Thursday, April 25 to Wednesday, May 15, 2024 (Puntledge RV Park, Courtenay, BC)

Here we are...another 3 weeks have slipped by! Hard to believe we are into the middle of May already!

The first few days since our last update were pretty routine...and soggy! Lots of rain, especially on Thursday (Apr. 25) when it absolutely poured all day. Friday and Saturday were mainly cloudy with rain/mist on and off...but we still managed to get out for our morning power walks. 

By Sunday (Apr. 28) the clouds had pretty well given way to some sunshine over the next week...Yay! So we had much nicer weather for our daily walks. The trees and shrubs are really greening up and the blossoms are beautiful! 

Work continues on the new sites here in the park. Tuesday (Apr. 30) they hydroseeded. Of course, we had to take a walk around to check it out...

We walked down to the river...this is the "back" view where they are seeding the bank from the lower level to the upper level...

View from the lower campground where lots of soil has been brought in to level off the low spots. The blue arrow indicates where our site is in the upper level...

Wednesday (May 1) the Canadian Forces Snowbirds Demonstration Squadron arrived a couple of days ago. They are based in Moosejaw, Saskatchewan but train here every spring in preparation for the upcoming air show season. They need experience over the water which they don't have available at their home base which is open prairie. Their first show is at CFB Comox on May 18. Of course, we had to go watch them! Kye Bay is a good location to watch them...

Just a few pictures for now, as come the Airshow, Steve will have many more to show you! There are normally 9 jets, but apparently one of the pilots has injured his wrist in a bicycle accident. 

A 2:11 minute compilation of videos Steve took...

Thursday (May 2) morning Don and Rhonda (my brother and Sister-in-Law) picked us up and we went to Seal Bay Nature Park for a hike. Such a beautiful day!

Looking down at the trail we just came up from the beach...

There are several different trails to choose from in this huge park...

After a great hike, we we went to the Land and Sea Brewery in Comox for lunch...good beer but a very limited menu. I had heard of the brewery and wanted to give it a try...thanks for making it so Rhonda!

Friday (May 3) morning started out with clear sky but clouds quickly started moving in as the morning wore on. After our usual powerwalk, we went to check on our little trailer. All is good...with longer days and more sunshine Steve put the tire covers on...

Saturday (May 4) was a very warm (21C/70F) but cloudy day. After an afternoon of errands and chores around the trailer, Steve and I went out for an early dinner at the Flying Canoe Pub. We like to take advantage of their Saturday night special a couple of times a month...where can you go out for burgers and beer and leave paying only $43 including tax and tip?!

Sunday (May 5) was cloudy again, but with light rain on and off all day. We managed a hike at Nymph Falls Nature Park and after chilling for a few hours, headed out to the Gladstone Brewery to partake in their Cinco de Mayo celebration...very busy and, as usual, a great "people watching" place!

Monday (May 6) we had light rain on and off again, along with quite a strong breeze. Our walk to day was in the forest where we had a bit of a windbreak. 

By the look of these clouds in the afternoon, we figured we were going to get a major dump of rain but they seemed to skirt around us...

Tuesday (May 7) we woke to clear blue sky, but it was a chilly 2C/35.6F outside. Thankfully it had warmed up significantly by the time we were ready to head out to the Riverway/Airpark for our walk. We were entertained this morning by the Snowbirds practicing in the distance...very cool!

We had an appointment at Reliable Autobody to have the official estimate on our car repair for ICBC. The bodywork on our passenger door cannot be done until July 17 and will take 3 to 5 business days.

Wednesday (May 8)...and another sunny beautiful day! The pollen this spring has been terrible so Steve washed the car while I cleaned inside the trailer. 

Fellow full-time RV'ers, Ray and Anne arrived around noon. Last year they changed things up and purchased a boat, so now they full-time RV in the winter (going south, of course) and cruise in their boat along the BC coast in the summer. They are here for a few days to clean out a storage locker here before taking the ferry over to Powell River, where their boat has been stored for the winter. 

We enjoyed a short visit with them before they went off to get set up in a site down from us. A few hours later, they joined us for happy hour and dinner. Ray has a website called Love Your RV where he has some great in-depth product and boondocking reviews. Anne is a nature and wildlife photographer and writer and has some fabulous photos on her website...Anne McKinnell Photography Check them out!

Thursday (May 9) morning, with the car packed up, we walked down to say goodbye to Ray and Anne. So glad we were able to have one evening catching up with them!

After a stop at Costco to fill up with gas, we started our trek down island to Rob and Angie's. I have an appointment tomorrow with my Orthopedic Surgeon to get an injection in my right knee...so it's always nice to tack on a few days to visit Rob, Angie and the boys. Besides, it's Bryce's birthday and Mother's

Day on Sunday 😊.

It was such a beautiful day! A perfect travel day...and a perfect day to take in the beauty of Qualicum Beach by stopping at the Shady Rest Restaurant and Pub for lunch...

Once Rob, Angie and the boys got home, we sat out on the deck to enjoy the sunshine and unusually warm temperatures! We're heading into a bit of a heat-wave over the next few days!

Friday (May 10) morning we went for our favourite walk along the Sidney waterfront before going to my knee appointment. The views along the waterfront are absolutely gorgeous!

