This is a bigger story than one blog post, so expect a small series of gold panner posts.
How it began
I had been working at my dream job selling motorcycles (and taking the demos home on the weekend) Having a pretty good time in Winnipeg, and enjoying friends and family.
Out of the blue, I get this call from my Dad in September “Hey Matt, we bought a campground”. This was as shocking to me as it sounds, my parents were business people, but they were never retail business people… They enjoyed their privacy and quiet time, so you can imagine how crazy this sounded to me. Dad was very excited and wanted to fly me to visit over thanksgiving weekend.
I remember them picking me up at the Kelowna airport and driving me to Cherryville B.C. There I got my first tour of the Gold Panner Campground. The history of the Gold Panner goes back to the 1800’s and sometime in the early 1900’s it had a Pelton wheel generator installed, it still had water running through the pipes but of course, it wasn’t working. The Gold Panner also had a mine that was semi-working where I got a basic tour. My dad drove me around on the Polaris ranger, proudly showing me all the history and talking about the Chinese miners. To him this was his paradise, and I was would be lying if I wasn’t intrigued.
We spent the weekend in the “prospector cabin” where my Mom had cooked a thanksgiving dinner, they were both so excited. Though still surprised at this move. I asked how did you find this place, and why did you buy it? They were on a motorcycle trip and took almost all their savings and bought a campground, restaurant and a bunch of cabins.
Their explanation sounded simple enough, but was it a good idea? or perhaps a decision motivated by midlife
Does that sound like a good idea? or perhaps a decision motivated by midlife? Dad’s dream was to always be a park ranger, and the thought of owning a campground with a motorcycle-friendly cafe must have hit all the checkmarks. Mom’s hospitality skills also seemed to becoming alive, as she was excited with all the things she could do.
Having worked most of my life in retail at this point and feeling the burn of customer service, I seriously questioned my parent’s ability to do this, but my common sense and criticism were quickly forgotten with my newfound dreams of becoming a gold panner. I spent the weekend in the excitement then flew home back home.
At the time, I didn’t expect to have an active role in this adventure but was happy to participate when I visited etc. Sometime after Christmas Igot a call from my Dad, “Matt can you help us run this Campground for the next year, we’re pretty busy and we just need someone to take care of it for us, while we get ready for our move”. Instantly my response was “how much am I getting paid?” (a potter must always think in terms of profit). My parents didn’t give us much easily(thankful for that), so my question was on point. Dad agreed to a base salary with profit sharing. I accepted the offer kissing my dream job goodbye, as well as saying goodbye to some of the best friends, bosses and people I had ever met. The thought of becoming a gold panner and living an adventure was too appealing.
My impulsive move to B.C. was foreshadowed by my own words, as the previous year I took a motorcycle trip out to visit my buddy Jake in Castlegar. I had such a good time out there, I made a joke, I’m moving here. Well to my surprise that came true, Cherryville is 3.5 hours north of Castlegar.
Arriving in B.C. with an old Mini Van I took on the role as the Gold Panner Campground Manager.
To be continued…