July 31 - August 2, 1999

Some photos contributed by Craig Blanchette and Wes Rempel

SATURDAY

Larry & Sue and Vanessa & Tim	Jeep YJ
Mark Dietelbach & his daughter, Sarah	Toyota 4Runner
Chris Waterman & Nancy Kang	Jeep YJ

Waiting for us were several of the Kelowna BC4x4 list members including Tyghe, Vic, John, Kerrie, Terry and Craig. The "Vancouverites," consisting of Wes Rempel and Norman Heu (and his girlfriend, Helen), had arrived the night before and were also waiting for us. Just to make sure we really screwed up our schedule, I went shopping for groceries and asked Vic to pick up some beer for me. Over half of the group left for the trail while we did our errands. The shopping plus some other stuff ate up loads of time. We were at the trailhead at 2pm, a bit later than the planned time of noon. On our way there, Mark's brother, Paul, who lives in Kelowna, had also joined us.

When we reached the trailhead, I was surprised and somewhat embarassed to see that the half of the group which had left before us was there, waiting for us in the scorching sun. More time was spent airing down and kibitzing before we finally got rolling. A short time later, the first breakdown occurred. Kevin's really nice, 302 FI powered Bronco was suffering from a fuel starvation problem. Craig stayed behind to help him out while the rest of us continued on toward the KVR railbed. We stopped again when we reached the powerline trail to admire the view and wait for Kevin and Craig. After several minutes, we decided to continue on. While heading down one particular section, I came across Rob in his big black Chevy. It appeared he had driven over the side of the trail into a grassy section for no reason at all. The phrase, Tread Lightly was a foreign one to him, I thought. Later on, I had found out that Rob had misjudged the trail and his right tires went over the edge. He narrowly averted a rollover by steering into the lean which was when he ended up over the side. Not a bad save for someone new to offroading.

The first photogenic obstacle was a longish uphill section littered with loose rock and heavily rutted on its downhill side. Paul's yellow Toyota had nearly bald mud tires so even though he had his rear ARB engaged, he had to take the bypass. He was surprised to see me crawl up the climb until he realized I had a front AND rear locker in my Jeep. Basically, the trucks with aggressive tires and a rear locker made it up without a problem while the others made it while providing great entertainment. Kerrie was working his Ranger hard and finally found the perfect line by driving on the high side to avoid the rut. It was a tricky line to get onto but it worked...and produced a lot of dust. Come to think of it, most of the stuff Kerrie drove through created a lot of dust. Hmmm. Wes followed Kerrie's line and made it up without a problem. Mark chose the middle path and after some negotiating, he also made it through. Norm opted for the bypass and nailed some pretty large rocks while doing so. But given his mild tire treads, it was the right choice.

We continued on and after a wrong turn correction, we were on the old KVR railbed. What followed was an easy cruise along the railbed, taking in the scenery and enjoying the late afternoon weather...and trying to leave enough space between you and the lead vehicle so you don't choke on the dust. At long last we reached the Audra Tunnel. A neatly stacked, six-foot wall of huge concrete blocks suggested that we shouldn't drive into the tunnel. We parked, dug out our flashlights and went in on foot. The Audra Tunnel is several hundred metres in length and curves to form a C-shape. It was closed due to rock falls although it is still passable all the way through. Walking beneath its tall support beams was an unnerving experience because it made me think about the tons and tons of rocks they were supporting. It was even more unnerving when I walked over the fallen rock, in the sections where the beams had collapsed leaving nothing but several tons of rock-which-could-fall-at-any-moment looming over my head.

We finally reach the Audra tunnel.	Norman & Helen begin their journey into the tunnel.	Tim inspects some fallen supports. There were several sections where this deterioration occurred.
Half-way through the tunnel.	The other side.	Craig spotted a deer.

It was a relief to reach the other side. Kerrie and Craig were already there and reported seeing a huge rat when they went through. We took a few pictures and began the return journey. Near the middle of the tunnel, we saw the flickering flashlight beams of other visitors headed toward us. It was a pretty cool sight that one of us likened to an X-Files scene.

A view of Okanagan Lake from the KVR railbed.

