Nestled deep in the British Columbia interior, not too far north of Idaho, USA, there is a mountain town called Fernie. Fernie has a river which offers fly fishing, a golf course and a ski hill making it a paradise for lovers of the outdoors. We decided to spend a night here to see what it was all about and were pleasantly surprised.
These pictures are all from July 2024, the height of the Summer and good weather. It was hot enough to swim in this river which is fed in part from glacier runoff. We did go swimming in a nearby lake but it was late in the day so we were just walking around town.
The path around town makes this place idyllic. Other than the fact that there is only one road in and out of town, I can understand why someone would want to live here for a year or two or even retire here. There are so many activities and it's just down right beautiful.
People were drifting in rafts down the river to fly fish and they were in inner tubes floating down stream while drinking beer. Sounds like the perfect way to spend a Saturday night in a small town. Above is a picture of the only road going through town and is the southernmost highway across Canada.
Flowers were in bloom and peoples yards were looking great. The path is build on some sort of levee because the river probably floods in the Spring. The water is pure but there is some logging activity and coal mining upstream. A Railroad also passes through here to get the coal to port.
To be totally honest I am jealous. These people went to Walmart, bought some cheap rafts and are floating down the river enjoying some beverages. Next time we come to Fernie this would be the perfect activity, although it looked a little swift at points it seemed to be safeish as they aren't wearing life jackets and would know where to get out of the river before it gets wild.
The daisies or Chamomile flowers were abundant. If I am not mistaken one can make tea with this plant. There were millions to pick and they just grew along the path.
At some point the trail was not paved although this was likely a branch. We cut through the town half way because we wanted to see what was happening. There was a music festival going on and quite a few decent bars. One could easily find some social life going on here as there would be hundreds of resort workers.
Here's a trail map. We cut through the town but walked along the Elk River for the rest of our journey. There are hundreds of more challenging hikes in the area but it was late and we were not in the state to go on a serious adventure. The river is pretty enough and many people were out and about.
Apparently there was an internment camp here during the First World War/ Great War. The trapped various Europeans and made them crush rocks, mine and cut trees. Canada was not always such a pleasant country.
They also found some oil here a long time ago and had some industry around that but now for the most part Fernie has as clean air and is as nice as it gets.
We stayed in some generic Best Western Mountain lodge. Fernie is growing and adding more accomodation. I would love to go skiing here one day, we did not go up the mountain but they do have a gondola open in the Summer for mountain biking and hiking.
I am sure one day we will be back sooner than later. Thank you for reading and Happy Friday!
All photos were taken with an s22 pro and are unfiltered.