It’s been seven years since we’ve done Christmas in Ruskin. The reason we don’t go is because of Alex’s work schedule, which has been extremely unhelpful in getting us enough time to be there.
This year, despite a whole host of schedule changes and a move to an MRI position, we somehow managed to get a whole week and a half. As this might not happen next year, and this is the last full year with Monkey at home, we opted to make this work.
We had hoped to fly. But at nearly $1,200 to fly barely an hour, it seemed more likely that we should drive. The catch, of course, is that it’s winter and driving through mountain passes even in the summer can elicit a whiteout condition.
And then Alex’s work schedule through one more hook – she couldn’t come until the 24th. So heading out, it’s just the girls and I.
We hit the road at 9:00. The goal was to get to Kamloops so we had a good second day of driving. I want to avoid the Coquihalla, which means taking the Fraser Canyon portion of the Trans Canada, which I’ve not driven since before Alex and I were married. I wasn’t keen on rushing.
The drive out, despite being a weekend, was fairly easy. There’s hardly any snow left, so there’s not a lot of folks heading out of town for cross-country skiing (the downhill folks leave early), meaning less traffic. It’s one of those “set your cruise control and enjoy the scenery” kind of drives.
We stopped in Golden, mostly to pee and to get a drink at the convenience store. (We’d hit Tim Horton’s in Calgary before leaving; no coffee needed in Golden.) A short stop, and we were back on the road.
Roger’s Pass – the only part of today’s drive that truly had me concerned – was overcast, but otherwise fine. Aside from a couple of slowpokes, it was up one side and down the other.
We pulled into Revelstoke in time for a late lunch, taken at the Big Bend Cafe. And that’s pretty much all I have to say about Revelstoke.
Things got interesting as we neared Sicamous about an hour later. The Trans Canada has been getting upgrades over the last few years, section by section (randomly, not in sequence) to make it 4 lanes from Vancouver to the Alberta border. This will be going on for the rest of my life, I’m sure, and there are segments I really can’t understand how they’re going to make it work, but I’ll give ’em credit for trying.
This time, they’re blasting in between Sicamous and Salmon Arm – the Trans Canada Highway is closed during the day, every day, except Sunday. We had to take a detour.
Highway 97 comes in a few flavours: 97 Classic, and A, B, and C, all of which go into the Okanagan from different points (Monte Creek, just east of Kamloops, Sicamous, Salmon Arm, and Merrit, respectively; who the heck named them so badly really needs a good slap). Fortunately, all of them are helpful in bypassing parts of the Trans Canada, in the event of … well, whatever ties up the sections between Sicamous and Kamloops (or even all the way to Merrit, though you have to go through Kelowna to get to the 97C).
We got diverted down the A, which itself was a slow ride as it was getting caught up in stabilization work along Mara Lake. We slid through Grindrod, just past which was the diversion to the B, which took us back up to Salmon Arm. It added on about 45 minutes to our trip, and had I been paying attention, I might have gone down to Enderby and taking the Classic all the way to Monte Creek.
We attempted to stop in Salmon Arm for coffee and doughnuts, but the eastern Tim’s had only one line open and the cashier was trying to charge up some woman’s 150 $10 Tim’s cards. We hit the western one and were in and out in 2 minutes.
It was quite dark by the time we left Salmon Arm. And it started to rain. It was black by Sorrento. I actually felt uncomfortable navigating the construction at Chase due to the road changes, rain, and darkness. I was thankful to hit the four-lane divided just east of Pritchard.
I aimed mostly towards our usual haunt, downtown, near the water. (Mostly because I knew that area best.) We’re not going any further tonight; I refuse to attempt the Coquihalla after dark in the winter, and I’m not familiar enough with the Fraser Canyon to try that, either.
Pulling off to the side just long enough to discover 1) the Kelly O’Bryan’s had prime rib, and 2) the Sandman near the Kelly O’Bryan’s had a 2 queen room for $170, I headed over to the Sandman and got us checked in.
It’s been a looooooooong time since I’ve shown up at a hotel without a reservation. I genuinely can’t even remember the last time, but I’ll easily use the word “decades” and likely still come short. The most difficult part was having to get a luggage rack on wheels to empty the car of all the bags and Christmas presents we’re toting. I’m glad we didn’t bring everything. But it’s a decent room, the beds seem nice, and I’m full of prime rib.
Tomorrow, we see the Fraser.