Our next stop was the big trestle that I had been looking forward to. I was told, prior to coming here, that we would have the opportunity to drive over one of the KVR trestles. I like doing stuff like that so it was a big reason why I came to Kelowna. I was in the lead (happy to avoid someone else's dust) and after several minutes, I came across Kevin and his red Bronco on the side of the road. I asked if he still had fuel problems. Fortunately, the fuel problem was no longer an issue. The bad news was he now had a cracked block. While we were waiting for Vic to arrive, Kevin looked puzzled when I mentioned that we were going to drive over the next trestle. He said that you _used_ to be able to drive over it but that was a long time ago. The trestle was now closed. That was disappointing news but I still wanted to have a look at it. Vic caught up to us and hooked a tow strap onto the Bronco to tow it to the pavement (the tow truck fee would be double if it had to retrieve the Bronco on a dirt road). He told the rest of us to continue on to the trestle. So while Vic towed the broken Bronco to the pavement, we drove off and eventually saw the old wooden trestle. Sure enough, it was in absolutely no condition to drive on. Only the center section was intact. The sections that reached to the railbed had collapsed years ago. Vic eventually arrived to lead us to the campsite. At least that's what I thought until he gave me a puzzled look and asked if I still wanted to see the trestle that we could drive across. Apparently this wasn't the one. We reached "the one" a few minutes later and it was a doozy. Thanks to its metal frame, it was still safe and open to the public. Whether or not the public wanted to drive onto it was another question entirely. With no guard rails and a drop of at least 100 metres, I'm sure many have declined. But we had come to drive on the trestle and that's exactly what we did. We stopped in the middle with all the trucks onboard for a group photo. Vic may have conquered his fear of heights on this bridge but the rest of us couldn't say the same. When you looked down to make sure your foot reached the next tie, it was difficult to focus only on the tie and nothing else. For between the ties, through an eight to twelve inch gap, was a lovely view of a straight drop into the stream bed far below. If you're having trouble visualizing what I'm talking about, think about those Roadrunner cartoons that feature Wile E. Coyote plunging off a cliff. Yeah, that's the view I'm talking about. If you're ever in the Kelowna area, I highly recommend checking out that trestle.

This is the trestle I thought we were going to drive over.

The trestle! Notice how everyone is looking at their feet as they walk. Wonder what they're looking at?

This is what they're looking at. It's a LONG way down.

With the trestle checked off of our todo list, Vic led us to the campsite. He had been told of "the perfect campsite" so that was our destination. We finally reached the turnoff to this shangri-la around 8:00pm and it was getting dark. To his dismay, Vic found that the trail in was heavily grown over and was eventually blocked by a large log. Reluctantly, he gave us the command to turn around and head back down the trail. Some of us had turned around and were headed back down the trail when we encountered Colin & Shawna Learning who were coming to visit. I got out and told Colin about the campsite quest and he suggested turning around again and continuing up the trail towards Crawford Lake. After some confusing exchanges on the CB, we turned around again and headed up towards the lake. Along the way, we went through a long series of four- to six-foot high berms which provided great entertainment. It was like a dirt rollercoaster. A little while later, after passing a sand hill, we came to a stop. This was where we would camp for the night. It was a crowded, semi-flat spot beside the road and the last possible place to camp before leaving the tree line. By this time, it was past 9:00pm and the end of a long day for many of us. Camp was setup, meals were eaten and only a few stayed up for a beer or two around the fire. The saving grace of this campsite was the thick grass which made for an exceptionally comfortable sleep.

SUNDAY

Rather than spend more time waiting for the rest of the group, we elected to start off toward the top of Little White. It was a slow, bumpy drive punctuated by frequent scenic stops and photo opportunities. We were in an alpine meadow dotted with deeply coloured flowers. Close to the top, as we neared the forest fire lookout, the trail became more rocky and challenging. Pictures were taken as we filed through each section. We parked beside the lookout and admired the vistas. Snacks and beverages were laid out and we picnicked while waiting for the rest of the group. Vic pointed out some of the local landmarks in the distance. Some of us went for a short tour in the fire lookout.

Mark's 4Runner lifts a tire on the way up Little White Mtn.	The scenery was spectacular.	The alpine meadows were in full bloom.
While the trails were extremely difficult, there were a few sections which we had to take one at a time.	Vic showed us a hidden lake.	There were lots of little lakes formed by snow melt but this was the most beautiful.

No Vic! Don't jump!	The forest fire lookout.
Even the lookout had its own little lake.	Kerrie & Mark on the lookout.

After washing down our snacks, we headed over to Crawford Lake which was about 1 kilometre away. I found a nice little shortcut which got us to the short, steep climb just before the lake. This is where Vic had rolled his Toyota onto its side a few weeks before. I was able to crawl up this section quite easily but only because it had dried out. If it were wet, like when Vic last attempted it, I probably would have not made an attempt since it would have been very treacherous. Vic, Chris and Wes made it up without much difficulty. Mark's heavily-laden (with my and my passengers' gear) 4Runner had trouble staying in the right line so he parked it at the bottom. Kerrie made several unsuccessful attempts but finally made it up when we decided he should park it. Once again, he was accompanied by great plumes of dust and flying rock. Norm parked his Sidekick at the bottom with the 4Runner.

