Basil Fawlty Spotted on BC Ferry
Sick Gulls
Sat May 7th
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| Ravens - escapees from the Tower of London on Bonniebrook beach |
Heading back for the ferry from our first round of grandchild infatuation last Saturday (May 1st), we turned up at the Departure Bay terminal slightly early only to find the ferry was running late. No option but to wait it out.
Two hours later, coming into the berth at Langdale, a driver from an adjoining car was impatiently pacing up and down, angrily talking into his phone trying to explain that the boat was about to unload and asking ‘where are you?'. His manner and temper control was pure John Cleese/Basil Fawlty. ‘We are at the front of the boat. You are at the back. Look which way the cars are pointing’ and ‘So you need to head in the direction the cars are pointing’. Over the one or two minutes of this sketch/explanation to Mrs 'Manuel' we had to stifle our hysterics as our window was open. Clearly his wife/partner at the other end of the phone hadn’t grasped that the direction of the cars was significant to the concept of a RoRo ferry. I wonder how her navigation skills would be with left and right?
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| Crane departing after ramp repairs |
With the ferry firmly in the berth, usually with a loud 'thump', the recently repaired loading ramp was lowered before it stopped half way, it had to be partially raised and lowered before finally settling on the deck.
Unloading commenced, initially with the motorbikes as normal. The second of the bikes arrived at the edge of the ramp, caught it at an angle, went over, spilling the rider and stalled. One hundred or so drivers watched intently as he tried unsuccessfully to right the bike and then restart it, until it finally caught. Nothing worse than being at the front of the queue holding everything up behind you, as I know from the embarrassment of trying to get on the top deck of the ferry with my large roof box. It wasn't a problem until BC Ferries installed height sensors!
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| Bald Eagle on Hopkins Landing Wharf |
That afternoon I spent a couple of hours cleaning the car. One of my least favourite jobs alongside cutting the grass! Pretty pleased with the result, though not as good as Steve in Burbage who used to come along every few months and make the cars look like new.
We were due to head into Gibsons a day or two later to get some admin jobs done. On the drive I stopped short of the car.
Imagine if you would, standing on the top of a high step ladder, with a 6” paint brush dripping full of white emulsion and flicking it high in the air from the side, and across the top of a black car.
Mostly likely a gull on a bad food day, the resultant mess stretched at least 2 meters beyond the car and from the back tailgate to front bumper. It really was quite a spectacle. As I had to clean some of the worst of it off before heading out, you won't get a picture. Quite what the gull had eaten to create such an exceptional distribution of ‘emulsion’ is beyond me. It was one of those 'I don't believe it' moments.
After a brief stop off at our Solicitor to get some papers notarized we headed to the bank. The banking system here has a different system, called Interac, debit cards don't automatically come with Visa or Mastercard functionality. Paying for stuff online, such as with Amazon or utility bills won't always go though on Interac. So we had to pop in to the branch to arrange Visa debit cards.
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| Young Black Tailed Deer |
Black Bears are out and about. Fred spotted her first one of the season on the highway between Gibsons and the ferry terminal. Nick and Lizzie saw a mother and three cubs up in Whistler the week prior to Sebastian's arrival. The local Black Tailed Deer are also in evidence, this one on the highway heading towards the ferry terminal. Looks like one of last year's youngsters shedding its winter coat.
Sebastian continues to delight us (remotely) and tire his parents, though he's now going 4-5 hours at night which is a definite improvement. It all sounds pretty chilled in the Seb household.
Fred is off on Granny duties next week for a couple of days, and can't wait. Wild horses etc......
More pics by popular request.
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| Very bright and perky |
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| It tickles! |
Friday night we went whale watching to Roberts Creek and then on to Davis Bay as a large grey whale had been sighted over the last week, feeding on its way to the northern summer waters. The Coast Reporter covered the story. It must have been past its bedtime as we saw no sight of it but we have camera and binoculars ready should the local Facebook group (which Fred belongs to) report more sightings. We've booked a 6-hour whale-watching tour for June when family from the UK are here. We will head up to the top of Vancouver Island to pick up the boat, Fred having decided already to look after Jack for the day. Boats and Fred do not usually get on unless it's one of the BC ferries.
We popped over to see our vendors and the new house mid week and supped a glass of sparkling or two. They move out on the 18th when the removers collect their gear. The same removers shift our belongings in on the 21st and the UK shipment is delivered on the 23rd. The rest of the month will be unpacking and shedding excess gear to the thrift shops!
Some lovely scenes off Hopkins Landing on early morning walks this last week.
Despite the above average rainfall last Fall and Winter, Stage 1 water restrictions have been implemented already. As of May 1st, garden watering is restricted to specific days of the week, depending on your house number. The new house has a water salvage tank which we will be able to use during the summer. The restrictions are in place, not because there is a current shortage, but to protect summer supplies. Like the UK, under-investment in past years has ensured water supply has not kept up with the pace of new development.
That's all for today. Back to packing!
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