Sidney Pier...

This is a new restaurant, Jacks on the Water, just opened up a month ago...replacing an old favourite of ours, The Rumrunner. We will be meeting my brother and sister-in-law there tomorrow for lunch to give it a try...

After my appointment, we went back to Rob and Angie's, had lunch and just relaxed for the afternoon...until everyone got home after work/school.

Back out on the deck enjoying the sunshine and a few bevies!

Conner even joined us...

Saturday (May 11) morning, Bryce had baseball so we all headed to the field to watch. We weren't the only ones watching the kids...this little hummingbird sat on the fence watching too!

Bryce almost hit a home run...making it to 3rd base...Steve managed to take a 31 second video. Good job, Bryce!

We left the park at 11:10 to head into Sidney for our 11:30 lunch reservation at Jacks on the Water. As we were parking, who should happen to walk by? but Dwight and Helen (my brother and sister-in-law) who we are meeting for lunch! What timing!

The restaurant is quite lovely inside, the menu has lots of good choices...and look at that lovely view! The problem was, we were seated in the atrium which was all window...including the ceiling! Absolutely beautiful...but...it was SO hot! And they had no fans to move what air that was coming in from the small open windows. We nearly melted! Even shades on the glass ceiling would have helped! They will definitely have to rectify that before the summer season arrives! 

After lunch, we were happy to get outside and continue our visit as we walked back to our vehicles. Great catching up with you, Dwight and Helen!

We drove to Royal Oak (a suburb of Victoria), to visit our moms at a cemetery for Mother's Day and on our way home we took a different route, driving through Elk/Beaver Lake Regional Park. It had been years since we had been there! We stopped and went for a little walk down to Beaver Lake...

A beautiful and popular park in the summertime...unfortunately they currently have a Blue-Green Algae Bloom advisory.

For Bryce's birthday, Rob and Angie took the boys to a Illusionist/Magic show that was at the Mary Winspear Community Centre in Sidney. Bryce is really into magic so he was thrilled to go and by the sound of it, they really enjoyed it.

Since tomorrow is Mother's Day...and Bryce's birthday...Angie decided to have his birthday dinner tonight. A pizza party! It was so hot on the deck where we usually sit, that we had to move the furniture down to the shade at the other end!

Birthday Boy, Bryce...  

Conner and Bryce...

Angie and Rob...

Later, after the sun had left the deck, the furniture was moved back...and the firepit was lit. Probably more for ambiance rather than heat...

Sunday (May 12)...Happy 9th Birthday, Bryce; and Happy Mother's Day to all Mothers! Rob made breakfast...ham and cheese omelettes, delicious! 

With everything cleaned up, it was time to get to work. In addition to making his own beer, Rob has started making wine. Wine Kitz where he used to get his wine made (so did we before we started full-time RV'ing) was closing and suggested to Rob that if he can make beer, he can certainly make wine. They gave him an excellent deal on the equipment he'd need...so not only is the laundry room his brewery, it's also his winery! He made a batch of red for us, so today is bag-it day. Here he is getting ready to filter it...

Moving into the kitchen now to bag it...

Thanks so much Rob! We had a taste...a good Cab Sav!

That afternoon, Rob took the boys to the bike park. We had some errands to run in Sidney so stopped to watch. It's quite the track and great for all skill levels of bicycle riders...

Here is a compilation of videos (1:30) Steve took of the boys...along with some more advanced riders...

Rob has a beef roast on the rotisserie for a special Mother's Day dinner...yum! 

After a delicious dinner (no pictures 😞), it was time for birthday cake...yes, we had a pizza party dinner for Bryce yesterday but left the cake until today...

Everyone's favourite...DQ Ice Cream Cake! Happy Birthday Buddy!

Monday (May 13) morning we said goodbye to Rob when he left for work and about a hour later,  Angie and the boys too. Thanks for all your hospitality...always great seeing you all!

With our car all packed, we headed to Mary's Bleue Moon Cafe to meet our good friends, Rob and Nancy for breakfast. As usual, we try get a visit in with them whenever we are here. So great catching up with you both!

After a stop at another cemetery to pay our respects to Steve's brother, grandmother and grandfather, we continued up island. Our next stop was at another friends place in Cowichan Bay. Unfortunately, Nan wasn't home but we had a nice visit with Jim. Hopefully next time we stop by, Nan will be home! 

No more stops after that (other than for gas)...we arrived home at about 3:15...car unloaded, suitcases unpacked in about 20 minutes! Always great to go away but always nice to get home too! 

Steve noticed our neighbor had cut not only his grass but ours and the Camp Hosts next door, so Steve got out his weed eater took care of all three sites.

Tuesday (May 14) and Wednesday (May 15) we were back into our usual routine...morning power walks, grocery shopping, and chores around here.

While on our morning walk at the airpark, we watched a float plane land...Steve took a short 15 second video of it coming in...

Then it taxi'd over to a spot just outside of the path. The pilot was a young lady all by herself...

The Common Laburnum along the path is absolutely beautiful!

Three Great Blue Herons...

It has cooled down from the temps we had last weekend...now into more seasonal temperatures. Still sunny...so far!

That's it for now...we're up to-date!