We both had a great sleep so Bus is definitely better. Not only that, the sun was shining! Our room had a kitchenette so I had my breakfast before we headed out. I thought Clearwater was beautiful yesterday but it was better in the sunshine. When I filled up at the local gas station I mentioned to the attendant how lucky he was to live there. He suggested I move to Clearwater and brought out a real estate paper showing a 5 bedroom house for $300,000 and a three bedroom for $200,000. Very tempting.
I headed down the scenic Highway 5 towards Kamloops just as it started raining again. And again, despite the rain, it was a beautiful drive. The road was windy with lakes on one side and mountains on the other. About an hour into the trip we encountered a backup that was not moving at all for at least 30 minutes. Turns out a tractor trailer going in the same direction as us had gone round a bend and right across the highway towards the mountain, jamming his cab between the barriers and the mountainside. I have no idea whether the driver survived but it was quite a mess. After that I made sure to slow down at every curve – probably driving the people behind me crazy.
We saw a lot of birds today – hawks, ospreys and even an immature eagle sitting in a dead tree by the highway. We pulled off to check out a marshland supported by Ducks Unlimited. It was very picturesque.
In Kamloops I used the Tim’s WiFi to find the wineries and we headed down Shuswap Road to Harper’s Trail. Along the way we passed a bighorn sheep grazing by the highway and a cowboy riding through a field. I just love this country.
The people at Harper’s were very accommodating about Bus and set us up on a comfortable lounge outside, bringing me drinks and chatting about dogs and wine – a couple of my favourite topics.
From there we made our way round some dirt roads and across a single-lane bridge over the North Thompson to the Monte Creek Winery. This is also a working farm with goats and cattle and I’m not sure what else. I was told the story about the gentleman train robber – Billy Miner – who had accosted the train right beside where the winery now sits and was the originator of the term ‘Hands Up’ so they say. I had to buy a bottle of Hands Up wine with his picture on it.
On to Merritt where the friendly folks at the Bailie House Info Centre sent me to a wonderful little cafe called Espresso and then on to the private campground called MoonShadow. The sun is out again but it is really windy. I put up the tent and tied it down to a couple of trees. I think we are done with the rain. I just hope we don’t blow away in the night.