Our week started off pretty routine...just the usual powerwalks in the morning, followed by various chores around the trailer. The weather Saturday (Oct. 7) and Sunday (Oct. 8) was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately our run of gorgeous weather is coming to an end on Thanksgiving Day, with rain in the forecast.
Bryce has really gotten into artwork and drew a picture for me. Later he did one for Grampa too, but I didn't get a picture. Good job Bryce!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Tuesday (Oct. 10) morning and more rain! We had a very lazy start and then went out to run an errand and go out for lunch. We chose The Stonehouse Pub located at Canoe Cove Marina, very close to the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal. As it happens, Canoe Cove Marina is where my family purchased and worked a small cafe and store when we moved out from Edmonton, Alberta in the spring of 1967...I was 12 years old. We actually lived in a cottage on one side of the marina...and I used to walk up the hill and cross the highway to catch the school bus. Of course, that was years ago before the ferry terminal expanded and a huge interchange was added. Things have changed a lot at Canoe Cove Marina over the last 56 years!
The Stonehouse Pub is located on the hillside above the marina in an English-style manor built in the 1930s as a family home by Hugh Rodd, a British immigrant. The house was made from locally quarried stones and boasted features typical of the era such as decorative leaded windows, fir floors and hand-hewed beams – which can still be admired to this day. Originally named “The Landing”, Rodd’s home was transformed to the Stonehouse Pub in 1985 and quickly became a favorite spot for Swartz Bay ferry travellers, and residents of the greater Victoria area.
When I lived at Canoe Cove, there was another family who owned and lived in the house...that part seems to have been skipped over in the website description of the Stonehouse Pub.
A very cool secluded setting...
After lunch we drove into Sidney hoping to walk along the waterfront but even though the rain had stopped, it was very blustery. So we ended up going back to the house and going for a walk on the forest trails in the neighbourhood.
Lots of woodpecker holes in a burned out, but still alive cedar tree. Somebody placed a baseball with a smiley face into one of the holes...
Wednesday (Oct. 11) morning we were packed up and were on the road just after 9:30. We stopped for a visit with our friends, Jim and Nan, in Cowichan Bay...great seeing them! Of course, the guys talked about their upcoming hunting trip.
After a stop for a quick lunch, we were home around 3:00, unpacked...and got out for a walk around the campground.
Thursday (Oct. 12) we woke up to thick fog and it stayed around until about noon. Steve and I both had appointments to have our influenza shots late this morning. We aren't due for our COVID vaccination until November 3 (6 months from our last one) but since it was only a couple of weeks away, he gave it to us too...sweet!
With the fog lifting, we went for our powerwalk after lunch. These guys were out for a paddle...
Friday (Oct. 13) morning it was super foggy again...
Unlike yesterday, after the fog lifted in the afternoon, we didn't have much in the way of sunshine... basically cloudy and cool all day. We sold my quad today! Shelly and her son came to take a look at it and bought it! The only issue we had was the length of time it took her (and her husband's) bank to e-transfer the funds to us. A good couple of hours...but once we had the money in our account, Steve loaded my quad into the back of her truck and they were off. Yay! Now, if we can just get Buster sold!
Saturday (Oct. 14) and another foggy start to the day...again, it didn't clear until around noon.
A rock tribute band we saw last June at the Gladstone Brewery is playing at Matches Eatery and Public House (attached to Chances Casino) tonight. We started off making a quick donation to the casino before our dinner reservation. 😏😏 'Shotgun Kelly' is great and I've been watching her FB page to see when they would be playing in Courtenay again. So I made dinner reservations for a table for 2 close to the stage. As the band was setting up, Kelly came over to chat with us. Between sets her bass player Chris spent his break talking with us too...
Sunday (Oct. 15) morning we did something that has been on Steve's radar for awhile now, and we just haven't gotten there yet...tour the Puntledge River Hatchery.
We started the self-guided tour by watching a video in the visitors centre that explained various stages of the fish hatchery...then we went back outside and followed the painted fish on the pavement that led us on the tour...
I've reversed the order of the photos because the tour starts at the resting/holding pools instead of these fish ladders. The river is dammed here forcing the fish into the fish ladder intake...
After zigzagging their way up thru the fish ladder they reach this small resting pool before making their final jump into the holding pools. They will be held here until its time to harvest their eggs and milt for fertilization...
The tour ends as you pass by a variety of tanks used at different stages of growth...
It was a very interesting tour, especially watching the salmon trying to get up the ladders. Wow, what they go through! Amazing!
The predicted rain arrived Monday (Oct. 16)...a number of "atmospheric rivers" with a lot of rain and wind over the next few days. It just poured!
Our galley holding tank is leaking and of course, this morning is the day the mobile RV fellow is coming. He arrived just after 10:00...in the pouring rain. Luckily it wasn't windy, so we could have the awning down...that way Steve and James could at least stay dry while chatting about the issue we are having. He removed a section of the underbelly then had us run water into the empty tank for awhile. No leak was detected but he did notice an old water stain on the side of the tank coming from the top. He then wanted to inspect the galley drain pipe under the kitchen counter which required removing our useless built in vacuum (that we don't use) from the counter cupboard. He couldn't detect anything there so suspects the tank is leaking from the top of the tank. James said the next step would be to remove the tank. Well that's certainly going to be a much bigger job!$$ Steve decided that since we aren't mobile now he can just empty the tank more often. James said to keep an eye on it then and if we decide to have the tank removed he would return.
An actual "Rainfall Warning" has been issued for Tuesday and Wednesday...along with strong winds. Hmmm...it looks like we are going to have a very wet, stormy drive down island tomorrow. Steve and our son, Rob, are going hunting on Saturday for a week, along with Steve's buddy, Jim. Rob and Jim always go hunting every October, so it's nice Steve is able to join them this year. We're heading down a couple of days early to get grocery shopping and food prepared...I volunteered to take care of that for them 😀.
So when the guys leave bright and early Saturday morning, I'll be on the 8:00 a.m ferry over to Vancouver to spend a few days with Chris, Angela and Isaac...and connect with a good friend. Looking forward to it!
That's it for now...
