Photo Journey to Kamloops

I recently went to visit my mother who lives about 4 and half hours north through the mountains. I thought it would be good to show you the scenery along the way.

The first 2 photos were taken about 1.5 hours into the journey. Truth be told I never seem to think about taking photos until I see this mountain range. The mountains are always spectacular but on this day they seemed to be outlined somehow in that the shape of them seemed more clearly defined than usual. Perhaps it was just my imagination. No matter how many times I travel this highway, things always look different to me.

This photo is taken on the highway going through Chilliwack, an agricultural area.

 

This photo is past the City of Hope. We are climbing up to the summit of the mountain range.  There used to be a toll bridge here for many years but it is now gone. Instead they are building a toll bridge closer to where I live.

I am always awed by this sheer rock face on the mountain no matter what the season.

There was very little traffic on the highway going up or coming home. It causes me to think that the price of gas has so many people deciding not to travel far these days. 
These photos show you how much snow has fallen this year. There is still plenty of it. In fact, a light snow fell on the drive north and more flurries fell on the return journey.

 

 

When we get to this flat stretch it means we are nearing the City of Merritt which is about 1 hour south of Kamloops.  For years Merritt has been known as the home of the Merritt Mountain Music Fest, a large country music festival held every summer.  This year it will be held July 19-22, 2012.

It is hard to see but if you look at the lower part of the photo you will see some of the buildings (homes and businesses) that make up part of Merritt.

We are now nearing the City of Kamlops; my destination.

We are missing the main town by driving down the side of a mountain into the North Shore.  This scene is always very pretty at night when the city lights are shining.

Normally  the weather would be very warm by now but it is still chilly by Kamloops standards. This is a view of the north shore of the city, Bachelor heights to the top left and the Kamloops Industrial Park and Raleigh in the far distance on the right. You keep driving on the Trans Canada Highway north beyond those mountains. You can read a bit more about that journey here.

Once I got to my destination I quickly set about doing the work mom requested to re-arrange her closet and her drawers, put a stacking shelf on her dresser to hold her products and locate several photos in her storage tubs. I was able to tape all her photos inside the picture frame and hang it up. I also managed to have dinner with my niece and visit mom for a bit. The journey home was quiet and easy. I arrived home in the wee hours of the morning.

I hope you enjoyed the journey with me.

Scenic Sunday, October 17, 2010

Mount Paul in Kamloops, BC, with Sun Rivers development in the green space. You can see it is a bit of a foggy autumn day. I think the mountain looks very cool with the low lying cloud but too bad there is the railway development and commercial development in the foreground.

Click here for more beautiful Scenic Sunday.

Fall is the Perfect Time of Year: Scenic Sunday, October 3, 2010

I think Fall is the perfect time of year. I can never get enough of the Fall colours though when I see the leaves fall, I do get saddened that winter is around the corner. I was never one who loved the snow. Though I might enjoy snow for a few days, I think the childhood memories of freezing cold, freezing a few toes and winters which dragged endlessly on, are never far from me. I do love one thing about winter which I will leave for the winter season to blog about *smile.

In the meantime, let me leave you with some final snap shots of Kamloops. These are likely the last photos I will take before I depart for my home on the coast on Sunday. It is Fall now but these shots are landscape shots of the city from the vantage point of the mountain. As you can see, the city is beautifully located alongside rivers and nestled in the valley.  When you drive in at night and see all the city lights it is particularly beautiful.  (Click on any photo to enlarge).

I hope you enjoyed these photos of Kamloops. If you would like to see some of the city in it's Fall splendour, please click here. Otherwise do join others here from around the globe for more beautiful Scenic Sundays.

Vapour Trails in the Sky: Skywatch Friday, October 1, 2010

These photos of vapour trails were all taken this month in Kamloops, BC. I took them "on the fly" usually as I waited for a bus to take me to downtown or to the hospital.

Speaking of the hospital, mom is to be released on Monday if all goes well. I couldn't believe it and she is very happy though I won't be here to bring her home this time. My brother will arrive over the weekend while I finish packing mom's things. I am trying to pack as much as possible before I go back home for a rest. It has been a rough week as there is so much here to sort through. I won't be done when I leave but I will have done most of the hard work. Whew!

As one daughter of an aging parent, I ask any of you out there who are also aging, "please do not put off getting rid of junk, personal papers, old documents or new documents with identification on it." One day if you do not take care of this stuff, it is likely your older daughter will have to do it for you during an already stressful time. I've tried for more than two decades to help my mom sort through things. She wouldn' t hear of it.  She always wanted to do it herself.

 

In the decades that followed, mom never got to enjoy any of these items as they were all boxed up waiting for the day when they would be sorted.  While she did make some progress getting rid of some items about five years ago, it seems that clothing, papers and photos were an area of difficulty to deal with.  This is mostly what I have been dealing with at a time when I am also trying to deal with her many needs and issues at the local hospital and attend to the business of finding her a long term critical care placement.  It has been a very challenging week and I'm just glad I've been physically able to handle as much of the packing and sorting as I've been able to get to. While mom is coming home in a few days she knows, and has agreed to being put on a waiting list for a nursing home.

 

Check out what's happening in the skies across the globe by clicking here.

Fall Colours: WW, September 29, 2010

To view more beautiful Fall colours join other participants in this week's Wordless Wednesday. Click here.

Sky Over Three Days, Sky Watch Friday, September 25, 2010

These photos are taken of the sky above the house across the street. I discovered I had several photos of the same general place which were taken on three different days recently. I thought it was interesting to compare them all. Enjoy!

Such a pretty blue sky and a beautiful day.

A crisp Fall air can be felt today. I love the shadows cast by a Fall sun. Officially the end of summer was still a few days away.

I love the colours in the sky.

Join others from around the world for more Sky Watch Friday.

Downtown Kamloops: Scenic Sunday, September 19, 2010

Thank you to my newest follower, Kiprotich from Kenya.

This is a continuation of a series of photos I've been taking of the City of Kamloops while I am here on a month long stay. I snapped all of these on September 6, 2010 when I first arrived. It was very quiet downtown as it is an annual statutory holiday and very little is open downtown. You can see more photos of this city if you click here, here and here.

View towards the north wherein lies the city and beyond that, the rivers and mountains.

Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Such a pretty little brick building.

I love the balustrade.

Canadian and Provincial flags flying on hospital grounds.

A view of the city from the 6th floor.

Main street of the downtown core.

Lamp posts and fare meters for parking.

Another view of the main street.

Yet another view of the main street. Though virtually everything was closed there were actually quite a few walking downtown. Mostly young people. My guess is they were college students as the library is close by.

The Plaza Hotel  is in the background with the green roof top. This is an historic hotel and it is furnished in Victorian style.

Some lovely planters line the streets.  You can see it was rather windy.

I love the vibrant red of these petunias.

Thanks for stopping by!  You can look for more Scenic Sunday blogs here.