looked like we had another 2 hours ahead of us. We ditched the idea of staying together and put the backpack boat on M's floatie, I took Tia and Mia and we began paddling our floaties in an attempt to get to the end faster. An hour later we weren't making much progress and the weeds were really REALLY grossing us out! 
We picked about the steepest spot on the bank possible and pulled our floaties out of the water. The only thing to grab on to was some thorny bushes and some pathetic grass that came straight out of the ground if you even looked in its general direction. Awesome. 
Tia and Mia went up first, then the floaties, and then M and I. After a few failed attempts we finally got up the bank and proceeded to pack up our floaties and put on our sundresses. About 600 meters from where we got out of the water there was a path and stairs where lots of other people were getting out of the canal. Another valuable lesson: patience. 
We strolled along the path beside the canal for about an hour chatting about how we would execute another float next year. 

1. we would bring more water and snacks

2. We would get one of the big fancy floaties that you don't have to touch the gross weedy water!    
We finally made it to the beach and decided to stop and get some ice cream for the rest of the walk back to the campsite! 
Both of us were pretty hungry at this point so we ordered some pizza and sat down on the beach admiring how pretty the lake was with the sun setting over the rolling hills.

.martha trip part 3 .08.19.16.

We started out our day by heading straight back to the beach! Christina Lake is said to be one of the warmest lakes in BC! Growing up around a lake that is complete opposite of warm, I had to feel it to believe it!

Early in the morning probably wasn't the best time to test the waters, but the lake was still pretty warm considering it was 7:30 am! Some day I would like to go back and spend more time there, the beach was really nice. Plus swimming in a warm lake would be a nice change compared to what I'm used to!!

We were off again, on route to Penticton.

Martha didn't seem to like the hills in the beginning, the motor would rev right up and the gas needle would drop at a very similar rate!! One call to dad solved that problem and I (being the spoiled new car driver that I am) learned about a little button called "Overdrive". Martha took the hills with much more pride after I learned this new trick!! Along the drive to Penticton, we came around a corner and were completely amazed by the view of this gorgeous little lake town!

Turns out we were in Osoyoos BC! The thing about these spontaneous trips I've been going on is they're very short notice and unplanned. This adds to the adventure but also allows you to change your mind about your destination if you want to!! M and I decided this was a good enough spot for the night! So we googled a campground and followed the directions!

Ironically on the way to the to the campground we had picked we drove by one that had some waterslides!! How fun is that?! So we abandoned our plans and pulled in!

Check out this video of M and I being ridiculous and having a great time on the slides!

After a full day of watersliding we decided that an actual restaurant would be nice for supper! So we left the girls in a nice air-conditioned van and cabbed over to the towns steak-house. Once we arrived we made the executive decision that the Smitty's across the road would suffice and be much more cost effective! We enjoyed our supper out on the patio soaking up a little more sun!

Turns out, cabs are expensive. So we decided to walk back to the campsite instead! After all it was only 3.5km's away, and the weather was absolutely gorgeous!! Along the way home we met some pretty interesting homeless people 

(close your eyes Mom and Grandma, you don't need to read this part)

One gentlemen didn't say anything he just rode around in a circle on his Recumbent Bicycle. (Had to google what they're called) He just shot us a "hang loose" and carried on his merry way, bags of bottles hanging off of his bicycle with his clothing draped over them.

The real winner of the show was a woman we met as we were walking along the beach. She stopped M and I to ask us if we were twins and then began to rave about how "sexy" we looked! Awkward, and slightly scary! So we said thanks and picked up the pace on our walk! The sun was starting to set at this point and I was getting nervous!

When we were about 3/4's of the way back to the campground we noticed the "Rattlesnake Canyon" amusement park! Earlier in the day we had driven past it on the way to the campground but it looked sorta lame and mostly aimed at children. At night it was absolutely adorable! They had bulb lights strung along the pathways, and above all, a mini donut stand!! The lines were a little too long so M and I just roamed around the park taking in the sounds of the rides and the smiles on everyone's faces!

If you're ever in Osoyoos I highly recommend checking the park out, it would make a great date night!!

