Friday, June 21, 2019 (Thunderbird RV Park, Campbell River, BC)

We woke to blue sky and calm winds...yay! The constant wind over the last few days has been very tiring. Today is going to be a perfect day to go out in the boat again with Emery and Glenda.

They picked us up just before 11:30 and we headed off to the marina. Once we were all set, we headed over to the fuel dock. This beauty is named Rent Spent...wonder when the last time was they rented anything :)

Commercial fish boats...

Emery filling the gas tank while the young fellow manning the dock stands by...

RCMP boat...beside a huge yacht...

Tugboat towing an empty log barge

 Tsa Kwa Letun Lodge on Quadra Island...the name means gathering place. The Laichwiltach people run this full service beachfront lodge...

Life is good!

Rebecca Spit Marine Provincial Park on Quadra Island...

Entering Heriot Bay...

Our destination today...Heriot Bay Inn on Quadra Island...
Quadra Island is well known for beautiful scenery and a casual atmosphere and there is no better place to relax and enjoy the ocean views and warm island hospitality than the Heriot Bay Inn and Resort on the waterfront! The Heriot Bay Inn is a full service adventure resort offering lodgings, marina, a restaurant, pub, and gift store.

Tide is out so we have a steep climb up the ramp...

Glenda told me they had some rather unique vinyl siding...I sure wasn't expecting old vinyl albums!

Electric bike...

Some beautiful pottery pieces for sale in the gift shop...

The lounge...the wooden kayak is a gorgeous piece of workmanship!

Lunch on the deck at Herons Restaurant, that's us at the far end...

Thanks for a fabulous lunch guys!

After lunch we checked out the pub. This is the stage for the bands...they have live music every weekend. Those are the album covers from the vinyl siding...

We could have some fun here!

Okay...

The Inn has 10 rooms and 3 self-contained cabins...along with an RV Park and Campground (located to the far right of the Inn). Emery and Glenda are part owners of this little gem...

Yep...tides out!

The BC Ferry Terminal is right next door...the ferry takes passengers over to Cortez Island...

Lots of minnows around the docks...

We-Wai-Kai Campground at Rebecca Spit...

Taku Resort and Marina...

Rebecca Spit Marine Provincial Park...

Nice place to anchor for a night or two!

Once again eagle eye Steve spotted a whale in the distance. Emery motored that way then turned the motor off...

There she blows!!

There's two!. They continued to swim towards us...

The sound when they exhale is so powerful and amazing!

When they go below the surface it's hard to know where they'll surface. Look how high that plume of mist is! Often this can be seen from great distances even before you see the whale...

Not much of a dorsal fin on Humpback Whales...

When you see this they're headed for the deep...

They were only about 50 yards away...

You can look all you want but you most likely won't see them again for a very long time...

That was incredible!

Loaded with crab traps...

Discovery Fishing Pier is Canada's first saltwater fishing pier where you can catch salmon, halibut as well as other species...

Another log boom being towed with a second tug at the back keeping it straight in the extremely strong currents in Discovery Passage...

I really have no idea what time we arrived back at the marina...but that wasn't the end to our day! After ensuring the boat was secure, we walked back to Emery and Glenda's truck and they took us on a grand tour of Campbell River. It's much larger than we thought.

Campbell River Shoreline Arts Society and Transitions on the Shore is having its annual chainsaw carving competition at Frank James Park at Willow Point, so we stopped to take a look. The competition started Thursday and ends on Sunday.

An Eagle feeding it's young...

Absolutely amazing! Very talented folks! After buying raffle tickets to support the Society, we headed back to the truck. We did a little more touring around Campbell River and then Emery suggested we go out to Painter's Lodge for a drink.

Painter's Lodge Resort and its sister lodge, April Point Lodge, just across the strait on Quadra Island are world renown fishing resorts. Unfortunately, both properties were sold a few years ago to the
Chinese and have gone downhill somewhat ever since...this was particularly evident in the condition of the grounds. Weeds have taken over and they just don't appear to be maintained and are certainly not as meticulously kept as they had been. It's a huge property offering accommodations in a variety of buildings.

On our way into the lodge, this cool car came into the parking lot...

Entrance...

We went to the Tyee Pub and decided to take a table on the deck where we could enjoy the late afternoon sun. Unfortunately, service was very slow. Emery even went inside to get the waitress who had left Austrian tourists waiting at their table to pay their bill.

The dock is lined with fishing boats...

It was after 7:30 by the time got home...what a fabulous day! Again, thank you Emery and Glenda! You have treated us royally during our visit here! Enjoy your camping trip next week...and we look forward to seeing you again in Qualicum Bay.

If you missed our previous boat trip where we saw lots of scenery and seals click here.