The S.S.Moyis is the oldest "intact passenger sternwheeler" in the world. It was launched in Nelson B.C. on October 22, 1898 and after nearly sixty years of service on Kootenay Lake it was retired in 1957. The Moyie was the major vessel and "Queen of the Lake" during the boom years of the early 1900s. She was a favorite among passengers with elegant features like a large dining saloon, a luxurious smoking lounge, private ladies’ saloon, and comfortable overnight cabins, all richly decorated in gold leaf.
Her last run was on April 27, 1957 - she ran her regular 87-mile-long route, stopping at towns and landings such as Riondel, Ainsorth, Kaslo, Lardeau, and Argenta. At each stop she was greeted by tearful residents who honored her many years of service by farewell banners, songs and wreaths.
After she was retired the boat was sold to the town of Kaslo and restored. Today, the S.S. Moyie is a National Histoirc Site of Canada.
The Moyie is of special interests to us Pirates as we know for a fact (yes, the "Pirate Cousins" told us) that Gunpowder Gertie, our favorite Pirate Heroine, robbed the Moyie on more than one occasion during her reign as "Pirate Queen of the Kootenays". From 1898 to 1903 Gunpowder Gertie steamed up and down the rivers in her gunboat, the “Tyrant Queen”, pilaging and plundering steamboats of their cargos - gold and silver from local mines and payrolls on their way to towns. She would appear out of nowhere, relieve the passengers of their valuables and the paddlewheelers of their payloads at pistol point and then vanish. According to local Pirate folk lore Gertie's Ghost can still be seen aboard the vessle on a Foggy Day.
In order to log this virual you will need to visit the posted coordinates where you will find a plaque.
The bottom right corner has a little plaque with a year. What is that year?
You will need to email or message us through Geocaching with your answer.
As well as answering the question you need to take a picture of yourself (not necessarily your face......boots work) with the S.S. Moyie in the background. Bonus points if you capture a picture of Gertie on the vessel.
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.