by Ray Hudson
It’s a city of seventeen and a half thousand people, located on the delta of the Salmon River at the head of one of the four arms of Shuswap Lake. This massive lake, 89 miles long and at 309.6 square kilometers, second in size to Okanagan Lake which is 351 square kms. It is roughly the shape of an ’H’ on it’s side, and along with Salmon Arm, the southerly arm, there is Ansty Arm to the east, Seymour Arm to the north and the Shuswap, or main lake to the west.
The community grew out of farming, especially fruit growing, and 
forestry, and there’s a railroad running through it, the CPR. The Trans Canada highway, makes it accessible from the east and west being roughly half way between Calgary and Vancouver and Vernon and the Okanagan corridor to the south.
Some of the more modern reasons for its success as a community are:
– It is located on the Trans-Canada Highway and it the main route for commercial trucking, as well as private travel, and a great spot for an overnight or a vacation.
– Tourism is a major part of the economy offering a wide variety of accommodations, auto and boating services, restaurants, conferences, golfing, resorts, house-boating, tourist attractions and more. The fishing is hot with the Shuswap offering a wide variety of fish including Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Bull Trout, Kokanee and Burbot. Many people who live away have vacation cottages or full-blown homes around the 250 miles of accessible lakeshore, and a growing number of seniors are finding the city a delightful community to retire to.
– Agriculture – fruit and grape growing, dairy, beef, pork, poultry vegetables and forage
– Forestry, including logging, milling and plywood production as well as
– Secondary manufacturing – Lumber processing, machinery, sporting goods, food products, transportation equipment, building products, printing and pu
blishing.
It’s a busy place all year around. The warm season lasts from June 15 to September 6 with an average daily high temperature above 23°C. The hottest day of the year is July 30, with an average high of 29°C and low of 13°C. The cold season lasts from November 19 to February 29 with an average daily high temperature below 5°C. The coldest day of the year is January 20, with an average low of -7°C and high of -1°C.
Recommendation: try it out. There is something for everyone here as evidenced by the photos accompanying this article. See you in the Shuswap.
Photos by Ray Hudson
