Feb. 22
Discipline Fitness devoted to a healthy lifestyle
Tucked away behind the pharmacy, clinics and hair salon on the corner of Broadway and Nelson is Nakusp’s fitness facility, Discipline Fitness. The understated but fully stocked gym is easy to miss, unless you like taking slow, leisurely walks through the town’s alleyways.
What owner Logan Marchischuk is aiming for is a space where people can come and feel comfortable while they pursue their fitness goals.
“It’s a process,” he emphasized, “Don’t expect to get a one month membership and lose 40 pounds. It’s like having 40 grand in debt. You’re not going to get rid of that in a month.”
For Marchischuk, it’s been both a very humbling and rewarding experience.
“It’s been humbling being a role model to teen boys,” he answered when asked, “and ever since I was a teenager I thought it would be cool to own a gym.”
Discipline has made it happen; Marchischuk has created a space everyone can come and feel better, inside and out.
March 25
Community forestry breaks for springtime
Wind and snow ushered in the ides of March around Nakusp. Although the thermometer read warm and warmer, the snow kept falling.
On the last week before the loggers and school kids took their spring break, Jesper Nielsen, Nacfor manager, went to check out what was happening on the community forest blocks near McDonald Creek.
“This area’s called Slewiskin or McDonald Creek,” Nielsen said, as the truck headed up the numbered forestry service road.
Operations are scheduled to shut down soon for the “spring break” which allows the roads to remain undisturbed during the wet spring season, and ensures drainage patterns aren’t interfered with. As we start up the first fork in the road, mud changes to wet snow. Up above, it’s snowing on the mountainside.
“Diversion of drainage, that’s when things go wrong,” said Nielsen, who has full confidence in the workers using the roads. “Experienced logging contractors are diligent and conscientious, partly because they’ve been scrutinized for around twenty years.”
Aug. 19
Box Lake Lumber puts Nakusp on the map
If you keep your eyes peeled on the way out of town toward New Denver, you’ll spot a new sign on the side of the road just before Brouse Loop. It says: Box Lake Lumber 3 km.
If you turn off Highway 6 and drive up Wilson Lake Road to the mill, you’ll quickly see it’s a very busy place. Large trucks back in and are loaded, and forklifts and other machinery roam around the work yard.
It was bright skies and good weather the day that the Seniors Association took their tour with Dan Wiebe, the mill’s owner, who guided the group of ten through the site’s operations, which employs around 40 people in two shifts.
Danny handed out bright orange earplugs to the seniors, and there were a few jokes about just turning down hearing aids instead. Outside, the noise of the mill isn’t that bad, it’s the trucks and machines making their way through the site that are loud.
This is the third incarnation of the Wiebe mill that Dan has been part of, thanks to fires. With each rebuilding, Dan and his father took advantage of the opportunity to try something a little different. Box Lake Lumber now specializes in cedar products, from split rails to chips to bark mulch.
The lumber mill is a much-admired business, and Dan Wiebe was nominated for an Order of B.C. for his innovative, positive and hard-working approach. His nomination was supported by the Village and the Development Board as well as Tom Zeleznik, and the letters they wrote all emphasize the importance of the mill for the Village, as well as Dan’s upstanding character. Unfortunately, he wasn’t chosen, but that’s alright; he’s still busy doing good work here in Nakusp, including taking time out of his busy day to lead a tour of seniors and one Nakusp journalist through the work site.
Sept. 23
New operator for Arrow Lakes ferries
The contractor that operates the Galena Bay, Arrow Park and Fauquier ferries is changing from Western Pacific Marine Ltd. to new contractor Waterbridge Ferries Inc. on Oct. 1, 2012, the Arrow Lakes News can confirm.
A B.C. transportation ministry spokesperson said the contract to operate the ferries was tendered this spring when the old one expired. Waterbridge emerged as the winning bidder.
The Arrow Lakes News spoke with representatives from both companies and the ministry. All were reluctant to divulge details, saying an official announcement was pending.
The ministry said the contract had not yet been finalized.
Oct. 13
CMH and K2 bring energy and enthusiasm to new lodge
The change in signage and appearance at the Kuskanax – now the K2 CMH Rotor Lodge – heralds a new partnership between the ski manufacturer and heli-skiing company. The collaboration is already wreaking change on the winter season in Nakusp.
The assembly of world-class skiers – each to spend a week with guests at the lodge this winter – introduced themselves to NSS students, each conveying their friendliness and down-to-earth nature through a quick autobiographical sketch...
K2 Global Marketing Manager Mike Gutt feels like the company and the town are a “natural fit.”
Nakusp was specifically picked out from all the CMH lodges thanks to its low-key, homey feel, Gutt told the Arrow Lakes News. “We had gone to two other lodges, but they were too high end, which didn’t fit K2’s style. We’re not hoity toity.”
K2 Skis started on Vashon Island off the coast of Washington between Seattle and Tacoma. Nakusp’s relaxed small town culture and extreme natural beauty reminded Gutt of the “little hippy island.”
After spending a down day off the slopes, visiting local businesses and hitting it off with folks in town, the seed was planted for the CMH-K2 lodge to take root in Nakusp.
“We’ve never done anything on this scale, so this is a lot of fun,” said Gutt.