Exploring History in New Denver, British Columbia

Not only is B.C. wild and beautiful, it’s rich in history too. Last summer we took a road trip through the Kootenay Rockies region, hoping to get a taste of some of the wildest camping Canada has to offer.

Along our route, between major stops Nelson and Revelstoke, we decided to explore the area around New Denver. We had heard of a ghost town in Sandon.

Historic Sandon

Just 13 kilometers east of New Denver lies Sandon. The town is lovingly preserved by its residents––which you can pretty much count on one hand!

A good place to start your tour is The Prospector’s Pick which functions as the Visitor’s Centre and Gift Shop. With any luck you’ll get to meet Vida Turok, a Sandon resident, while taking a look at the memorabilia and vintage collectibles. Vida is warm and friendly, and will tell you all about the town of Sandon. Those of you with a heart for adventure will connect with her adventurous spirit. She moved to Sandon after falling in love with the town while on a 100 days hike through B.C.

After picking up some ice-cream, or a hot coffee, take a look at the Brill Trolley Interpretive Display. These vintage buses from cities like Vancouver, Calgary, and Saskatoon found a permanent home at Sandon when they proved popular with visitors. Now you can tour the inside of Trolley #2201 during season.

As you continue down the path and up the hill you’ll see Sandon’s crown jewel, the Silversmith Power & Light Generating Station. It’s been operating since 1897, and today still runs 24 hours a day, providing green energy for Sandon and New Denver. Impressively, all of the machinery is original and it’s family-owned and operated.

At its height as a booming silver town, Sandon, was a state-of-the-art city with a population of 5,000. It was the first town in B.C. with the capability to provide electric power to every citizen. Today this hydroelectric power station is the first utility in B.C. to receive federal green hydroelectric certification.

You can round out your tour with a look at the Steam Locomotive and a visit to the Museum. The museum is the only attraction that is not free at $5 admission.

Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre

During its decline, Sandon served as a Japanese Canadian Internment Camp during WWII. We learned more about this period in history at New Denver’s Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre.

There is an admission fee of $9 per adult to tour this National Historic Site. In fact, it’s the only site in all of Canada where you can learn about this part of WWII history.

In 1942, 22,000 Japanese-Canadian citizens were forced from their homes along the coast of B.C. and relocated to internment camps. As you tour this National Historic Site you are actually walking through what once was The Orchard internment camp.

You can get a sense of what life was like under those conditions walking through the 14’ x 28’ shack that usually housed 2 families. One side shows you the conditions the Japanese families would have found it in, while the other side shows you what it looked like once it was inhabited.

As you exit the different halls holding artifacts, you’ll walk through the beautiful Peace Garden.

We love experiencing history on our travels, and in the New Denver area we found what almost feels like a forgotten history to explore. And, though sad, it was interesting to find a connection between Sandon and the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre in New Denver.

Planning Your Perfect Itinerary

You can enjoy some epic camping and the historic sites above over a weekend. You can explore Sandon in the morning and New Denver in the afternoon on one day. And enjoy hiking and relaxing at your campsite on day 2. Depending on where you’re traveling from, you can also make this part of a larger BC road trip, adding in stops in Nelson, Revelstoke, and hot springs around the area.

When to Go: Between Victoria Day and Thanksgiving (Canadian Thanksgiving is the 2^nd Monday in October).

Visiting between these dates gives you access to all there is to do at Sandon and some of the best hiking weather. However, winter camping is definitely a thing in B.C., and some of Sandon is open and/or available by appointment in the winter.

Where to Stay: Be sure to check out Camping & RV in BC’s Campground Map here. We typed in New Denver and set the search radius to 50km to really get a full picture of what’s around. We chose to stay about 30 minutes from New Denver. Our favorites were Summit Lake Provincial Park and we completely fell in love with serene, waterfront Box Lake Recreation Site both near Nakusp.

Road Trip Time: For those of you making your way from Spokane or Kelowna, you’re roughly 4 hours to adventure and history. Heading in from Calgary? Plan on about 6 hours of drive time. Friends in Vancouver and Seattle, you’re about an 8-hour drive away. Note: During 2020 the border is closed to travel between the United States and Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

If this area interests you, check out our drive:
Mountains, Lakes & Rivers in the West Kootenays and Boundary Country

For campgrounds in the Nakusp. New Denver and Sandon areas as well as elsewhere throughout British Columbia go to the Camping Map.

