Visiting Merritt, BC

#rvlife #travel #merrit

2021-07-11

Gateway to Cowboy Country

I can remember the very first time I visited Merritt, BC. It was on a road trip to Kelowna for a long weekend and we had stopped there for gas and lunch. It was the very first time I had ventured over the Cascade mountains from the lower mainland and I remember being completely shocked at how different the landscape was to the BC I had known.

The BC I knew was a garden of eden with lush temperate rainforests, more ferns than you could shake a stick at and huge tall western red cedar trees. I remember thinking that the town of Merritt and its surrounding area resembled something like a country and western movie - all I needed was a tumbleweed to go blowing past...oh wait that actually happened!

Merritt is a gateway to cowboy culture in British Columbia. It’s home to the Country Music Hall of Fame, the walk of stars, a ton of country musician murals, and of course a massive country music festival every August. In the nearby village of Quilchena is Canada’s largest working cattle ranch. Who'd thunk?! All this time I had the stereotypical idea that the home of Country was in Alberta.   It’s a great place to start on a cowboy tour of the Thompson/Cariboo region.

Until next time, keep on living the life you’ve imagined!

Mel, Jay & Benny