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Google features pot-themed Kootenay mountain names

Mapping software lists local spots as Weed Peak, Cannabis Peak and Hydroponic Peak.
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In this screen image of the mountains around Riondel on Google

Google users interested in local topography might be surprised to find pot-related place names for our mountains listed by the popular search engine’s mapping software, including Weed Peak, Grow Op Peak, Cannabis Peak and Hydroponic Peak.

“A local photographer used #explorekootenaylake on an image they shared on Instagram,” Nelsonite Britz Robins told the Star. “It was a lovely picture, but I wasn’t quite sure if it was in our region, so I searched for the name of the lake.”

She struggled to find the particular lake using Google Earth, zooming in around the Riondel area to see what she could find.

“I started zooming in on some of the smaller lakes to see if any names would pop up. They didn’t. But I stumbled upon those names instead!”

Robins, who works for both Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism and Shambhala Music Festival, took a screenshot of her find and shared it on social media, earning over 800 likes and 69 shares.

“You can’t see them from Google’s default view. I think the only ones that show up at first glance are Loki and another one. But when you zoom in, the pot mountains show up.”

It wasn’t immediately clear where the names came from, or how they ended up on Google. They aren’t listed in the BC Geographic Names database and no longer show up on Google Maps. Google didn’t respond to the Star’s messages.