20 minutes later and we were finally back to the campsite! Our particular campsite had a really pretty view of the lake! So we sat in the front seats of the van staring out at the city lights reflecting off of the water! We soon passed out after such a long day.

I'm so glad we decided to detour our trip and spend the day in Osoyoos, it was such a cute little beach town!

.martha trip part 2 .08.18.16.

Continued from .martha trip part 1

A few hours of sleep later and we were off to Fort Steele for the day again! 

**not pictured but present was mom and T**


We finished the day at fort Steele off with a ride on the train with the family. It had started to rain so we had the whole front car to ourselves! Due to the rain I was a little chilly so I had quickly tossed on my new plaid shirt; it immediately became my favorite shirt of all time!!! (You will see it pictured many times throughout this trip, I loved it so much I barely wore anything else) Because of this quick wardrobe change I actually almost missed the train! I ran full speed in my slipper sandals to hop on the train for its last run of the day!

Mom, dad, T and J had only come to join us for the day so we could laugh together and enjoy the wonderful skits at Fort Steele! After the train ride they were off, headed back home to spend some time with Grandma M.

M and I continued on our roadie to Christina Lake BC. By time we got there it was already dark, but we figured we would go for a stroll down to the beach anyways. After-all I spend most of my life at a different Christina Lake, I thought it necessary for us to see the lake while we were there!


Unfortunately once we got down to the beach there was a BIG sign stating that there was absolutely no dogs allowed on the beach! Ugh. So we sat on a picnic table and admired the town lights reflecting off the water reminiscing about previous trips to Fort Steele.


I turned to M and said; this is the life for me. (Fort Steele pun, better go watch the play so you understand) I love pretty lakes, I love lights at night time reflecting off the water, and I love exploring new places in my new convenient camper van.


Tonight we discovered the beauty of the curtains that go up in the cab!

They give you so much privacy and make you feel nice and "tucked in" I'm your private little bubble. 

I love Martha 

.martha trip part 1 .08.17.16.

Once Martha was registered and legal to drive we packed up and headed to Fort Steele! My absolute favorite heritage town. We return almost every year to watch the actors preform their humorous skits. My personal favorite part of Fort Steele is the "olden days atmosphere"

One thing most of you probably don't know about me, I love the Little House on the Praire books. When I read them it takes me back to a simpler time, one it reminds me of when I was a small girl reading these books, and two it shows me that people can be happy with less. Sometimes it feels like I have to keep getting better and better, there's a crushing feeling to always have more and be something more than I am. Reading the books about the simple praire life really helps me to feel grounded and appreciate all that I have in my life.

ANYWAYS, the actors in Fort Steele this year are absolutely amazing! M and I unfortunately missed the first few skits because we got stuck in traffic.

The day was full of laughter, beautiful warm sunshine and a nice warm breeze. Perfect day!

My personal highlight of the day was the play! They had a recurring theme of "That's the life for me" with a catchy tune to go along with it! I really like that because the play was all about following your dreams, which is what I was trying to do. It was quite poetic. ​

Tia and Mia didn't care about the skits ​(which you can hear in the background) they cared more about rolling around in the grass. So we let them and watched the skit from a far, afterall I want them to be happy too! And if rolling in the grass makes them happy then so be it!

After the skits were all done we grabbed an ice cream cone and headed back to our campsite! Not without taking some selfies with the van though!

We learned a very valuable lesson this day, that being A/C is a very important feature in an RV when you're going through BC in August! It was 40 degrees in the van after sitting in the sun all day. Luckily we had chosen to keep the A/C unit the previous owner had included with the van (despite how combersom it was) 

In an effort to cool down we went for a dip in the pool, it was nice at first but after getting a few dead flys in the mouth we decided a nice cool shower was a better way to cool down! By that time the A/C had cooled the van down significantly! We crawled into bed and fell asleep watching a movie! 

Around 3 am Tia and Mia started to bark and growl, which then turned to whining. I was so disoriented until I realized it was my family creeping around outside! M and I had called them the day before raving about how awesome the actors/skits were this year. My mom being a huge lover of Fort Steele packed up and drove straight there! Dad and J slept in the car while T slept on a cot outside of the van, mom got to sleep on the table while M and I were nice and tucked in our bed above the cab!