The years following the Second World War were not so kind to the Memorial Fort. … Maintenance was lacking, and the building was gradually falling into a state of disrepair.
It was a small step to take the idea of commemorating David Thompson and blend it with Invermere’s desire to stand out as a tourist destination.
“We… coast[ed] along the low rush-grown shore [of Columbia Lake] towards the south-western corner … We soon became aware that this marshy waste of rushes, grass, willows, and water swarmed with every sort of moisture-loving bird, from geese down to sand-pipers. … we began to paddle up what we guessed to be the arm leading to the landing. More than a mile we followed this delusive stream, remarkable for the numerous springs which everywhere gushed up from crater-like basins at the bottom, while round them grew the most beautiful and luxuriant water-weeds ever seen, their delicate filigree-work of many-hued leaves and tendrils all clearly defined in the limpid water.” (Lees and Clutterbuck, B.C. 1887: A Ramble in British Columbia, p 178-179.)
This prominent peak was the first mountain in the Windermere Valley to be named by a European. It was then renamed, renamed, and renamed again before the powers that be finally decided to return back to that first European name: after a heroic British naval commander who was also known for an extended affair with another woman while both were married.
In The Windermere 