More of Our Canada – September 01, 2019

MY HOMETOWN

O

ur family has resided

in South Surrey, B.C.,

since the late 1950s.

The landscape back then was

much different. The ever-pop-

ular Crescent Beach had been a

summer retreat for the Vancou-

ver wealthy. The George Massey

Tunnel wasn’t opened until 1959,

however, making it a long trek

to “the boonies” for summer

residents. To reach our neck

of the woods, travellers had to

drive through New Westminster,

taking the Pattullo Bridge at a

cost of 25 cents per crossing and

following King George Highway.

I grew up nearby in the small

community of Ocean Park. Ac-

tually, the first house my parents

built was located a mile away from

there, near Crescent Park, but I

was too young to store away any

memories of that home.

We moved into a small cabin

on a friend’s acreage while my

parents built what would be-

come my real childhood home.

I spent the next 15 years there,

providing my father with free

labour much of the time. He was

of the belief that if you had two

arms and two legs, you could (and

should) work. For my siblings

and me, that meant summer

vacations from school were

mainly spent doing chores, such

as cutting the lawn, using hedge

trimmers where the lawn mower

couldn’t reach—there were no

weed-whackers back then to

speed up the process! Everything

was done the old-fashioned

way—manually. We spent hours

pulling weeds by hand from flow-

er beds and vegetable gardens.

Berries and fruit were picked for

pies, jams and crumbles. We used

wheelbarrows and makeshift

screens to sift dirt, removing

even the smallest pebbles, for

use in the garden. We even built

picnic tables!

Making Our Own Fun

Still, in spite of all the chores,

there were fun times to be had

as a child in Surrey. Our play-

grounds were backyards, bushes

and empty parking lots. Swim-

ming lessons were taught in an

outdoor pool on the other side of

town. There was an ice rink and

a movie theatre in White Rock,

three miles away.

We didn’t have sandy beaches

like those of Crescent Beach and

White Rock nowadays. Our claim

to fame was a rock-filled beach

found at the bottom of what is

now known as 1001 Steps. Back

then, the word “steps” was a

misnomer for what was actually

in place there—a treacherous

and often muddy trail cut out of

the side of a steep cliff. Parts of it

were so narrow, you had to grasp

roots and branches to secure safe

passage. One section required

you to straddle a large drainage

pipe with slippery mud on either

side. Single file was the only way

to navigate the winding cliffside.

At the top of the trail, you could

see some of the original stone

steps peeking out from under the

soil and brush. According to local

history, mail bags were dropped

off by train for the few locals

who lived atop the steep bluff. Of

course, that was well before our

time in Surrey and the advent of

Canada Post as we know it today.

It was about 40 years ago that

new buildings and streets began

replacing forested areas and

natural greenery. A road that

was once a single lane both ways

with one traffic light expanded

to two lanes each way. Multiple

traffic and pedestrian lights now

line Johnston Road to keep the

steady stream of traffic flowing.

And the town’s library is now

home to a “Living Wall” of plants,

adding a touch of greenery. Even

with the encroachment of urban

sprawl, Surrey will always be in

my heart. ■

Above: Pattullo Bridge. Left: The

modern-day staircase at 1001 Steps.

A Slice of Surrey

For a child who grew up here,

it’s a place full of memories

by Linda McClure, Surrey

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18 More of Our Canada SEPTEMBER 2019