Category: Photography

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Dinner Rock, Powell River BC & MV Gulf Stream Shipwreck – A quiet, beautiful campsite is perched above Malaspina Strait near Dinner Rock Island, between Powell River and Lund, BC. During recent safety upgrades, a number of danger trees were removed. The actual “Dinner Rock” is a small rocky island that lies in sight just off to the south of the campsite. Spend a day or an entire summer season at this spectacular location. The Upper Sunshine Coast, from Saltery Bay to Desolation Sound, boasts approximately 1,900 hours of sunshine annually. Summer temperatures vary from 20 to 30 degrees Celsius while winter temperatures are mild. 

View from Camp Site to Dinner Rock ▲

To the northwest of Dinner Rock campsite across Malaspina Strait lies Savary Island, a crescent-shaped island 144 km (89 miles) north-west of Vancouver, BC and 6 km (4 miles) west of Lund on the Sunshine Coast. Home to a highly sensitive ecosystems from sand cliffs to dune meadows and ancient forest dunes, ancient glacial erratic’s are found on the South side of the Island on a low tide. 

This pearl of an island, which looks like it floated up from the South Seas, is known as the Hawaii of the North for its mild climate and miles of white sandy beaches. It is about 8 km (5 miles) long and averages just under 1 km (1/2 mile) wide. Low-lying Savary is ideally situated in the rain shadow between Vancouver Island and the Coastal Mountains and unlike most Gulf Islands, Savary runs east-west. The tides moving from the north and south of Georgia Strait meet just north of Savary. The southern tide is warm and the waters move less, which results in generally warmer seas. This water flows over Savary’s sun baked sandy shelf producing the warmest water north of Mexico.

Dinner Rock was the site of a a tragic accident on the night of October 11, 1947. The MV Gulf Stream, a 145-foot passenger vessel in service for Gulf Lines Ltd., was on route from Vancouver to Lund when it drifted off course in poor weather conditions and collided with Dinner Rock Island. The lives of three children and two women were lost in the accident. The vessel hit the rock with such force that it slid up onto the steep shore where it rolled over and partially sank.

1947 – Wrecked on Dinner Rock, Powell River, BC

On Saturday, 11th October 1947, the Gulf Stream was headed upcoast from Vancouver to Lund, BC. Captain John E Craddock, a crew of 21 and 15 passengers were onboard. A strong south-easterly wind was blowing when the Gulf Stream struck the east side of Dinner Rock while on a course between Westview wharf and Mace Point at Savary Island. Due to rough seas and poor visibility, the Gulf Stream was off its course line when it hit the rock and ran up on it about a third of her length and tipped over about 45 degrees. Three children and two women drowned. A harrowing sea rescue managed to saved the lives of 10 passengers. Shortly after, the Gulf Stream slipped off the rock and plunged 120′ down to the bottom, her bow pointing up about 40′ below the surface. Even though her hull was still reasonable intact, no salvage was attempted.

Motor Vessel Gulf Stream Service History  1915 – Built by George Lawley and Sons, Neponset, MA 1917 – Acquired by the US Navy 1917 – Commissioned USS Wenonah 1919 – Decommissioned at New York 1919 – Transferred to the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey and commissioned USC&GS Wenonah 1922 – Returned to Navy custody 1923 – Reclassified as Patrol Yacht PY-11 1928 – Removed from Navy list 1929 – Sold to H. W. Goodall of Santa Barbara, CA and renamed Stranger 1931 – Registered to Edwina Maxine Goodell of San Francisco, CA as the yacht Wenonah 1933 – Registered to Fred E. Lewis of Spadra, CA as the yacht Stranger 1938 – Sold to Mrs. Marian Huntingdon of San Francisco and renamed Blue Water 1939 – Sold to E. A. Riddell on behalf of the Royal Canadian Navy 1940 – Commissioned HMCS Wolf & Reclassified Z-16 1945 – Decommissioned and laid up at Indian Arm, Bedwell Bay, Vancouver, BC 1946 – Sold to Gulf Line of Vancouver and renamed Gulf Stream

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Thirty minutes north-east of the city of Salmon Arm in British Columbia, lies Herald Provincial Park and Margaret Falls. The park contains a popular day-use picnic and camping area. Nestled at the shore of Shuswap Lake, the park features a grassy area above the waterline as well as a large sandy beach along its southern boundary. A number of easy and advanced level of hiking trails lead up along the canyon walls and into a spectacular canyon to Margaret Falls. 

The site of Herald Park was originally the “Bonnie Bray” family farm of Dr. Dundas and Edith Herald and their children. Purchased in 1906 from John Reinicker, an earlier settler of the area, the Herald family owned the property until the 1970’s when the land was then turned over to the Provincial Government.

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Canoe Beach, British Columbia – Winter Scenery

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For close to 20 years, Mrs. Jessie Herald lived on a 200-foot parcel of land within the provincial park for nearly 88 years of her life. After her death in 1994, the land was reverted to the government and incorporated into the park.

The photo above depicts a beautiful winter scene at Herald Provincial Park. Off-season beach access is half a mile down the road from the main park entrance via the boat launch and the day-use picnic area.

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Cool Rock Formations of Western Canada are a great attraction to photographers because they offer cool shapes and textures. Anyone who is particularly interested in abstract photography may find himself in heaven when coming upon such geological feature.

