Expedition Canada

Canada Day Sat July 1st 2023 Returning to the Coast from Vancouver last Tuesday Canada Day falls on July 1st which means Monday will be a public holiday, giving Canadians a long weekend to the start off school holidays.  Ferry services are full and the summer population of the Coast is set to double.  BC Ferries is taking some stick at the moment because of the high level of cancellations.  Staffing is the biggest issue, a common problem in global shipping at the moment, according to the newly appointed CEO.  Ferries to and from the Sunshine Coast are heavily booked through July and into August meaning many travellers are having to turn up on spec.  Delays are frequent.  Apart from the first ferry of the day they have problems 'loading and unloading' ferries ... they do however, have to unload them first before they can load them and operational errors compound the problem.  Last week, a ferry was being moved at our local Langdale terminal, from the ri...

Vivaldi's Gloria Thu May 4th Male Rufous Hummingbird - Selasphorus Rufus Steller's Jay in the front garden A debate is starting to rumble in BC as to whether the Rufous Hummingbird should replace the Steller's Jay as the official provincial bird.   The Rufous, which has just returned from its winter sojourn in Mexico, will be here until the middle of summer, when it will head back the 2500+ miles to avoid the BC  winter.  The one above has been a frequent visitor to our feeder, along with all year round Anna's  Hummingbird. I'm not overly convinced that a bird that spends less than six months 'in town' should warrant the title, beautiful though it is.  I do find it pretty amazing that something so small, weighing in at 0.1oz (3 grams), flies such distances.  Flying at speeds of 20 - 30 mph, that is 100 days in each direction. No wonder it is only around for 3 - 4 months.   The Steller's Jay is resident year-round in BC.    Others favour ...

One (Not so) Careful Owner Mon March 20th It is a popular spot for locals wanting to sell a vehicle though one owner might rue the day they parked up along the highway with a For Sale notice.  The wreck has been there a week and some wag has now added a new For Sale sign "Fire Sale - $15,000 - No low bids".  A tad optimistic I feel. Fred continues to make strides in her recovery, up to 2km of them a day, and was even spotted in the garden last week.   She can't drive until Monday 27th so I remain head chauffeur until then, much to her frustration and mine! The local birdlife thinks it's Spring as drab winter plumage has given way to brighter colours in support of mating rituals.  We have been visited in the garden by Steller's Jays, Pileated Woodpeckers, Northern Flickers (also a member of the woodpecker family) and the Hummingbirds are back.  The Bald Eagles are doing some housekeeping on their nest high up on a Douglas Fir along the beach road.  Bird...

Home Sat Feb 18th Made it down to breakfast 2 days after op Our one disappointment from our trip to Calgary was that we didn't see one horse, cow or cowboy/girl.  The closest I got was a visit to Lammle's to buy a pair of jeans as the ones I flew out in developed a split where a fella doesn't want a split.  Lammle's stock everything 'cowhand' including tack for your horse.  More designs of boots than a cowhand could wear in a lifetime. I resisted the temptation. The taxi who took us for Fred's x-rays on Sunday, certainly had 'the knowledge' of the city.  Thirty five minutes south of the hotel, he knew the street numbering sufficiently well to correct the address we gave him.    Quite a coincidence, but t he following morning he was at the front of the taxi queue to take us north of the city to the former maternity hospital for Fred's op.  An early start as she had to be there for 0700 Monday.  I decided to walk back which is always a better way ...

Rain a week away Thu Sep 22 After the smoke smog - Twin Creeks Mill in Langdale W hen I started this update on Sept 12  Vancouver Island had not been visible for several days due to smoke from multiple forest fires in BC and across the US border in Washington state.  There was a faint hint of smoke in the air.  Environment Canada issued a ‘poor air quality’ statement, recommended no outdoor exercise and closing doors and windows.  Sunday 11th, our usual racing wasn’t happening as the boat owner was away.  One of the regular crew and I took out a club boat with the aim of sailing up West Howe Sound.  As we left the harbour the end of Keats Island was barely visible in the smoke haze, we could not see Gambier Island only five and a half kilometres away.  Our plan to sail around Gambier was abandoned as the wind dropped right off and we motored back into the main channel and in the end, back to Gibsons.  We both went home with sore throats. Stage 4 W...

Jazz by the beach Wed Aug 31st Fierce guard dog keeps watch from deck There is a definite autumnal air first thing in the morning and at my normal waking time of 0530 - 0600, it is dark.  The autumn equinox is only 21 days away, and it feels like it.  Daytime it is still warm, in fact this week we have a mini heat-wave (29 degrees yesterday) returning to normal over the long weekend.  It’s Labor Day on Monday - a public holiday, but no rain is forecast!  The long range forecast is for a wet autumn, though not as bad as last year when roads and rail lines were washed out, cutting BC off from the rest of Canada.   Warning of Black Bears going into their hyperphagia phase - eating as much as they can before going into hibernation in Oct/Nov, means they are more likely to be around potential household food sources.  There have been reports of bears entering houses and unlocked cars in search of food.  The cars haven’t fared too well (you should see the siz...