Wells
An artistic nature
Wells is an artistic community surrounded by remarkable natural beauty
Wells is a small community of around 240 people. That population almost doubles when summer residents and employees of the town’s biggest nearby attraction, Barkerville Historic Town, begin to arrive. While Barkerville is one of the main draws, the locals never lack for interesting things to do.
Peak Experience: Mount Kaza near the town of Wells is part of the 7 Summits Challenge.-Dave Jorgenson photo
“There’s quite often live entertainment at the Bear’s Paw Café,” said Carol McGregor, the marketing and economic development officer for the District of Wells. “And there are the galleries which, if you have time, are fun to go through. We have seven galleries that are open in the summer. That’s kind of what Wells is known for—it’s kind of a funky, hippy arts community that people feel comfortable in.”
McGregor said public cabins that are accessible via nearby hiking trails are popular with locals and visitors.
“They’re well-marked hiking trails,” she said. “On Two Sisters (Mountain), you can just go up to camp, and lots of people take tents up there, too.”
Several forestry campsites in the region also give nature lovers a chance to enjoy the superlative scenery and the fresh air for which the region is known.
Exploring new heights
Wells is also home to the 7 Summits Bike and Hike Challenge held in September. Dave Jorgenson and Cheryl Macarthy, owners of the Bear’s Paw Café, created the event as a way of encouraging locals and visitors to see the amazing trails the region has to offer.
“Last year was the third year of our 7 Summits hiking program,” said Jorgenson. “A few years ago when we were out hiking, we said, ‘We’ve got to get more people out here.’ So what we did is we went to the top of seven mountains and we put some beads in a container at the top of each mountain. Every mountain has a different kind of bead and we said, ‘If you climb to the top of each of these mountains and collect a bead from each one any time over the summer, when you get seven beads you can come back to the Bear’s Paw and we’ll give you your grand prize—a free piece of cranberry carrot cake and a cup of tea of your choice.”
The idea took hold in the community and Jorgenson said they were very pleased with the response.
“The first year we had a girl who had never hiked and a 72-year-old woman,” said Jorgenson. “Each of them completed their seventh summit on the top of Mount Agnes and we had a tea party for them up there.”
Jorgenson said that even those who don’t complete the full challenge enjoy seeing the area, and collecting even one bead can give one a great sense of accomplishment.
“Everybody’s intrigued by it and it helps to get people outside,” he said. “We hike because it’s lovely but some people need the extra goal.”
Stop in at the Bear’s Paw for more info.
RESOURCES:
http://thebearspaw.ca
www.whitegold.ca
Send to a friend
Comment