Grand forks is in the Boundary country, between the Okanakan and the Kootenays, in British Columbia. It has over 2000 hours of sunshine a year being in semi-arid countryside and has a population of 5,000 people while the greater area of Grand Forks has 10,000 people.
The weather is one of extremes. In the summer times the temperatures rise to above thirty degrees, with swimming pool water heats to above 28 degrees with no other means of heat than the sunshine. In the winter times the temperatures drop to minus ten or eighteen degrees centigrade. The rivers freeze, and the air is clear and fresh. At times in the winter the air is misty, as the temperatures rise with the surrounding mountains being cloaked in low clouds. The city sidewalks here are kept clear of snow in the winter times. When we have snow the machines are out clearing the sidewalks, the main roads and the city roads.
The river Kettle runs through Grand Forks and the Grandby River is on its eastern boundary. They converge in the middle of the town and carry on south as the kettle river, eventually meeting up with the Columbia River in the USA. The river has lots of little beaches and swimming holes. In the summer months it is great fun to tube down either the Grandby or the Kettle River.
A ten minute drive away is a picturesque lake called Christina Lake, the warmest tree-lined lake in British Columbia, despite its great depth. It is a popular tourist spot for both British Columbians and Albertans.
They call Grand Forks the city of borsch and sunshine, a legacy to it Doukhobor past.
The city centre has a variety of shops and eating places and is the central hub of the Boundary country with all year round events including farmers markets in the summer, a fall fair,and ski-ing at Phoenix. International baseball championships are held here annually. Collectors and experts in minerals from all over the world are attracted to the area for the museum quality crystals found at Rock Candy mountain just a short drive away.
The only hospital in the area with 24 hr emergency is in Grand Forks and so is the only airport in the area with 24 hr emergency.
People who move to grand forks seem to remain there for the rest of their lives and residents of Grand Forks who leave for university or career reasons tend to gravitate back in later years seeking the peace and tranquility always to be found in the area.
Author M.A.Lewis writes about the city. Visit Her Web Site for more pictures and information.
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