The Ways of Water Documentary Screening at Vernon Museum

Photo: Contributed

A docuseries being screened by the Vernon Museum explores the history of Grey Canal and how it affected the growth of the North Okanagan.

Registration for The Ways of Water is full, which will be shown Saturday, April 9, at the museum, starting at 2 p.m.

Admission is by donation.

According to Tourism Vernon, work on the Grey Canal began in 1905, under the direction of Lord and Lady Aberdeen.

The project was an extensive undertaking to move water from highland lakes southeast of Vernon, across the Coldstream Valley and along the benchlands that circle Vernon, to Okanagan Lake.

It brought irrigation to farms and ranches and literally changed the face of Vernon and the surrounding area.

Much of the canal route is now a public walking trail.

Members of the Ribbons of Green Trail Society, which promotes trails and parks in the area, wanted to learn more about the canal's early days and how it impacted the area.

"At Ribbons of Green, we've been working to find ways to connect all the original sections of the Grey Canal route into the current trail network," explains society member Ingrid Neumann.

"We met with some of those involved in the canal as an irrigation system and found out how much it impacted the settlement of this area. Their stories are fascinating, so we wanted more people to be able to hear them."

Neumann and Bruce Mol filmed interviews and then edited the footage to create the series.

Their goal was to capture the knowledge and recollections of multi-generational residents.