The original cache contents include numerous frogs, salamanders,
turtles, path coin and a TB.
Canal Flats was originally called McGillvray's Portage by David
Thompson in 1808 and in 1913 a post office was created and called
Canal Flats. It is situated on a berm between 2 rivers.
The purpose of a canal was to connect the Kootenay River to the
Columbia River which was about 10 feet lower than the Kootenay
river, thus providing a water transportation route from Montana to
Golden BC. This would also divert water to farm areas upstream in
the Columbia river, namely around the Creston area. Remains of the
canal is on the other side of the lake opposite this site, near the
Provincial Park.Visit the cache at GC1XVXT.
W.A. Baillie-Groham contracted with the BC government in the
1880's to build a canal over a distance of 1 mile, 30' wide with a
depth of 4'. There were 2 locks 125' long with 35' widths. His
compensation was approximately 30,000 acres in what is now
Creston.
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Kootenay (Kootenai in USA) is derived from reference to the
People of Ktunaxa the original inhabitants of this Rocky Mountain
Trench area. The name Kootenai or aqkinmiluk means river and they
were historically called Flatbow by the
Blackfeet."http://www.ktunaxa.org/network/index.html"
The Kootenay River heads south to Montana and crosses back
across the border around Creston and eventually joins up with the
Columbia. The Kootenay is 485 miles (781km) in length compared to
1,225 miles (1,960km) for the Columbia. Columbia Lake is
approximatly 2,690' (820m) above sea level and eventually enters
the Pacific Ocean at Astoria Oregon.
The canal was completed in 1889 with the first passage by the
stern wheeler Gwendoline and decommissioned in 1902 when the North
Star, also a stern wheeler, made the journey. She was only the 3
third vessel to have gone through the locks which were destroyed in
order to complete her journey.The 130-foot North Star was too long
(by 30 feet) and too wide (by nine inches) for the lock gates. Not
to be defeated, Capt. Armstrong cut the side rails off the ship,
burned away the lock gates and lengthened the lock with dams of
sand bags at either end. Then he set a dynamite charge in the north
dam, and the big ship literally sluiced into the Columbia Lake. The
sand-bag dam at the south end kept the Kootenay from illegally
flowing into the lake.
As recent as the 1960's the upper portions of both rivers were
free flowing until in 1961 the Columbia River Treaty was signed
which resulted in the construction of numerous dams. These dams
caused unnatural water flow, blocked fish migration, flooded
agricultural land and forced the relocation of over 2,000 people.
To financially assist the community, the Columbia Basin Trust was
formed and exists today to assist the communities that were
affected. For more information go to http://www.cbt.org