Find them wherever history comes to life.

The stories of this region have captured Lettie’s imagination since he was just a kid growing up on the lower mainland. Now retired, he and Carla have set out on a road trip to discover the poignant history of Arrow Slocan, with intent to savour the good life while they’re at it.

Nestling In

After the drive from the Okanagan, it’s a relief to find most attractions in New Denver are within walking distance from Lettie and Carla’s cozy abode at the Adventure Domes. Odin’s Pub around the corner serves up frosty pints of locally brewed craft beer with a generous serving of tall tales from bartenders and locals alike – how the mountains are named after Norse gods and who ran into which grizzly bear back in the summer of ‘89.

But First, Coffee

A day exploring the local historical sites should start right with coffee and pastries on the patio at Silverton’s Camp Cafe. Sipping on americanos that rival any city’s café, they gaze up at the historical wooden shops and let their minds wander. What would have been on these streets a hundred years ago when Silverton was still a bustling mining town?

To answer some of the burning questions, Lettie and Carla stop in at Silverton Gallery’s Interpretive Centre, the Outdoor Mining Museum in front of the Gallery and Fingland Cabin across the street.

Strolling Through the History of Time

Remembered from history lessons in school, is the story of over 22,000 Japanese Canadians forcibly relocated into the interior of British Columbia during World War II. This story is retold by spending an afternoon wandering through The Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre at the site of a former internment camp. The Centre is one of the few remaining places with artifacts from this challenging period of history. The day wraps up in the beautiful Kohan Reflection Garden, sharing a snack from the Apple Tree Sandwich Shop as the sun sets over the Selkirk mountains.

These Walls Can Talk

Lettie and Carla take their history hunting on water. They strap their canoe to the top of their SUV for a drive by stunning cliffs, views of Slocan Lake and flowing rivers en route to Slocan Beach. After grabbing cold drinks and snacks at Flacas Bistro, they slide off into the glassy water in search of one of the two dozen pictographs, or rock paintings, that dot the cliffs of Slocan Lake, created up to 300 years ago by the region’s Indigenous peoples.

Ghost Hunting in Sandon

The idea of exploring a true ghost town just a 15 minute drive away from their hotel, has Lettie and Carla more excited than two prospectors who just struck gold! A gem for self guided seekers with big imaginations, Sandon still holds a city hall frozen in time, a scattering of dilapidated miners’ cabins, a museum and a steam engine from 1908, all relics from when this tiny town was one of the wealthiest mining communities in North America.

Always up for a little extra hunting, the pair head off on the mining road hike to Cody. Never disappointed, the two relish in investigating the remains of several old mine sites including the Slocan Sovereign, Noble Five, Noonday and American Boy mines, as well as multiple ruins and the still standing Noble Five office.