On our way from the lookout to Crawford Lake.	The view of Crawford Lake from the lookout. If you click on this image, you'll see a larger one with the short climb into the lake circled in red.
Unlike his prior attempt at this climb, Vic didn't put his Toyota on its side. When wet, this is an extremely difficult hill.	Kerrie finds time to pose for the camera.

At Crawford Lake, Vic, Sue, Mark and I went for a short hike while the others scaled nearby rocks. We found many odd rivulets of soft dirt near gopher holes and speculated on how they might've been built. Back at the lake, Kerrie was the only one brave (?) enough to jump into the frigid water. On the way back to the campsite, Vic gave himself a good scare by taking the wrong line down the hill and lifted his rear tire way into the air.

Crawford Lake. You can see some of us on the rocks above the lake.

Kerrie jumps into the cold lake for a swim, product shrinkage be damned.

Vic gave everyone a thrill on his way down. This pic was shot after that tire was about 3 feet in the air.

Sarah comforts her Dad as he examines his unseated tire. There, there, Dad, it'll be alright."

We finally met up with the rest of the group when we returned to the campsite. Unfortunately, we (the Vancouver group), had to begin our journey to Hedley so we had only a few minutes to chat. We got instructions on how to reach the pavement and were on our way. Well, almost. Mark lost a bead while going through the berms so we spent a few minutes changing his tire.

Our goal was to setup camp somewhere near Keremeos before nightfall so we could enjoy a relaxing evening and then explore some of the mine shafts above Hedley the next morning. At least that's what the plan was. A few kilometres west of Westbank, things changed. Norman radioed something about "I lost my ... !" I wasn't sure what he said but in my rearview mirror I saw him pull over. Chris and I were in the lead so we were only able to safely pull over several hundred metres later. After waiting for a while, Wes radioed to us, saying that Norm had blown a brake hose. Doh!

Norman curses his blown brake line.

We turned around and as we rounded a corner, the cars ahead of us were flashing their brake lights and slowing down. Uh-oh. I got a sick feeling in my stomach, thinking that one of them had somehow caused or had been involved in an accident. I was relieved to see it involved someone else in a Cherokee. The driver was unharmed but his Cherokee lost most of its front end. Around the next corner we pulled over beside Norm's Suzuki. They had already removed the passenger-side tire and discovered that his front brake hoses had been rubbing against the tires. The passenger side hose had ruptured, spraying fluid everywhere, and losing brake pressure immediately. With the problem diagnosed, Mark and Norm went back to Kelowna. I had called Vic and he had arranged to have someone meet them at a parts store. In the meantime, Chris and I prepped the Sidekick for the new lines. While we were waiting for them to return, an RCMP cruiser pulled up and the officers asked if we just had an accident. "Around the corner," we responded. Five minutes later a tow truck pulled over, "you guys have an accident?" "Around the corner!" we said, in unison. Another five minutes later, an ambulance sped by without asking if we were the accident scene. They score points for knowing where the accident was but they lose big time for showing up after the tow truck.

Mark and Norman couldn't find a store with the right brake lines but managed to bring back some of Vic's spare brake parts. We eventually came up with a temporary fix that allowed Norman to continue driving the Sidekick. We reached Keremeos around 10pm and setup camp at the first site we found along the Ashnola River. It was another quiet night.

MONDAY

Shortly after Hedley, traffic was diverted to the Old Hedley Road due to an accident on Hwy 3. That went ok for a while until about 10 km from Princeton. Then traffic turned into stop and go while we baked in the sun except for Mark & Sarah and Norman & Helen in their AC'd trucks. Grrr. When we reached Princeton, I led our group through the streets of my old hometown to bypass the traffic. Along the way, we passed by some of the Coastal Cruisers who had just come from their Whipsaw trail run up near Tulameen. The Hope-Princeton was congested but bearable. We stopped at the crowded Eastgate Esso for some ice cream treats and pop. While we were hanging around there, a girl asked us if we had a ratchet set. Her friends' car was overheating and they wanted to remove the thermostat to see if that would help. She said she asked several people there and they all pointed to us and said, "you should ask those fourwheelers, they would have tools." And we did. A few minutes later, with my socket wrenches safely stowed back in the Jeep, we headed for home. Hwy 1 was also very busy and we were entertained by three or four SUV drivers who figured they'd travel faster by driving off the freeway, through the grass divider and onto the side roads. One moron dug himself in just as he crested onto the side road. Thanks to these boneheads, I'm sure even more car drivers are going to support sin taxes on SUVs. And no, none of them made better time than had they stayed on the freeway like we did.

That, in a large nutshell, was how we spent the BC Day weekend. A big thanks to Vic Sery to organizing the Little White and KVR excursions.

...lars