The Kootenay Bay area

The ferry is the highlight of this grand intersection of the Kootenay Lake and its West Arm. It begins its 45-minute journey in Balfour located on the west arm of the lake and travels eastward to the town of Kootenay Bay, located on the eastern shore of the lake.

And Kootenay Bay, which isn't much more than the ferry landing itself with a couple of eateries, isn't the only town on the eastern shore. One can travel the 3A highway all the way down to Creston. My travel partner and I stopped nearly halfway at the town of Boswell where the well-known Glass House brought us to a halt.

The 3A on the east side is dotted with towns that house art galleries of every kind, including weaving, iron-making, pottery and hand-made brooms. It starts with the popular eatery called Mojo's where the coffee smells great and the sandwiches look even better. Not too far from there is the Pilot Bay Lighthouse, with an easy walk through old forest to its location on a bluff where it can be seen for miles.

It may be a little more remote, a little less traveled than the west side of the lake, but there's plenty there to keep one entertained for the day.

Two ferries operate from early morning until 10pm or so: the larger Osprey carries 80 vehicles, and the smaller, Balfour, which operates only in the busier summer months, carries 28. Both allow pedestrians as well as RVs and the largest of trucks. And both, of course, are free, making it the longest free ferry in the world.

The Pilot Bay Lighthouse played an important role during the early 1900s when the sternwheelers were active on the Kootenay Lake. It was activated in 1905 and ceased operaion in 1993. It is the only remaining inland lighthouse in British Columbia. One reaches the lighthouse on a short gradually uphill mossy, old-forest trail that takes no longer than 15 or 20 minutes to walk.

The North Woven Broom Company is one of the first businesses one sees on the eastern shore of Kootenay Lake. The log cabin is their factory, open to the public, where each broom is hand-woven and unique. There are three types of brooms to choose from, each with its own purpose. The staff are friendly, informative and free to answer questions while they work.

Call it weird, or call it whimsical, this house was built in 1952 by David Brown after retiring from the funeral business. He wanted to find use for the empty embalming bottles that would otherwise be discarded. Originally, it was to be the Browns' private residence, but when the castle-like appearance started attracting the attention of passers-by on the Highway 3A, he decided to open it to the public in the summer months. An admission is charged. The house has four main rooms, each circular. The house sits on a huge solid rock which explains the multi-levels of the house of about 12oo square feet. Between the 500,000 bottles are mortar and cedar wood. Outside, terraces, towers and walls are made using the same technique. The flowers and gardens are quite impressive.

Balfour is a small community on the west arm of Kootenay Bay and the area from which the ferry departs. But also in Balfour is the Birch Grove RV Park and Marina where I stayed while visiting this area. It will probably go down as one of my favorites, mainly because of its terrific location and because of my specific site that was on a short bluff overlooking Kootenay Lake's west arm. One morning, I woke up to a morning fog hanging low over the water. I got these shots before it quickly lifted.

The Kootenay-Balfour ferry is not the only free ferry service on the west arm of the lake. This smaller, cable ferry is a five-minute on-demand ferry that transports vehicles over to the south side of the west arm. The two communities there, Procter and Harrop are about four miles apart and got their beginnings in the late 1890s and early 1900s through sawmills and the railroad. Today, Harrop is mainly vacation homes for those wanting solitude and remoteness. Procter, a bit larger, is an orchard and farming community. The next several shots were taken in these communities. The combined population is between 600 and 700.