Riondel, British Columbia - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Riondel is a village of approximately 400 people. It is situated on the eastern shore of Kootenay Lake

Kootenay Lake

Kootenay Lake is a lake located in British Columbia, Canada and is part of theKootenay River. The lake has been raised by the Corra Linn Dam and has a dike system at the southern end, which, along with industry in the 1950s-70s, has changed the ecosystem in and around the water...

, located 90-minutes from Nelson, British Columbia

Nelson, British Columbia

Nelson is a city located in the Selkirk Mountains on the extreme West Arm of Kootenay Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Known as "The Queen City", and acknowledged for its impressive collection of restored heritage buildings from its glory days in a regional silver rush,...

, using the world's longest free ferry

Kootenay Lake Ferry

The Kootenay Lake Ferry is a ferry across the Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, Canada. It operates between Balfour, on the west side of the lake, and Kootenay Bay, on the east side. Two ferry vessels are used, the MV Osprey 2000 and the MV Balfour.The ferry operates under contract to the British...

ride.

History

The settlement of Riondel originated from a very productive silver

Silver

Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...

, lead

Lead

Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...

and zinc

Zinc

Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...

mine, known as the Bluebell mine. In 1882 an American named Robert Sproule staked four claims along the Riondel Peninsula

Peninsula

A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....

, including the Bluebell mine. When he left to register his claims an Englishman, Thomas Hammill, restaked the claims. This led to a dispute that ended with Sproule shooting Hammill dead and Sproule Dying in the gallows

Gallows

A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...

for his crime.

1890s

In the 1890s the settlement was known as Hendryx, after Wilbur Hendryx, who had control of the Bluebell mine and other claims in the mid 1880s. In 1905 The Canadian Metal Company purchased the mine, and in 1907 the settlement was named Riondel after Count Edouard Riondel, the president of the Canadian Metal Company.

Pronunciation

Riondel is pronounced in several different ways, even by locals: RI,ON DEL, RYE-on-del,are all commonly heard. However, S.S. Fowler, who applied for the post office in 1907, wrote: “It is or should be pronounced RI-ON-DEL with accent very slightly on the first syllable.”

Bluebell mine

The Bluebell mine operated from 1895 to 1929, during which the population of Riondel was stable at around 70 people. With the closure of the Bluebell mine in 1929 the population dwindled until in 1943 there were only 22 people left in Riondel. In 1950 the Bluebell mine re-opened, and the population of Riondel soared to almost 300 people within three years. The expansion of the Bluebell mine required more electricity and in 1952 Cominco built power lines across the Kootenay Lake, to bring power to the East Shore without the use of generators. Development included a smelter and a townsite. This mine has the longest history in the province of British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

1950-1972

From 1950, Riondel was a bustling, thriving mining town until 1972, when the Bluebell mine closed for good. Most people moved on to other nearby towns, while the older employees stayed in Riondel and retired. Riondel became a popular retirement community and at one time had more seniors per capita than any other postal code

Postal code

A postal code is a series of letters and/or digits appended to a postal address for the purpose of sorting mail. Once postal codes were introduced, other applications became possible.In February 2005, 117 of the 190 member countries of the Universal Postal Union had postal code systems...

in Canada.

1972-Present

Today Riondel is a tidy village with streets, a lakeside campground, beach, community centre, playground, cable TV system, 9-hole golf course, grocery and liquor store, cafe, pub,and in April, 2006 Riondel was connected with high-speed internet provided by Telus

TELUS

Telus is a national telecommunications company in Canada that provides a wide range of telecommunications products and services including internet access, voice, entertainment, video, and satellite television. The company is based in Burnaby, British Columbia, part of Greater Vancouver...

. Currently about 400 people live in the village.

Riondel Daze

On August 3 to 5, Riondel hosts an annual celebration called Riondel Daze. This event is usually attended by the Historical Society of Riondel's vintage ambulance, a 1949 Mercury. The event features a ball tournament with a hot dog stand and local music.

