I wanted to thank the people of Nakusp and Fauquier for nine days of fantastic vacation. My wife and kids have been coming to the valley for the better part of the last 20 years.
Not much has changed in that time and it is lovely to rest in your communities. We have always brought our vacation money to the communities and supplied ourselves there to help your economy.
My favourite: do not miss is Glen at Spiritwood (and the Saturday market) where I spend as much as I can. My wife’s is Brewing on Broadway where she spends as much as she can (didn’t see the bearded guy writing in his book this time) and of course the family favourite, the deli by the hardware store where we always get a fantastic lunch.
We did not make it last year because of other commitments but we were glad to be back this year. I am saddened to see so many shops closed since last time, even though the new chocolate store was a good experience.
I believe Nakusp is missing out on a great opportunity in the wake of the festival failure. We camped for many years at Morton’s beach and visited again last week and it is still beautiful as ever. I believe that the powers that be need to get this area reopened as a camping area either as an extension of MacDonald Creek or on it’s own. The economic potential could be tremendous if done properly.
I know it got crazy there in its final years as I saw it first hand. Burning of vehicles, driving in the lake and a total lack of respect for the family atmosphere that it was for so long. The residents of Bayview had a legitimate beef, but this area should be open to the public with a supervised, family-oriented theme.
Since the closure we went to Octopus Creek which is also now closed for different reasons and now to Taite Creek which also has very limited supervision and is peaceful and relaxing.
We spend approx. $1,000 in the area during our week. We drive four hours to get there with the risk of not getting a site. Many people won’t take that risk and simply choose to go elsewhere and spend their thousands out of the valley.
You need the cash as I see it, the towns seem to be suffering economically. Let the families see the valley, have a great camping experience and empty their wallets as we have for so many years. We love your valley, lake and towns but would hate to have to eventually go elsewhere when the camping pressure becomes too great to risk the drive out there. Get Morton’s Beach and Octopus Creek open.
Eric Solland