Saturday and Sunday, June 1 and 2, 2019 (Thunderbird RV Park, Campbell River, BC)

Saturday started with a light cloud covering but, as forecast, the wind increased through the morning clearing them away and we had another sunny day.

With the wind forecast to increase, Steve went out right after breakfast to put the PVC tubes on the slide room toppers to prevent them from flapping. He also finished his outside set up....sewer, flag, solar lights, etc. While he was doing that, I cleaned up inside and baked some mini-muffins.

Late morning we headed out in the truck...we made a stop at the liquor store and then took a drive around town. It has been over 10 years since we were last here, so it was nice to check out the changes.

Back home, Steve edited the pictures taken yesterday while I sat outside knitting. Once he was done, I finished up the blog post and managed to get it posted.

By this time it was going on 4:00, so we took our chairs and a drink over to Ray and Anne's and sat chatting with them...while enjoying the view of the estuary from their site.

We woke to cloudy skies Sunday (June 2) morning but by the time we were ready to head out for our bike ride, the clouds had pretty well disappeared...leaving just a light covering. The campground is on a spit, with ocean on one side and the Campbell River estuary on the other...we started our ride going along the oceanfront towards the end of the spit. We stopped many times along the way so Steve could take pictures.

An eagle perched on the top of a high pole...

Unfortunately his phone camera doesn't do well on close up shots...

All along the way, there are interpretive signs telling about the history of the area...

 The tip of the spit, looking across the mouth of the river...Painter's Lodge Resort is on the left...

Panorama shot...

Looking up the river...

Close up showing the snow capped mountains...

There is a float plane base on the estuary near the campground. The other day when it was so windy a large float plane passed by the campground and landed in this narrow waterway. Steve said it was so low and close to Ray and Anne's rig he thought it was going to hit them!

He taxied out to the open ocean and took off over Quadra Island...

As we headed back we checked out anything of interest on both sides of the spit...

The parking lot had some cool wood carvings...

Waterfowl viewing...

We only saw a few Canada Geese...

On the left is one of the new cabins for rent in our campground...

Our rig in the middle as we ride by...

Friends Emery and Glenda were going to launch their boat today so we rode to the boat launch to see if we could find them...

As we entered the parking area of the marina we passed by a First Nations Cemetery...

Two Bald Eagles...

This part of the marina was mostly commercial fish boats...

We never did find Emery and Glenda...

We decided to continue along the waterfront and passed by this beautiful Totem across the street from the cemetery...

Views from the front of the cemetery...

In the distance, millions of $ were spent on this cruise ship terminal but being so close to other stops in Victoria and Nanaimo only two ships ever stopped here so it's now closed...good planning!

We rode along the waterfront until the footpath trail came to a narrow sidewalk and lots of street traffic so turned around.  Looking back from the other end of the marina...

Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours...

This was always our favourite stop when I would join Steve on his North Island sales calls. We would have dinner and watch the cruise ships go by...we shall return!

Nearing the campground...

We rode just over 4 miles/6.5 kms, making lots of stops along the way. It was great! I'm so glad that the area is flat and I'm able to get out and ride my bike! I can't walk well...but at least I have some good bike riding! This will be good exercise and strengthen my leg muscles for faster recovery after the knee replacement.

We hadn't been back long before a pickup truck towing a boat trailer pulled up...it was Emery and Glenda! They had been at the marina and after seeing what they were driving Steve remembered riding past their truck. Emery and Glenda are close family friends of our daughter-in-law, Angie. After a short visit and an invite to go out on their boat, they were off...good seeing you! Wonderful folks that we are looking forward to seeing more of while here.

We were inside...Steve was doing some research on his iPad and I was sitting at the dining table with the laptop when I happened to look up and see Earl and Allison! They are our Quartzsite friends that live just south of here, in Royston and had stopped by on their way home from a camping weekend. They have switched from a two-up quad to a side-by-side...something that Allison is really enjoying! We had a nice visit with them and then they continued their drive home. Another couple that we are really looking forward to seeing more of while here and a possible ATV ride this weekend!

As we walked with them to their truck, parked outside the campground across the street, we felt some raindrops. The clouds had come in again and it had really cooled down. We quickly put the outside chairs away and covered the barbecue...and retreated inside as it rained off and on for the rest of the afternoon and evening.