The breakup of Pangaea (200 million years ago), the supercontinent that incorporated almost all the landmasses on Earth, triggered the modern continental configurations to take shape. The North American continent began to move in a north-westerly direction and the Atlantic Ocean began to open in the east. The photo above shows an awesome rock cave located at the east side of Mabel Lake in British Columbia. The rock structure is about 20 feet tall and wide and the crack in the center goes from one side and out the other.

Canada moved to northern latitudes from the equator and then westward across the ancient Pacific Ocean. This caused several large landmasses to collide and become amalgamated with the western edge of the continent. In the photo above, bizarre rock formations along the northern shore of Slocan Lake in BC, feature many cracks and layers with deep cuts.

Most of British Columbia was formed in the succession of collisions, volcanic episodes, and periods of metamorphism and folding are what largely account for the rugged nature of the Cordilleran belt that extends from Alaska down through the western United States. Red Marble Canyon is situated in Waterton Lakes Park in southern Alberta. Waterton Lakes has some of the oldest exposed sedimentary rock in the Canadian Rockies (1200 to 1500 million years old).

This rock can be seen at Cameron Falls. Because its rocks were formed at a time predating the development of most life on earth, few fossils occur here. Only fossils formed by primitive cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) are found. Some developed into impressive cabbage-like fossils of algal colonies called stromatolites. Red rocks are usually argillite – with less than 3% oxidized iron; green are also argillite – with unoxidized iron; beige/grey/brown are limestone or dolomite; black is an intrusive magma sandwiched between bands of white marble (super-heated limestone) called the Purcell Sill.

Spectacular rock hoodoos tower at Parksville’s Madrona Point Beach at Nanoose Bay on Vancouver Island BC. The site is mostly known for rock formations not on the beach – but under water at the ocean floor. Madrona Point, in Nanoose Bay is regarded as one of the best dive sites on Vancouver Island. It’s well known for having large Giant Pacific Octopus and Wolf Eels. There are a number of different dives available there for divers of all levels.

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Canoe Beach is located in the semi-rural community of Canoe, British Columbia. The community lies on the south side of Shuswap Lake, northeast of the city center, just off the Trans Canada Highway.

Canoe Beach is the only public beach in the immediate Salmon Arm area and draws significant local tourist traffic in summer months. Winter days can be splendid at Canoe Beach as the lake is usually calm and wildlife is often observed on or near the water.

The Secwepemc peoples were known to use the mouth of Canoe Creek as a site to launch dugout canoes for travel around Shuswap Lake.

It is thought that early white travellers were impressed by the dugout canoes drawn up on the beach is the source of the name of this community. Cameras used for this outing: Canon PowerShot SX60 HS & Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ300.

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Okanagan Garden Evolution is project designed to inspire others to build beautiful flower gardens. A flower garden is a sanctuary, a place to love, enjoy and a place to escape to when life gets too busy. A garden, any garden is a place of memories and thoughts about where it all began. Camaraderie, friendships and relationships are gardens as well. They are simple, uncomplicated and full of colour and beauty. Every home and place needs a garden, colours and beauty.

Okanagan Garden Evolution is an ongoing flower garden project. After the removal of fir trees, a rock garden was created. The ground was cleared, rocks brought in and placed on the ground for flower bed edging. Composted soil was filled into the new beds, flowers and shrubs planted.

Anything that blooms also produces seeds that eventually fall off the plants, expect to find new growth from underneath. This includes of course weeds as well. All gardens produce weeds eventually. Some more, some less – weeds are a fact of life in a healthy garden. Gardening is a fun hobby that is positive and good for the soul.

Okanagan Garden Evolution – As encyclopedias suggest, evolution, theory in biology postulating that the various types of plants, animals, and other living things on Earth have their origin in other pre-existing types and that the distinguishable differences are due to modifications in successive generations. The theory of evolution is one of the fundamental keystones of modern biological theory.

The diversity of the living world is staggering. More than 2 million existing species of organisms have been named and described; many more remain to be discovered from 10 million to 30 million, according to some estimates.

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Bighorn Sheep of the Okanagan, also known as California Bighorn Sheep are found all over the valley’s lower slopes. Just a few feet of a highway’s shoulder, the animals are often spotted grazing. Not shy whatsoever they make for an easy model to photograph. 

 Apparently the Big Horn is at risk of contracting a lethal infectious disease which can cause pneumonia in both domestic and wild sheep and goats, but it is particularly harmful to wild sheep herds, according to the B.C. Wild Sheep Society.

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A Must Read: Historic Dun-Waters Farm & Short’s Creek Waterfall in Fintry BC

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Bighorn Sheep of Okanagan BC – Bighorn sheep get their name from the large, curved horns on the males, or rams; with female sheep sporting shorter, less curved horns. Bighorn Sheep keep their horns years round, unlike mammals with antlers, which are shed each year. Bighorn rams are armed with a pair of curled horns up to 45″ in length and weighing as much as 30 pounds. These horns are used to clash or battle against competing rams to achieve dominance.

Bighorn sheep are diurnal. They are very social creatures, sometimes forming herds of up to 100, although more common are small groups of 8 to 10. Mature males keep away from young and females in separate flocks for most of the year. Young females remain with their mother’s group, which is led by an older ewe which by scientific definition is any female bighorn sheep having a horn or horns of at least 5 inches in length, each as measured on the outside curve of the horn from the skull to the tip. That’s an easy one to spot!

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Okanagan Bighorn Sheep are easy to find and photograph. They are tame and they tolerate the adventurous wildlife photographer in their vicinity. However, wild animals are unpredictable. Bighorn sheep normally don’t attack humans but in the rutting season in December, the males may attack if provoked or startled.
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