Shoulder Soldiers
Weather, or not, it’s get-out-and-go-time — by bike, boot, and boat. Creston-based Trench writer Danette Polzin outlines your East Kootenay early season adventure ops amongst the melt, mud, and springtime sizzle.
show & Tell
Fourteen East Kootenay photographers share snapshots of moments caught between land, sky, shadow, and seasons, each telling a tale from our vast corner of the world.
lusti, Mac, The Moms & The Mountain
Lives of far-off adventure have become full-time careers for Invermere’s Christina Lustenberger and Ian McIntosh. But a backyard expedition in 2021 — in plain sight of their hometown family and friends — still stands as an all-time achievement for both professional skiers. Two childhood friends reflect on a daydream turned dream day.
Alone & Alive
Greg Ovens ran away into the B.C. wilds when he was a kid. He told his parents not to look for him. He’d be happy, he said. Half a century later, he’s still out there. Just him. And 900,000 followers.
Super Powered: A Census of Sunshine
The sun. From 150 million kilometres away, it powers the East Kootenay’s regional economic engines, local history immemorial, even your own heartbeat and mindset. Senior Trench writer Dave Quinn squints skyward at the meaning of it all.
The Skin Deep
Inside the ink of artist Ellie Rubincam.
DeCki Ljeta / Los Chicos De Verano {The Boys of Summer}
For local baseball old boys Roger Tierney and Paul Mrazek, the diamond is forever.
This Woman’s Work
Carrying the torch, saw, and shears, sisters are doing it for themselves. Writer and photographer Jenny Bateman rolled up her sleeves alongside nine local ladies making the grade in trades.
Beyond & Above
He was born into Cranbrook’s 1980s era snowboard and skate scene — both deemed unsavoury to the status quo, and all but illegal. Thirty years after travelling the globe as a crusader for ‘boarding’s cause, photographer Jeff Patterson has returned to the East Kootenay as one of the sport’s pioneer chroniclers and collectors. Today, with a new career flying high for Hollywood, the family man shares images and insights from his transworld transformation.
A High Rider for the Hornaday
An Elk Valley cowboy, an American conservation pioneer, and the ties that bind.
The Puck That Dropped Here
The rink. The goal. The celly. The show. For gals and goons alike, some of the hockey world’s most remarkable dreams have been born from the East Kootenay, with more just beginning.
THE TRENCH | WINTER 2024/25
Life + Culture in the Columbia, Creston, and Elk Valleys