Share your BC camping and travel pictures using hashtags #campinbc, #explorebc and #BCNice.

Discovering Camping in British Columbia in the Fall Season

It’s time to bring out the sweaters and store the flip flops! The fall season is a perfect time to avoid the crowds and explore BC while camping. In the shoulder season, Provincial Parks and private campgrounds usually have space available, allowing you to be spontaneous in where you camp.

My husband Allan and I took a 1,500 km trip through BC a few years ago (pre COVID), with a 24ft RV rented from CanaDream.  We “loosely” followed Highway 3 from the Vancouver area, up north on Highway 6, and ending by following Route 97 south until we hit Highway 3 again. This route gave us amazing variety in the landscapes we saw. In the morning we might cross a high mountain pass surrounded by majestic evergreens. By lunchtime we were in the Okanagan area, surrounded by bald hills and semi-arid desert. The majority of roads had little traffic, so we enjoyed pleasant drives each day.  

We started the trip by spending two nights at Fort Camping in Fort Langley. The campground location was ideal for having a level campsite with clean restrooms. A short stroll brought us to the charming town of Fort Langley with more options for restaurants, boutiques and ice cream shops than was possible to explore. Since we had our bikes, we enjoyed taking the Fort to Fort Trail, a paved path off the main road. Naturally one end of that trail ended at Fort Langley National Historic Site, a chance to step back in time.

Since we had a flexible schedule, we could discover some hidden attractions along the way. One of our favourite spots was the Grist Mill in Keremeos, 47 km (29 miles) northwest of Osoyoos. Because of the heavy rain, we needed our umbrellas but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the site. A cozy café offered Grist Mill cookies and scones, while the outdoor displays gave insight into how the belts and gears coordinated to grind local wheat into flour.

The Kettle River Museum in Midway packs a large amount of history in a small space. We explored the actual KVR Station, part of the legendary Kettle River Railway. The museum offers a look at how people lived before electricity and motors. You can even tour the last caboose from the railroad line.

A highlight of the trip was driving through the Okanagan valley and seeing all the fruit stands. It seemed as if there was a competition going on as to who could make the most elaborate pumpkin displays. We’d stop at one stand to buy apples and admire the pumpkins. 10 minutes later we’d stop to buy corn because we were attracted to another pumpkin display.

Our route also took us past numerous wineries…many, many wineries! The Kelowna area alone has five designated wine routes. Just follow the signs which are displayed along the road. Most signs give the name of the winery as well as how far it is off the road. Some places offer wine tours where you relax on a bus while going from one winery to another. No need to select a designated driver!

Our favourite campground was Kekuli Bay Provincial Park south of Vernon. Almost every campsite has an amazing view overlooking Kalamalka Lake. It’s worth getting up early to see the sunrises. The Okanagan Rail Trail is a designated bike and hike path that goes directly through the campground. We did a 20-mile ride that goes right next to the shore. Best of all, the trail is flat!

We saw a small sign for the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre near New Denver in the Kootenay Rockies and decided to stop. It is the only site in Canada dedicated to telling the story of the 22,000 people of Japanese descent that were interned in Canada. We toured the actual 14ft by 28ft “shacks” that housed two families with up to six children each. The centre also has displays of clothing, furniture, and a peace garden and communal bath house. A sobering yet very informative place to stop.

Our road trip through BC only scratched the surface. We didn’t get to explore Vancouver Island or gawk at the astonishing hoodoos in the East Kootenays. We did get to experience camping in Provincial Parks and privately-owned campgrounds, meeting other campers along the way. Those we stayed at are listed below. Now we’re planning our next route to check out even more that BC offers!

Fort Camping – Fort Langley
Cottonwoods Meadows RV Country Club – Chilliwack
Hazelmere RV Park – Surrey
Kekuli Bay Provincial Park – Vernon
Brookvale Holiday Resort – Osoyoos
Kootenay River RV Park – Castlegar
Sugar Lake 2 Mile – Cherryville

For other campgrounds in the area or elsewhere in British Columbia go to the Camping Map.

Share your BC travel and camping photos using hashtag #campinbc #explorebc

It’s always a great day to #campinbc.

Published: October 10th, 2019