The 20-Minute Getaway

A quick hop from the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal just north of West Vancouver is Bowen Island. Neither of us has ever been here so we thought it was time to load the kayak and go.

Once a favoured summertime retreat for colonials looking for a seaside escape, Bowen Island is now populated by a friendly clutch of writers and artists.

The easiest way to get to here is on BC Ferries, with or without your car.

Once we alight in Snug Cove – the breathtaking crossing over the glassy, tree-lined water takes around 20 minutes – we find ourselves in a rustically charming little community that suddenly feels a million miles from big-city life. Located in Howe Sound, the island is blanketed in forests and speckled with beautiful coves.

After a quick stop at the Visitor's Centre we clatter along the boardwalk area near the ferry dock to check out the shops and restaurants. Snug Cove is an active place for watercraft of all shapes and sizes.

Sandi needs a coffee and pastry so we climb the hill to Artisan Square and head for Artisan Eats Café. Artisan Square if full of little shops of the gallery and jewelry-store variety.

It doesn't take long before Sandi sniffs out Cocoa West who use only the finest organic ingredients in their hand-made chocolate truffles. We savour such delicacies as the Bombay Truffle (chai and black tea infused chocolate ganache), A Casual Affair (espresso, kahlua and raspberry together in the dark) and Lemon and Thyme (Meyer Lemon and fresh thyme in white chocolate). Chocoholics can also book The Chocolate Suite for 'bed and chocolate'. Next time.

Time for lunch so we head back down to the waterfront to Doc Morgan's Pub & Restaurant.

A Bowen Island institution: fish, chips and beer on the chatty patio overlooking the park and harbour.

The Union Steamship Company ran a busy resort at Snug Cove during much of the 20th century. Day trips regularly ferried people over for outings to various picnic grounds and concerts in the band shell, with refreshments being available in the company tearooms. In the 1920s some 5,000 people were known to arrive at Snug Cove and up to 800 couples could dance at what was then the largest dance hall in British Columbia.

Deer are plentiful and roam freely all over Bowen Island.

Time to head out for an evening kayak. We launch at Bowen Bay and soon arrive at the pretty Pasley Islands.

Wild daisies are in bloom all over the island.

Tim tests his balance on a bouncy log at Seymour Bay beach. Good ski training.

The colour of these trees is incredible.

Hippies and dippies and dodgers and codgers hung out here in the 60s. The Museum and Archives operates out of an old homestead.

The old general store building is now the Public Library.

The grounds at the Bowen Island Lodge.

The weather's not as nice today but we love BC so we're back in the kayak for a paddle along Bowen Island's eastern coastline from Snug Cove to Finisterre Island.

Bowen Island is so laid back we can head straight from the dock, salty and disheveled after kayaking, up the road to Tuscany Restaurant to wrap up our weekend with Kir Royales and the most delicious dinner of...

sumptuous seafood and...

delectable desserts. How can you tell Chocolate Mousse is Tim's favourite?

So ends our idyllic island jaunt.

Okanagan Interlude

Sandi's aunt and uncle are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary so we're off to join the festivities in Kelowna and explore a bit of the area. En route from Whistler we pass through the small town of Lytton and pause to take in the bucolic countryside.

Congratulations Marlene and Paul! Your love and dedication to each other is an inspiration. (Sandi and her sister Arlene are the little flowergirls on right.)

The famous Kettle Valley Rail Trail vies with wine drinking and peach picking as the attraction of choice for visitors to the Okanagan – smart ones do all three. Monashee Adventure Tours transports us up to the old rail line, now a scenic, easy bicycle path.

Of the entire Kettle Valley Rail Trail, the most spectacular stretch is close to Kelowna. The 12km section through Myra Canyon has fantastic views of the sinuous canyon from 18 trestles that span the gorge from the cliff-hugging path. That we can enjoy the route is something of a miracle as 12 of the wooden trestles were destroyed by fire in 2003. Today all are rebuilt.

Whoever said Kelowna is warm in summer is full of beans. It's three degrees celsius and Sandi is frozen solid.

For the next two nights we're staying at God's Mountain Estate just south of the city of Penticton. In 2003 Sarah Allen and her husband Richard, purchased this Mediterranean-style villa on 115 acres. They were captivated by the spectacular views of the lake and vineyards, the serenity and grandeur of the mountain and the eclectic ambiance of the home. Relief, much warmer weather today.

The estate is choc-a-bloc full of interesting antiques and artifacts.