Location

Riondel is located on Riondel Road on the eastern shore of Kootenay Lake, 6 miles (10 km) north of Kootenay Bay, the eastern terminal of the Kootenay Lake ferry

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

. Riondel is a 1-hour drive from Creston, British Columbia

Creston, British Columbia

Creston is a town of 4,826 people in the Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. The town is located just a few kilometers north of the Porthill, Idaho border crossing into the United States and about a three-hour drive north from Spokane, Washington. It is about a one-hour drive...

, and a 90-minute drive from Nelson, British Columbia

Nelson, British Columbia

, using the world's longest free ferry

Kootenay Lake Ferry

ride.

Hiking

The Waterfront Trail in Riondel follows 1.5 km of the lakeshore from the south end of North Bay beach; The Pebble Beach Trail 7 km north of Riondel leads from the Kootenay Lake East FS Road to a south-facing, pebbled beach; The 15-minute Pilot Bay Lighthouse Trail near Kootenay Bay leads to an historic 1907 lighthouse; The one-hour Pilot Bay Marine Park trail leads through varying terrain as it follows the lakeshore; The Plaid Lake Hiking Trail near Crawford Bay is a full day hike to the alpine Plaid Lake on the west side of the Purcell Mountains; The Duck Lakes Dykes Trail near Sirdar offers miles of almost level hiking through some of the richest waterfowl

Waterfowl

Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....

habitat in British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

Golf

Golfers in Riondel have two golf clubs to choose from; the 9-hole Par 3 course at the friendly Riondel Golf Club, located on Galena Bay Wharf Road just 10 minutes from the Kootenay Bay ferry

Ferry

, and the 18-hole championship Kokanee Springs Golf Resort in Crawford Bay, a 20-minute drive to the south.

Fishing

Kootenay Lake maintains considerable populations of various fish species, including kokanee

Sockeye salmon

Sockeye salmon , also called red salmon or blueback salmon in the USA, is an anadromous species of salmon found in the Northern Pacific Ocean and rivers discharging into it...

, rainbow

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

and cutthroat trout

Cutthroat trout

The cutthroat trout is a species of freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. It is one of the many fish species colloquially known as trout...

, Dolly Varden

Dolly Varden

Dolly Varden may refer to:* Dolly Varden , a character in the novel Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens. The original usage.* Dolly Vardens , a group of Black women baseball players that comprised the first professional baseball team* Dolly Varden , a musical group from Chicago, Illinois* Dolly Varden...

, burbot

Burbot

The burbot is the only gadiform fish inhabiting freshwaters. It is also known as mariah, the lawyer, and eelpout. It is closely related to the marine common ling and the cusk...

, and whitefish

Whitefish (fisheries term)

Whitefish or white fish is a fisheries term referring to several species of demersal fish with fins, particularly cod , whiting , and haddock , but also hake , pollock , or others...

. Kootenay Lake supports record-sized Rainbow Trout

Rainbow trout

, and the world's largest recorded kokanee

Sockeye salmon

Sockeye salmon , also called red salmon or blueback salmon in the USA, is an anadromous species of salmon found in the Northern Pacific Ocean and rivers discharging into it...

- almost 10 pounds (4.5 kg) - was taken from Kootenay Lake. 'Kokanee' means 'red fish' in the Kootenay Indian language and is the name given to the land-locked salmon that spawn in large numbers in Kokanee Creek in the late summer. The best fishing time is in the fall and winter months.

Recreation

Other outdoor opportunities in Riondel include canoeing

Canoeing

Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....

or kayaking

Kayaking

Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across water. Kayaking and canoeing are also known as paddling. Kayaking is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle...

the waters of the 75-mile long and 5-mile wide Kootenay Lake (rentals available), swimming, wildlife and nature viewing, boating and sailing, horsedrawn adventures, and backcountry exploration. The Youth Of Riondel Have a youth Group at the Riondel Recreation Center playing floor hockey on Sundays and many other things such as pool air hockey and movies.

there is a playground at the recreation center (White Building) which was a old school and now is a community center library,museum,aa meeting room and moms and tots,computer room.

Camping

The private Riondel Campground is located 1 km from the Riondel General Store, and a second campground and RV park

RV park

A recreational vehicle park or caravan park is a place where people with recreational vehicles can stay overnight, or longer, in alloted spaces known as "pitches"...

is located 12 km north of Riondel.