"The Channel"

After we spent some quality time at Bad Tattoo we got the message that our friends had arrived in town and were ready to party. We let them know that we were 110% on board as we had actually already started without them lol. So we hopped in the car and headed into town. This was probably for the best because if we stayed any longer at the brewery I would have had to stop drinking (drinking more than you should and driving is not something anyone should be doing) and would have had to take up the spectator role as Shannon continued to sample the fine tastes of Bad Tattoo beer. So we were ready to leave and take this party to the next level. Crank it up to 11 and rip off the volume knob!!

There was one more stop before we met our friends and that was the Liquor Store. We cannot just show up empty handed to a hotel that we were invited to stay at as non-paying guests. So we loaded up on supplies and a promotional model airplane that sadly did not ever get a chance to go airborne. There was an accident during the assembly that saw to that. It was not meant to be L

So we arrived to find our friends with a packed cooler, a number of empties, and big smiles on their faces, just the sight we were looking to find as we settled in. After some catching up and a number of plans thrown back and forth, Shannon and I were informed just how close we were to “The Channel.” This is something that we have wanted to do for years. I had the experience of going down The Channel on a yearly basis when my parents would take me and my two sisters up to the Interior during our summer vacation. We have many great memories from those trips but few as great as the time that we spent floating down The Channel. As I got older and the family vacation traditions changed it was an event that was not readily brought back to mind until a few years ago when I overheard another friend mentioning what they did on their road trip to Penticton. When I heard that, the gate in my mind was lifted and all the memories can flowing back to me....very similar to the way that the water flows down The Channel J.

From that point on I kept telling Shannon every summer “we have to go down The Channel! You will love it!” One thing that is worth mentioning is that as fun as it was to float down The Channel when I was young, appreciation for such events seems to evolve to something a little bit different once you pass the age of 19....the age you can legally drink in BC. It has often been said, and even more often been thought; how great is it to do (blank)? But how great is it to do (blank) while drinking?! The same rule applied for me and The Channel. Floating down The Channel is awesome! But how much more awesome would it be if we were doing it while drinking?! The answer....way more awesome! Unfortunately the suggestions were heard but never followed through on. Up to this point we have never had the chance BUT today was the day!

We were actually very lucky because Shannon and I had decided to bring up our inflatable air mattress “just in case.” We were not planning on using while sleeping in the car, and we were 90% sure that the hotel would have a pull out couch for us but we thought, it doesn’t take up too much room so why not bring it “just in case.” We didn’t end up needing it for anything else but it was a great way to navigate The Channel!

So it was decided. Our friends started pumping up their two person tube with a cooler in the middle (genius idea!) and we pumped up our two person air mattress. What was even better was that the starting point for The Channel was only a five minute walk away! So we changed into our suits, loaded up our “supplies”, grabbed our floatation devices and off we went. Once we got close to the starting point, we decided it was best to try and keep a low profile, didn’t want our “supplies” getting any unwanted attention. We all agreed that was probably for the best. At that very moment another group walked by us with a flat of Cariboo Buck Shots (beer) right out in the open, not even the slightest attempt to conceal them. When no one seemed to bat an eye at their very public display we realized that maybe we didn’t need to be as discreet as we once thought.

Once in the water we had a plan to tether ourselves together so we didn’t separate on our way down. Their device had a rope that we could use but our mattress didn’t have much to tie it to. We tried the first idea that came to mind, which was to hook it up to the plug that holds the air in our mattress. I realize that sounds like a terrible idea but it was not as simple as that. The plug is a bit more of a complex system than they used to be, so it did have some safety mechanisms so the air would not leak out immediately if the plug was pulled but it still was not a great plan and we found that out almost immediately. The new system we came up with after that was simply holding onto the rope to make sure we didn’t get separated, and that worked as well as it needed to.

After that it was smooth sailing for the next couple hours. The time went by so quickly that we bailed on our initial plan of only going have way, and did the entire channel. It was a fabulous decision except for one factor. The brilliant two person tube that our friends were using had a leak. We knew this was an issue going in, and so we tried to fill it up as much as we could before we unmoored and started the journey, but we did not think that it would get too much worse as the trip went on. So things started to look rather meek near the end, and one of our friends had to come and join us on the mattress for the final 5-10 minutes. This was perfectly ok for us, there was plenty of room, but he did not enjoy it too much. He was perfectly content sitting in his tube out of the water except for his feet. It was not so much that the water was cold but they weather was overcast and warm but not hot. This was to say that if you were out of the water it was not heating you up enough to justify a plunge into the water for any other reason than to “relieve oneself” lol. Once you were in the water it did not take long to acclimatize but his initial reaction was amusing.

There was one upside to the epic meltdown of the tube. At the beginning of the trip our friends had debated whether or not there tube was going to be able to make it through the summer. They had vowed to buy a new one next year but thought they could squeeze a few more trips out of “Old Faithful” to get them through this season. After having to abandon ship a kilometer before the destination it was not a hard decision to donate it to the garbage can beside the bus that was waiting to take us back to the top (a lovely feature for those who are seeking a way to avoid needing a designated driver).

A few worthy mentions for our trip down The Channel. One was the dudes that we saw with a set up that included a cooler twice the size of ours and a radio. The radio was a nice feature, a little outdated and out of tune (no wait it was just country music) but still a welcome add-on. Another was when Shannon had pulled herself out of the water and completely onto the mattress. Then when she was in mid story she fell over backward into the water. Hilariously funny, though I don’t think we ever heard the end of the story since we were laughing too hard. The final one was the awkwardness of arriving with rows and rows of empty cans lining the mattress as we pulled into shore. Environmentally responsible but incriminating lol. Luckily there was a guy that floats around at the end and collects the cans from the other floaters. He must make a killing...not a bad gig I would say. Get to hang out in the sun all day, floating around and checking out the girls in their bikinis *wolf whistle*. I bet he also gets free drinks from people that have extras that they don’t want to bring on the bus home with them. Not too bad at all.

So that was our trip down “The Channel.” It was a fantastic way to spend an afternoon in Penticton! That is also it for this part of my post. I will continue with our jam packed day in my next post. Check in with me again soon J!!