Tuesday, June 11, 2019 (Thunderbird RV Park, Campbell River, BC)

We woke to sunny blue sky this morning...it's going to be a fabulous day to go out boating! Emery had called last night to invite us out on their boat this afternoon. So we spent the morning puttering around and preparing for our afternoon.

I took this picture out our back window...we have a view of the estuary when the sites behind us are empty...

We were ready and waiting when Emery and Glenda picked us up at 1:00...and we headed down to the marina where their boat is moored. After getting everything ready, we were off...

Our first wildlife sighting and we hadn't even left the harbour yet...a harbor seal...

A closeup of one of the many gorgeous yachts moored at the marina...

A whale-watching group heading out...

Vancouver Island is in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is 460 kilometres (290 mi) in length, 100 kilometres (62 mi) in width at its widest point, and 32,134 km2 (12,407 sq mi) in area. It is the largest island on the West Coast of the Americas.

We are located at that blue dot. You can see the narrow channel that all the Alaska cruise ships take...

If Steve has recalled correctly this was our approximate route taken from Campbell River, to Refuge Cove, Lund, Mitlenatch Island Nature Provincial Park (barely visible in light green at the bottom) and cruise ships upper left...

Cape Mudge Lighthouse on Quadra Island...

We weren't out long before Steve said he saw a tower of mist in the distance from a Humpback Whale exhaling through it's blow hole. Emery headed that way but we were never able to get close enough for a clear view or photo before it showed it's tail and sounded into the deep to never be seen again.

Unfortunately so far this year 70 of these whales have been found dead from starvation along the coast from California to Alaska...

This Rhinoceros Auklet kept following us...

 Emery would go to full throttle and this little guy did the same!

Mitlenatch Island Nature Provincial Park. Emery said back in the day the Spanish would off load their sheep to graze here. We'll be checking it out on our way back. A tugboat hauling a log boom...

BC mainland...

Emery said this rocky spit is from glacier deposits...

With the boat bobbing around Steve couldn't tell if there were seals here but after cropping this somewhat blurry telephoto shot there were...

Even this far out from shore we could see boulders below us...

Canadian Coast Guard...

Entrance to Desolation Sound on the BC mainland in the distance...

We stopped on the other side of Cortes Island and had snacks and drinks that Glenda and Emery had supplied...nice!

 Entering Refuge Cove...

In the summertime this place is packed with boats...

They're still a little behind here...LOL!

After checking out the store we headed back to the boat...

 Coffee Shop and Gallery...

The sign in the window said Lucy's Place...the roof and ladder were in sad shape...

Comox Glacier left, on Vancouver Island...

  Approaching Copeland Islands Marine Provincial Park behind the boat ahead...

Sailboats anchored in a bay at Copeland Islands...

 Leaving the islands, left...

 Approaching Lund on the BC mainland...

 The Lund Hotel where we'll have dinner...

Beautiful view as we exit the gallery at the hotel...

 Everyone had pork belly except for Steve who had fish and chips...the food was great!

This guy flew by...

Stairs to the hotel...

That's a big chess board!

Our last stop was to Mitlenatch Island Nature Provincial Park where we had quite the audience!

Harbour Seals, Northern and California Sea Lions frequent the island...

Gulls...

The island is home to the largest seabird colony in the Strait of Georgia...

Cormorants...

As we passed by the sea bird colony these guys checked us out...

They actually followed us for awhile...

That was cool...would be fun to hike around the island one day...

Lots of fishers off the tip of Quadra Island. Campbell River's claim to fame is Salmon fishing capital of the world. Looking back at the mainland as we head back to Campbell River...

As we headed back to the Marina we spotted cruise ships ahead so we continued...passing by Thunderbird RV Park...

And Painters Lodge...

Lodge shuttle leaving sister resort April Point Resort and Spa on Quadra Island headed for Painters Lodge...

Coral Princess...

  Holland America Volendam...

One of the Regent Seven Seas cruise ships. Because of the very strong currents running through the channel the cruise ships time their sailings on a slack tide...

It was getting late so we turned around and headed for the marina. This guy is loaded with crab nets...

The Royal City Star - Fraser River Casino Cruise Ship formerly the Queen of New Orleans...

 Ray and Anne's yellow flag and ours is the other flag...

