Sunday, September 20 to Saturday, September 26, 2020 (Oceanside RV Resort, Saanichton, BC)

Departure day today (Sunday) and after 6 months of sitting still, needless to say we were a little anxious about everything working properly on the trailer. But our worries were unfounded...all 4 slides went in, hooking up to the truck went smoothly, brakes worked...and all tires went round and round LOL!

After saying goodbye to our neighbours, Roly and Carol (and Cody and Bo), we pulled out of our site and stopped at the office to checkout...then we were on our way to the ferry. I was following Steve in our car...the first time we've travelled separately!  It was a beautiful, clear day (with the exception of some fog we passed through on the way to the ferry)...but at least there was no smoke!We were very happy to catch the 11:00 a.m. ferry sailing because we had been a little later getting on the road than we planned.

Instead of enjoying the sunshine on the passenger decks we had another fun-filled time on the windowless bottom deck of the ferry listening to car alarms going off. Face masks are now mandatory and as of the end of September Transport Canada will no longer allow passengers to stay on the car decks.  

We arrived at Oceanside RV Resort just before 1:00.  The office is closed Sundays but I had already paid, so I just stopped to pick up our welcome package, sign a "Covid form" and continued onto our site, #18. Steve had gone ahead of me.

We got the trailer leveled...then realized that our electrical cord wouldn't reach, so had to move ahead a bit. Oops...forgot about checking that; something we usually do! Well, it's been awhile since we've moved!

After unhitching, we both got to our unpack and setup routines. We really like this RV Park...it's just unfortunate this time here, we are unable to have any company, or go down to the beach. The RV Resort is located on a Reservation (Indigenous Peoples) land and they have closed all access to the reservation except those that live on it. There seem to be additional rules that the RV Resort must respect. Oh well, we have a car, so we'll just have to drive to the walking trails...or walk around the resort.

This is the view out the window I have when sitting at the table...for now, until we get neighbours. James Island in the distance....It was shortly after 3:00 when we were all finished our set up...well, all we were going to do for today. So we headed over to Rob and Angie's for a visit. Rob has been busy replacing all of the flooring on the main floor of the house...from carpet and lino to all wood. He has finished the TV room, dining area and most of the kitchen. This is the TV room...(thanks for the pictures, Angie!)...I didn't get any pictures today, but this is one of the living area. He's almost all done this room now. He's done a great job considering it's his first time and it looks great!Angie ordered in pizza and after a great visit, we headed home as the kids were about to get ready for bed...it's a school night! Conner is in grade 2 and Bryce is in kindergarten...they are both doing well and love being back at school!

My first thought Monday morning as I was getting up was noting how quiet it was...no highway noise! We went for a walk around the campground...it's a much shorter walk, only 1.3 kms/.8 mile compared to the 2.4 kms/1.5 miles at Peace Arch, but still good to start the day off with. There are lots of longer trails in the area to walk.

After our walk, I cleaned up inside while Steve worked outside...he decided to give the trailer a quick wash (yes, again). Half way thru his waxing job at Peace Arch RV Park we got the heavy smoke from the forest fires in the western US then acid rain. While he was doing that, I went into Sidney to run a bunch of errands.

We have decided to get home internet while we are stationary here for the next 7 months, so I spent a good part of the afternoon researching Shaw Cable...and changing our Bell MiFi plan.

Steve has his work outside all done...mat down, flag up, barbecue set up and solar lights out...

Apparently the previous gardeners were fired so the place has gotten a little wild looking but we see they have a new guy that has started the clean up...

Tuesday (Sept. 22) was a beautiful day...basically the "calm before the storm" as the first fall storm is set to hit the coast tomorrow.

We got out for a walk around the campground and decided to take the trail towards the beach but only went to the "lookout" hill. This creek runs to the to an ocean inlet just outside our park...

With the early morning sun low in the sky and a heavy dew the spider webs were visible everywhere...

Sometimes we've seen deer in the field below...

That section of the RV Park is for permanent residents...

What a gorgeous morning...not a breath of wind. James Island in the background...

Great Blue Heron...

After our walk, we sat out in the morning sunshine with our water...ahhhh...

Then Steve got to work putting his slide toppers "tie-downs" on...big winds gusting to 70 kph/43 mph are expected with the storm...

Steve made these up last year using 1" PVC pipe...

It was already quite windy when we decided to drive to the Sidney waterfront for a walk. We ended up just doing a short walk before deciding to head back to the car...

Wednesday (Sept. 23) morning we woke to rain and blustery winds...as predicted. We decided to drive out to Langford (a suburb of Victoria) to a check out Canadian Tire and Walmart for a couple of things Steve is looking for. No luck finding the bullets he is wanting for his rifle (he's going on a hunting trip) but he did get a new beard trimmer.

We decided lunch would be the drive-thru at A and W for burgers...a little messy eating a burger wrapped in lettuce while sitting in the car, LOL!

Afterwards we took a drive to Esquimalt Lagoon...it had been years since I'd been there! 

There were some very cool bird sculptures made out of driftwood. A real bird on a fake bird..too funny!

Canada Geese...

Bald Eagle on a nest...

Not sure on these...it was pouring out so we stayed in the car...

Wood Pecker...

Stellar's Jay...

Not sure...

Maybe a Cormorant?...

Hummingbird...

Someone (or some people) sure put in a lot of effort carving. It was very cool and a nice addition to the beachfront.

We were home at about 1:30 and spent the rest of the afternoon hunkered down inside...staying dry.

Thursday (Sept. 24)...and more rain! As a matter of fact, it rained so hard during the night that it woke me up.

We were lucky to get out for a quick walk around the campground while there was a lull in the rainfall. While we were gone, Purolator dropped a package off at our rig...our Shaw home internet modem, yay!

As promised by Shaw, it was a quick easy, no contact activation. It's going to be nice having unlimited internet for the 7 months we will be here. With that done, we headed off to Best Buy to pick up a Roku so that we can stream programs through the TV...Netflix, Crave, etc. We're all set for the long cool rainy days of winter on the BC coast!

Friday (Sept. 25) and Saturday (Sept. 26) were more days of rain, rain, rain! So we really didn't do much. I did a couple of loads of laundry on Friday afternoon once the rain had subsided a bit. Goodness, much more expensive here...$2.80/load for the washer and $2.80 for 55 minutes in the dryer. That's considerably more than about $2.25 for both at the laundry at Peace Arch. Oh well...it is what it is!

Saturday morning I made a quick trip into Sidney for a few groceries nee ded to make lasagne and chili...two of the meals Steve will be taking on his hunting trip. And then spent the next few hours cooking and doing dishes. All while Steve was getting acquainted with his Roku! So many programs to choose from.

And that completes our first week here. Although we should be planning our trip south, that isn't happening this year...so we're glad to be back here on the Island! It's the warmest spot in all of Canada to spend the winter!