British Columbia Highway 3 (Crowsnest Highway) Photographs - Page 3

Left - Distance guide sign on the eastbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3), about 8 km east of Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Roadside lookout on Hwy 3, overlooking Osoyoos. Although the town lies only 3 km to the west as the proverbial crow flies, it is a tortuous 8 km descent along Hwy 3 to the valley floor. The highway drops approximately 460 metres (1,500 feet) in elevation by the time it reaches Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Approaching the hairpin turn on westbound Hwy 3 at the Anarchist Mountain Lookout. This rather dramatic curve has an advisory speed of 20 km/h (roughly 12 mph). And yes, they really do mean it! Since this section of Hwy 3 nearly touches the Canada-United States Boundary, most of the vista ahead is actually located across the border in the State of Washington. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Hairpin turn on Hwy 3 at the Anarchist Mountain Lookout, facing east along the eastbound lane. In fact, this highway curve is so sharp, that the eastbound and westbound directions of Hwy 3 were constructed on independent, separated alignments in order to correctly superelevate the traffic lanes through the curve. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west towards Osoyoos from the Anarchist Mountain Lookout on Hwy 3. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Access to the Anarchist Mountain Lookout is provided from the eastbound lane of Hwy 3 only. Westbound Hwy 3 traffic cannot access the lookout, due to the hairpin turn and centre median between the eastbound and westbound lanes. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 3 towards Osoyoos from the Anarchist Mountain Lookout. The route of Hwy 3 doubles back on itself several times during its descent towards Osoyoos. The next downhill level of the grade can be seen at left, while the uphill level can be seen in the upper-left corner (note the white truck descending the grade). See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Hwy 3 winds its way slowly down towards Osoyoos through a series of hairpin turns. The evergreen trees quickly disappear as the highway drops in elevation, and dry desert conditions begin to prevail. The Osoyoos area of British Columbia is situated in a true desert climate, with scorching summer temperatures, very little rainfall and desert vegetation that is more typically seen in the southwestern U.S. states. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Approaching the second hairpin turn on Hwy 3 on the descent towards Osoyoos. Although not as tight as the hairpin turn at the Anarchist Mountain Lookout, motorists are well-advised to slow down for this sharp curve. The arid mountains stand in stark contrast to the irrigated fields at the bottom of the valley. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along Hwy 3 towards Osoyoos, about 7 km east of the Hwy 97 Junction. The Crowsnest Highway features an uphill passing lane at this point. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - As Hwy 3 descends down into the valley, the desert landscape of the Osoyoos area becomes more and more apparent. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west towards Osoyoos from Hwy 3, about 1 km west of town. As one can see, there is very defined line where the valley is irrigated! In the days before irrigation allowed agricultural uses of this valley, the entire valley floor would likely have looked like the desert in the foreground. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) crosses a narrow isthmus of Osoyoos Lake. Downtown Osoyoos is situated on the western side of Osoyoos Lake. After intersecting the Okanagan Highway (Hwy 97) on the western side of Osoyoos, Hwy 3 can be seen climbing the west side of the valley in the background of this photo on its route west towards Princeton. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along the Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3), departing Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Distance guide sign on the eastbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing north along Main Street (Hwy 3) in Downtown Osoyoos. At the traffic signals in the background, Hwy 3 turns left and resumes its route west towards the Hwy 97 Junction, Princeton and Vancouver. Penticton is accessible via Hwy 97. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along Main Street (Hwy 3) in Downtown Osoyoos. Hwy 3 travels south for a short distance before crossing the isthmus of Osoyoos Lake. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Overhead sign marking the Hwy 3 East turn-off to Grand Forks and Castlegar in Downtown Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Main Street (Hwy 3) in Downtown Osoyoos. Hwy 3 and Hwy 97 join together about 1 km west of Downtown Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - View of Main Street (Hwy 3) in Downtown Osoyoos, facing east. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The architecture of many of Osoyoos' stucco buildings were inspired by building styles seen in the southwestern United States. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Approaching the Hwy 97 Junction on westbound Hwy 3, departing Downtown Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Advance destination guide sign for the westbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) on northbound Hwy 97 approaching Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Advance destination guide sign for the eastbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) on northbound Hwy 97 approaching Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along Hwy 97 in Osoyoos, approaching the Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) Junction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Northbound Hwy 97 guide sign in Osoyoos at the Hwy 3 Junction. This sign is in Federal Highways Administration (FHWA) font, which is an uncommon sight in British Columbia these days. Clearview font highway signs have seen widespread use in British Columbia. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Overhead guide signs marking the upcoming Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) Junction on northbound Hwy 97. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Junction assembly on northbound Hwy 97 at the Hwy 3 Junction in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along Hwy 97 from the Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) Junction in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Older angled destination guide signs for the upcoming Hwy 97 Junction on westbound Hwy 3 in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Approaching the Hwy 97 Junction on eastbound Hwy 3 in Osoyoos. The dry, desert climate of the Osoyoos area is rather apparent in this photo. In fact, the photo looks like it was taken somewhere in Arizona, rather than Canada. With sparse rainfall and scorching summer temperatures, the area around Osoyoos is actually the northernmost tip of the Sonoran Desert. Summer daytime temperatures in excess of 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) are observed periodically in this part of British Columbia. It was 38 Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) the day I took this photo. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Junction assembly signs on eastbound Hwy 3 approaching the Hwy 97 Junction in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - A desert cactus sports its colourful springtime blooms in Osoyoos. The Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) can be seen curving its way west out of Osoyoos in the background. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along the Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) from the Hwy 97 Junction in Osoyoos. It is a little over 400 km to Vancouver from Osoyoos. The Crowsnest Highway ends at the Trans-Canada Highway (Hwy 1) in Hope. Traffic must then follow either Hwy 1 or Hwy 7 between Hope and Vancouver. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Hwy 97 Junction sign on the westbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Older guide signs on the westbound Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) at the Hwy 97 Junction in Osoyoos. Supposedly, the route of Hwy 3A begins at this intersection and heads north concurrently with Hwy 97 from Osoyoos to Kaleden, via Oliver. However, the route of Hwy 3A is not signed at the Osoyoos terminus of the route. Concurrent Hwy 3A & Hwy 97 signs do begin to appear along the route in the Oliver area, about 20 km to the north. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Junction assembly on westbound Hwy 3 approaching the Hwy 97 Junction in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Guide sign on southbound Hwy 3A & Hwy 97 in Osoyoos at the Hwy 3 Junction, marking the direction to the United States Boundary. Oroville is just across the border in Washington State on U.S. Route 97, about 10 km south of Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Overhead guide signs on southbound Hwy 3A & Hwy 97 marking the Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) Junction in Osoyoos. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - View of Hwy 3A & Hwy 97 entering Osoyoos, facing south. The Crowsnest Highway (Hwy 3) Junction can be seen in the background. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on June 9, 2015 - © Cameron Bevers)