The phone rang late mid afternoon May 20th and I was called to meet in Enderby 9:00 am the next morning 500 km from Calgary.
As I was already loaded up I set out on the trail to Enderby BC about 9PM May 20th. I drove all night but then again that is how I like to travel pulling my 5th wheel trailer . When you drive at night you have the highway more or less to yourself very little traffic.
The trip was going well with a couple of spring snow storms through the 2 peaks but very good driving conditions.
As I neared my normal turn off near 3 Valley Gap I heard what sounded like bearing squeak coming from behind me I then thought it was a train passing as they squeak as they pass through the mountains.
I passed my turn where I would normally turn and travel 35 km down a rough logging road. This trip had to go through Enderby to my meeting with the Splats’in First Nations Band.
The Splats’in First Nations people reside on Indian reserve lands adjacent to the City of Enderby to the south and across the Shuswap river to the east.
The Splats’in are the most southern tribe of the Shuswap Nation, the largest Interior Salish speaking First Nation in Canada whose aboriginal territory stretches from the BC/Alberta border near the Yellowhead Pass to the plateau west of the Fraser River, southeast to the Arrow Lakes and to the upper reaches of the Columbia River.
The Shuswap River was an integral transportation route used to travel from village to village and to food gathering areas of the Splatsin.
The Splats’in or ‘Spallumcheen’, the anglisized name they are commonly referred to as, are governed by an elected Chief and Council. The main administration office of the Splatsin is located on Old Vernon Rd. Permission to enter upon the lands of the Splatsin may be obtained from the Chief and Council at this office. The cemetary you see as you approach Enderby from the south is the private burial grounds of the Splatsin. Privacy is requested for our deceased at this site.
The ‘Timber Creek Council Hall’ is the meeting place of the Splats’in and is located at the junction of Hwy.97 and Canyon Rd. just south of the City.
As I approached the Husky Service station near Sicamaus BC a trucker flashed his lights and I noticed a spark trickle across the road and I quickly pulled into the service station. Upon inspection I saw my axle had some big problems.
I slowly continued down the road about a km to a Integra Tire on the Trans Canada where my trip stopped at 4 am Friday May 21st.
Where I went into the trailer and slept for a few hours.
When I heard the staff coming to work I got up and went in to get an estimate.
My Axle was damaged and a new one needed to be ordered from Calgary and because it was a long weekend it looked like Tuesday or Wednesday before it would arrive.
I was offered free power and water in the back of the station where I was asked to move the trailer. As I moved the trailer the wheel fell of. I guess there are a lot worst places for it to fall off.
So I travelled to Enderby 35 kms farther up the road where I meet with the Band and recieved my instructions for taking over the campsite.
It was time to drive 35 more kms to the campsite on Mabel Lake.
Now 2pm the long weekend was underway.
