Reciprocal invitation and exchanges ideas between Green Gables Loft Bed and Breakfast in Revelstoke British Columbia Canada and L'Etoile Guesthouse in La Bastide-Puylaurent Lozere France.
Green Gables Loft Bed & Breakfast Little Bavary in the Rockies
As
Bourg Saint Maurice in the Alps, Revelstoke is surrounded by mountains with its
national and provincial parks. The Columbia River, the Trans-Canada Higway and
cargo trains are slowly crossing the small town.
The
high season lasting only 4 or 5 months in this part of Canada is already over
when we arrive, navertheless the weather end nature still invite us for hiking
and others outdoor activities. Under the protection of UNESCO, the Mount
Revelstoke National Park is the home of many mammals of which grizzly, black
bear, cariboo, cougar, deer and beaver.
Once arrived in front of the small wooden house
painted in green, a good-looking lady with blond hair welcome us with a large
smile; it's Gundy Baty, the inn-keeper of Green Gables Loft B&B.
Gundy
made this house unique by decorating it with much taste up to the slightest
details and the small decoration paintings on cabinets and roof gables remind
the Eastern Europe.
Gundy's journey up to Revelstoke from her country
of origin (Germany) was pretty long; before landing here, in the heart of
British Colunmbia, she was a german teacher in Bordeaux in France, a manager of
jewellery store in Toronto, travel agent and also health care person. She
adopted two children, Robert from Seychels Islands and Vincent from Columbia,
studying now at the university of Toronto.
Gundy loves cooking starting by apple stroudel and pumpkin soup going up to 'choucroute'
and home made jams. She is always spontaneous and ready to help her customers in
spite of her work and every day worries about the business.
Gundy do not have much nostalgy for Germany but rather for France, the country
she seems to know very well.
The B&B owners are always a bit special people, they might be looking more for realizing themselves or to realize an ideal or dream. Sometimes, the dream carry them away and their business suffers of it. To stay feet on the earth and the head in the sky...
The Columbia River is being regularly cut by dams. This huge water reserve for Portland and Seatle is so large that we might think we are on the lake. It takes 25 minutes to the inland ferry to cross the river. This fairytale landscape of water, forests and snowed-up summits with all these trees which, in spite of the late October, keep still the leaves glowing in red, yellow up to light green colours.
Few
minutes drive from Nakusp on the lakeside, we fall on "Halcyon Hot Springs", a
small spa with limestone water coming out at more than 50°C. Big log building of
Halcyon welcoms people with its three pools, one at 38C°, the second at 42°C and
the small one at 12C°. From the pools, we have an unimpeded outlook on the
Columbia River (here called Upper Arrow Lake) and on the mountains.
Captain Robert Sanderson baught the lot in 1890
from the Crown. Since the construction, the Halcyon Hot Springs Hotel was a
popular destination, a kind of local Deauville, up to 1955 when a boiler
explosed and the hotel burned to the ground.
This magical place of rest in the unique surroundings is part of the real
pleasures during a trip in Canada.
The
Park Story
As the road winds up the mountain, you'll see
flourishing rain forest give way to open snow forest. Near the top of the road,
wide meadows are scattered with stands of trees. In late July and August these
meadows bloom with a flamboyant carpet of wildflowers. Higher still is the
treeless alpine.
Deep snow blankets the mountains and valleys each winter. It dictates the growth and habits of all plants and animals in Mount Revelstoke National Park. Up high, the snow season stretches from October to July.
***
Old romantic Hotel with beautiful grounds bordering the Allier River. L'Etoile Guest-House is located in La Bastide-Puylaurent between Lozere, Ardeche and Cevennes. Hiking trails GR7, GR70 Stevenson, GR72, GR700 Regordane (St Gilles), Cevenol, Roujanel, Margeride, Allier, Ardechoise, Gevaudan and many hiking loops around. A mountain retreat in the South of France. The right place to relax.