We time it right as internationally-acclaimed, Juno award-winning harpist, Gianetta Baril, has just arrived for a couple of days too. She soon has us in raptures as she generously and passionately performs an impromptu concert on the veranda before dinner.

Thank you sooooo much Gianetta for blessing us with your heavenly music on God's Mountain.

To experience a true taste of the Okanagan, Joy Road Catering hosts an intimate, multi-course alfresco dinner in Sarah and Richard's garden overlooking the lake and vineyard. Their personalized menu features a wide range of exceptional cuisine prepared with the best possible ingredients sourced locally and paired perfectly with delicious Okanagan wines.

It is hard to know which harvest is growing faster in this fertile and beautiful valley; tourists or fruit. Certainly, bounty abounds in this ever-more-popular lovely swath midway between Vancouver and Alberta. The moniker 'Canada's Napa Valley' is oft repeated and somewhat apt. The 180km-long Okanagan Valley is home to dozens of excellent wineries, whose vines spread across the terraced hills, soaking up some of Canada's sunniest weather.

This emphasis on highbrow refreshments contrasts with the valley's traditional role as a summertime escape for generations of Canadians, who folic in the string of lakes linking the Okanagan's towns. And while retirees mature slowly in the sun, so do orchards of peaches, apricots and other fruits that may not have the cachet of grapes, but which give the air a perfumery redolence at the peak of summer.

On our second night at God's Mountain Estate we decide to dine alfresco again but this time we're going casual – a quick stop at the Italian delicatessen in Penticton and we soon have a feast of nuts, wine, tomato bocconcini salad, paninis, tiramisu and the best sunset this side of the Mississippi.

The vineyards of Penticton and Naramata Bench boast ideal conditions for ripening Merlot and Bordeaux varieties and full-flavoured Pinot Gris and Viognier. To the south of Penticton is Skaha Bench where Painted Rock Estate Winery and Pentâge Winery (we picked up a case) produce award-winning wines. And with an established (and simple) wine touring route, breathtaking views and several wineries with spectacular dining settings like this one at Lake Breeze Vineyards (above photo), it's easy to see why the Naramata Bench is one of the hottest wine regions in the province.

Back when the best way to get around inland BC was by boat, the SS Sicamous hauled passengers and freight on Okanagan Lake from 1914 to 1936. Now restored and beached in Penticton, a tour of the boat is an evocative self-guided ramble.

Breakfast done right at God's Mountain Estate.

Sarah's friendly dog Amos, guides us on a hike up to see the views from the vantage point of the bluffs behind the property. G'boy Amos!

To remember our wonderful time spent at God's Mountain we purchase one of Gianetta's cds as well as a watercolour painting by Ann Flavelle Lagassé from Oak Bay, Vancouver Island, who regularly comes to God's Mountain to paint the surrounding landscapes.

You can't go far in the Okanagan Valley without passing a farm stand by the side of the road. We stop at this one lined with rusty vintage cars and tractors to pick up cherries, apricots and raspberries for the road.

We head back to Whistler via the longer, scenic Hope-Princeton Highway with a two-night stop at Harrison Hot Springs Resort & Spa. The view from our hotel room over Harrison Lake is hard to beat. Since 1886, travelers have sought the source that provides warmth to the resort's five mineral hot pools.

It's Canada Day. Happy Canada Day!!! We watch the fireworks over the lake.

There are two hot springs here: the "Potash", with a temperature of 40 degrees celsius and the "Sulphur", with a temperature of 65 degrees celsius. These swallowtail butterflies apparently like the hot temperatures of the sulphur spring as they rest within inches of its steamy, hot waters.

A 20-minute drive from Harrison is Bridal Veil Falls Provincial Park.

The pretty falls tumble 60 meters over a smooth rock face, creating a veil-like effect.

Harrison is Sasquatch territory. Described as a bi-pedal mammal of exceptional size with great strength and reddish hair covering its entire body, the Sasquatch is legendary in Harrison Hot Springs with many regional sightings. The First Nations peoples that have lived in this area for generations believe the Sasquatch is a spiritual being that can vanish into the spirit realm, which may explain why the elusive being is so difficult to track down. Sandi cozies up to a friendly facsimile.

We walk the one km Spirit Trail through a beautiful cedar forest just on the outskirts of town. What makes this trail so special is that a local resident and artist has decorated many of the cedars along the trail with interesting masks. Several dozen in fact.

Back at the resort for some rest and relaxation in the pools.

Dinner in The Copper Room.

Swingin' with "The Jones Boys" band tonight, headin' home tomorrow.