Just over 7 hours later we were back...what an awesome day! The weather was perfect, the ocean was calm, and the scenery outstanding! Oh...and the company was pretty good too! We live in such a beautiful area of the country and this area is certainly a boaters paradise. Thanks for a wonderful day Emery and Glenda!

Monday, June 10, 2019 (Thunderbird RV Park, Campbell River, BC)

Monday was a nicer day...we're slowly getting back to warmer temps. The forecast for Wednesday is a hot and sunny 30C/86F!

With his RC plane fixed, Steve was anxious to try it out, so we headed to a field that the local RC club said he could use. Surprisingly the club doesn't allow any drop in guests from other clubs.

He's connecting the control wires to the wing...

Connecting the elastic bands that hold the wing to the fuselage...

Installing the lithium battery...

Checking that all control surfaces are moving correctly...

And it's off...Steve was a little nervous after not flying for 3 months and not knowing how his repaired plane would handle. Plus he's used to flying in the unlimited airspace of the desert at Quartzsite.

Here it's a lot tighter with hydro power lines and trees along one side...

Buildings at the far end and a roadway on the other two sides...

Coming in for a landing...

Almost on the ground...

Success!

 One test flight was good enough for today...

Time to take it apart and put it away...a bit of a tight fit!

After that we went to check out Elk Falls Provincial Park, Day Use Area.

We parked in the new (huge) parking lot and headed out for a walk to the falls. I had my walking poles (and ibuprofen!). There are tons of hiking trails in the area...it's killing me not to be able to get out on them.

(Click on photos to enlarge)

A big fire went through this area back in 1938...

Catalyst Paper used to have a large mill just outside of Campbell River and 3 large water pipes would feed it from Campbell Lake. The mill shut down in 2009 so there was no longer a need for the pipeline. Steve used to do sales calls to a couple of dozen sawmills and pulp and paper mills, but most have now shut down...

You can see a couple of those pipes in the distance...

The trail system has been upgraded considerably since we were here last many years ago...

This tree was much bigger than it appears in this photo...

This is new!

Our first view above the waterfall...

As we got closer to the falls, we found that the trail and viewing area now goes down many levels of stairs. Steve went down to take pictures while I followed but only went down a couple of levels...I'll wait and see the pictures!

Viewing platform above the falls...

The 89 foot tall Elk Falls and the successive canyon are the centerpieces to Elk Falls Provincial Park just outside of Campbell River on Vancouver Island. The Campbell River plunges effortlessly into a moist defile carved out by what was once a magnificent cataract. Since 1948 when the John Hart dam went online, the vast majority of the Campbell River has been diverted for hydroelectric generation, leaving the falls just a shadow of its former self. Though the volume of the river can increase noticeably during the peak of the snow melt season, rare are the days when the river is allowed to flow unimpeded any longer. However, the diversion of the river does allow the waterfall to retain a very consistent flow all year long, so no matter the conditions it remains constant.

Headed back up to cross the suspension bridge...

View from the other side...

Above the falls...not much water. Much of BC has had very little rain and the snow packs are low with water restrictions already in place in many areas. And this is a rain forest!

Heading back...

My view as I waited for Steve...

It was a great walk...and although painful, I really enjoyed it! Thanks for walking slowly with me, honey! (Steve: No problem Gimpy Girl!)

On our way home, we took a drive around the outer loop of the Elk Falls Provincial Park Quinsam Campground. Nice well treed rustic campground but we found some trees overhang low over the road  and, although a few sites we could fit into, most were too small or would be difficult to maneuver into.

We could probably fit here...

Quinsam River as we left the campground. There's a few sites that are on the river...

Back home, I downloaded all of the pictures taken so Steve could work on them while I rode my bike to the Real Canadian Super Store for groceries. This time, though, I had too much to fit in a backpack, so once I was done, I texted Steve who came to pick them up. I even beat him home!

Late afternoon, we took our chairs and a drink over to Ray and Anne's and had a visit with them while enjoying views of the estuary. We had a nice visit with them and then headed home for dinner. Thanks for sharing your view guys!

After dinner, we watched a couple of shows on TV and then just before 9:00, we took our chairs, camera and binoculars across the street to the oceanfront to watch for cruise ships coming through the channel. We should have checked the marine traffic website first though. We eventually did and the only cruise ships coming through tonight were just off the coast of Courtenay so would be awhile yet. After almost an hour, we packed up and headed back to the trailer...we'll plan this better next time! But the view was still lovely...