Chetwynd, BC

Today we drove to Chetwynd. It's reported to be the Chainsaw Capital of the WORLD! Since 2005 they've hosted an International Chainsaw Carving Championship and this year it's being held on June 10-13. Some of the carvings are so intricate that it's really hard to believe that they were created with a chainsaw. To date, there are over 80 carvings located throughout the town. Here's a few of the past winners:

2005 Winner, "Late For Dinner" from Washington State!

2007 Winner, "Life Is Short, Very Hard" from Japan

2008 Winner, "Dragon" from Japan (I wish I could snap this one up for my nephew!)

2009 Winner, "Sanurai Kurita" from Japan

One of my favorites, Wolverine from Oregon! (2009)

Since today was a beautiful, sunny day we decided to do a little grilling for dinner. We stopped by the local IGA and grabbed some hamburger fixings. Since I've been searching for some good Canadian beer and they don't sell alcohol in the stores, we had to find a liquor store as well. Luckily, this town isn't very big. The town Centre is maybe two blocks square. Nothing is too difficult to find and we found the liquor store. Okay, we asked! But it was just around the corner in the next block. We were just new to town and didn't know the layout yet! I bought a case Okanagan Craft beers - 2 different kinds of Lager, a Hefeweizen (which no one ever seems to like but me!) and a Pale Ale. When I got back to the Motor home I stuck them all in the refrigerator - who knows how many we'll need with our burgers!!

Cooper and I decided to take a nice walk when we got back from the store. I really wanted to hike Baldy Hill, a local favorite where you can see all over from the top. When I went into the visitor center to inquire, the girl told me she, as well as others had hiked it over the weekend and saw a bear(s). Since I'm essentially hiking alone (I don't count Cooper) and I don't make a habit of talking loudly to myself or to my dog, I opted out this time, but I was disappointed. Maybe if I were braver - but if I saw a bear on a hike my instinct would be to run like Hell, which is the wrong thing to do. I'm not sure I could look at some bear and slowly back away. As an alternative, for those that are too scared to hike Baldy Hill, they have developed some pretty nice trails - one was right out my door, a nice asphalt trail, with trees, dog poop bags, garbage cans running the length of town - so we took the safe route and walked that. It was still maybe 4 miles total - no hills - no bears!

Me and Cooper - "On Eagles Wings"