Saturday (Oct. 24) was a cold, blustery day...as a matter of fact, the wind woke us both up numerous times throughout the night. As predicted, the cold front from the north is here! At least the sky is clear and the sun is shining!
Rob picked Steve up shortly after 9:00 and they were off to the butcher in Honeymoon Bay, Lake Cowichan to pick up the venison. I did the dishes, showered and then headed off to do some shopping.
I was home just after 1:00 and about an hour later Rob and Steve arrived. They had divided the deer meat between the three hunters...Rob, Steve and Jim. Luckily it wasn't an awful lot, however more than we expected, but I was able to get our portion into the freezer....a nice variety of pepperoni, breakfast sausage, chops and steaks. We tried the pepperoni at happy hour...very tasty!
We suffered through another very windy night and were up early Sunday (Oct. 25) morning. It was another cold start to the day...2C/36F. However the sky was clear and the sun was shining!
We basically had an inside day, staying warm. It has been four years since our trip to Africa, Amsterdam and France, so we both reminisced by re-reading our blog posts (if you'd like to reminisce with us, here is the link to the first blog, 'Travel to Arusha, Tanzania'). Boy, what a fabulous time we had! We'd go again in a heartbeat....gotta win the lottery first, though, LOL!
We managed to get out for a quick walk around the campground later in the afternoon. The wind had finally calmed down somewhat but it was cold out...7C/45F and there was still a bit of a breeze, making it extra cold when we walked against it.
Monday (Oct. 26) was still pretty chilly but at least the wind had died down...we even had a little rain through the night. We had a very lazy start to the day...waiting for it warm up a bit.
By late morning we were headed into Sidney for a walk along the waterfront. The area was nicely decorated for Halloween with pumpkins...
Bales of hay and pumpkins...
After lunch, we basically hunkered down inside where it was warm. Steve had a telephone appointment with his Gastroenterologist. Thankfully his biopsy didn't show anything but he was stumped by Steve's blacking out issue and wants to do another gastroscopy sometime in the next couple of months. Since the esophagus dilation Steve has been much better.
Tuesday (Oct. 27) morning Steve was awake super early, deciding to get up at 5:10! So, of course, I was up too since I couldn't get back to sleep.
Steve decided to start a winter project....a recap of our last 10 years on the road since we retired. That's a big job and will be awhile.
I had a dental appointment for a small filling (didn't even need freezing) and then went for a walk along the Sidney waterfront. The wind had come up again and it was quite blustery.
Wednesday (Oct. 28) and another early morning...up at 5:30. This is really going to suck when we turn our clocks back an hour Sunday, with the end of daylight savings time.
Nothing too terribly exciting today...I did laundry and Steve continued work on his project. But we had a pretty sunset tonight...
Thursday (Oct. 29) and Friday (Oct. 30) were also quite cool and blustery. But both days we got out for walks along the Sidney waterfront. Other than that, Steve worked on his project and I did some knitting. We also enjoyed some documentaries on YouTube and a movie on Netflix.
Saturday (Oct. 31) was an absolutely beautiful day...perfect for Halloween! We decided to walk the beach trail down to Island View Beach...
Rob has set up quite the "jungle-gym" in the yard for the kids. Conner climbing the rope swing to capture some candy hidden up there, while Bryce hunts for candy around the other areas...
Conner showing off his hanging from the line capabilities...
We headed home just after 8:00...such a great afternoon and evening! Thanks for inviting us!
Sunday (Nov. 1) was another absolutely stunning day! Better enjoy it while we can because rain is in the forecast starting Tuesday.
We went into Sidney...you got it...for another walk along the waterfront! The sailboats were out today...
When we got home, we noticed a lot of movement going on in the RV resort. I guess with it being November 1, it was the day for people to leave, people to move sites and for new arrivals.
Steve was going to take Buster out for a run, so asked if I wanted to come along. Sure, it's a novelty to ride in the truck now, LOL!
After that, we decided to fix a problem we've had since we arrived September 20. We had leveled off using blocks on one side of the trailer, but when we had unhitched, it twisted a bit making us slightly off level. It was more of a nuisance than anything, having both the bathroom and bedroom doors swinging and banging. So we hitched up, moved down the blocks ever so slightly...and secured it all. Voila! perfectly level...and so nice to have it fixed!
Monday (Nov. 2) morning we were up and out before 9:00...on our way to Goldstream Provincial Park to see the Salmon Run...
Goldstream has a world-class salmon spawning stream with thousands of Chum Salmon returning each year. Bright colours and hooked jaws develop on male Chum salmon after they enter breeding streams. This accounts for the very different appearance these fish have from when they are caught in the ocean.
Every autumn, millions of Pacific salmon forge their way up the myriad streams of the Pacific northwest to spawn and die. Pacific salmon have always been fishes of mystery. We know them well as fine food, and as superb sport fish, but the details of how they spend their time in the ocean and of how they find their way back to their home pools in their parent streams are even today not fully understood.
In Goldstream, salmon appear about mid-October, and may be seen for about nine weeks, the dates varying from year to year. Of the five kinds of North American Pacific salmon it is the Chum salmon that is most abundant in this river, though you may also see some Coho and Chinook salmon, as well as the Steelhead and the Cutthroat trout.
We thought if we got there before 9:30 on a Monday morning, it wouldn't be very busy...ah...wrong! The parking lot was full but we managed to get one of the few remaining spots at the very end of the lot. Surprisingly though for the amount of cars the trails weren't packed with people so we only had to wear our masks a few times.
Our first view of Goldstream with Mount Finlayson in the background...
Beautiful!
Zoomed in on Goldstream Boathouse Marina in Finlayson Arm...
We put on our masks and checked out the Goldstream Nature House Visitor Centre...
People coming...time to head back...
We backtracked towards the bridge where we could get closer to the water and more fish...
The river is low with far fewer fish than we've seen here before on past visits even though they said they counted 6000 fish last Saturday. Normally there would be dead fish everywhere with lots of seagulls and eagles feasting away...
We should get a better view from the bridge...
Not only am I surprised this tree is still alive being split and hollow with daylight showing thru it, but I'm surprised they don't cut it down as a hazard...
A couple of hours later, we were finished at Goldstream and on our way over to Steve's sisters place for coffee. Nadine and Mike live out that way so invited us to stop by when we were done. Due to a car accident in the area earlier in the morning they were without power so heated up water for coffee on their BBQ. Another great visit with them.
As predicted, it started raining during the night and was still pouring when we got up Tuesday(Nov. 3) morning. It ended up being a very socked-in, rainy day...such a contrast to what we had been experiencing!
I braved the pouring rain and went into Sidney to pick up a few groceries...while Steve edited pictures so that I could get started on this blog update.
He was done by the time I got home, so after lunch I spent a good part of the afternoon working on this update. Steve relaxed watching TV...definitely an inside day!
And that brings us up to date again!
What a great playground Rob has created for your grandchildren. Thanks for sharing your pictures of Goldstream. We have yet to ever be there at this time of year.
ReplyDeleteIt's been a long time since we've been there. Always a treat to see the area. Not as many salmon this time though.
DeleteFunny to think that riding in Buster is now a novelty! Just think about all the good times you had driving it to the laundromat!
ReplyDeleteHaha...yes you have a point! But I can say that now that I have a car!
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