From British Columbia to Newfoundland
Biking from one end of the country to the other was never a dream for Alex Lowen.
The Nakusp Secondary School teacher started her journey on July 5 in White Rock, dipping the rear wheel of her bike in the Pacific Ocean. From there it was through Crow’s Nest Pass, the Trans-Canada Highway, many back roads and quiet highways, even a ferry trip or two.
The first leg of the journey was the hardest for Lowen.
“B.C. was alarmingly difficult, because I wasn’t conditioned yet, and that’s the most difficult terrain of the whole trip,” she said. “That helped me get in shape pretty quick. I didn’t train beforehand, so the mountains were my trial by fire. After that it got a little easier.”
Lowen ended her 83 day journey in Cape Spear, Newfoundland, the easternmost point in Canada.
When asked if she would do the journey again, Lowen’s answer was quick and simple.
“In a heartbeat, no hesitation,” she said. “Throughout the whole trip I was like ‘This is just a one-time thing, so enjoy it now, because you’re never doing it again,’ and as soon as I finished it, I was like ‘That was the best experience of my life.’”
Kill the bears: One residents view on this year’s bear season
One Nakusp resident has experienced a bear break in, and is fed up.
Early last week John Pazurik woke up to find his outdoor freezer damaged beyond repair, and all of the food inside gone.
The bear consumed approximately $2,000 worth of hamburger, roasts, sausages, bacon, and more.
“First they went into my turkey pen and tore up the self-feeder, but they didn’t touch the turkeys for some reason,” he said. “I guess they didn’t like the taste.”
Bears in this area normally feed on huckleberries up in the mountains, but berry crops at higher elevations failed this year. Because of this, bears have been coming down into areas such as Nakusp, New Denver, and Silverton to find food.
Kate Tupper
proves her merit
A Nakusp sculptor has won an award at this year’s Castlegar Sculpturewalk.
Kate Tupper won third for the Artistic Merit Prize for All Strings Attached. The six prizes in the competition were chosen by a panel of professional artists.
A total of 30 sculptures were featured in this year’s Sculpturewalk.
This is Tupper’s second time winning some form of the merit prize.
“The first time I won first prize and won $3,000,” she said. “This time it was $500, which is still nice, because I put up the money to build the sculpture, I lend them the sculpture for a year, and to get anything out of it, other than the public enjoying it, is awesome.”
