Expedition Canada

Clouds Disperse Fri Aug 27th  Sat Aug 28th It was a magical sunrise Saturday morning over Hopkins Landing Wharf.    An early start as we were headed to Vancouver to check out EVs.    The ribbon of cloud against the distant mainland mountains highlighted the scale of the geography and beauty of the surroundings. It was a different scene to yesterday, with the the cloud clearing as the day went on. Cloaked in thick cloud, the peaks that had been hidden over the last few days started to emerge. The small hollow of snow remains, but is getting much smaller. Though it has remained long beyond my predictions it cannot be around for long. If Friday was a local day, Saturday took us in to Vancouver to check our EV's. Unlike the UK, the main dealers congregate on auto-malls. We were headed to the one in North Vancouver, just fifteen minutes from the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal. After a few test drives we settled on a Nissan Leaf, delivery early next week.  It ...

To Van View across Gambier Island Tue Jul 6th It was another 'man in a white van' day with a trip back to Van to collect two sofas that were being delivered to Nick.  The supplier does not deliver to the Coast.  True of many suppliers here.  The morning light on the distant mountains  that run along the Sea to Sky Highway  behind Gambier Island, was a real contrast to the clear mornings of the past three days.   We've been trying to find a way of working out the names of the different peaks.  Not easy from a distance.  Work in progress A early dash to Sechelt to pick up a 'cargo van' similar to the one I hired last week and then back to the ferry for the crossing to Horseshoe Bay.  This one was clean, the air-con worked and it didn't have long queues.   Fred walked Jack on Bonniebrook beach (our second house stay) while I headed to Van.  Jack loves that beach and was reluctant to leave it today.  As the ferry lef...

It's Hot Mon Jun 28th It was a balmy 25c as I set out on this morning's walk at 0630hrs.  That's as cool as it was going to get today.  Later afternoon temperatures are expected to hit 40c.  Not quite the  record  BC reached yesterday, or may even break again today. The walk reprised one we did when we were first released from quarantine in April.  I say we, today I was on my own.  Wimbledon has started so I shall not see Fred in the mornings for another two weeks.  If we were not 8hrs behind it would have been a larger chunk of the day! Today's forest art was on the Hyannis Trail.  There is someone around with an imaginative eye and a pocket full of pebbles.  I wonder if I will come across any others this week? The individual trails in North Van run for many kilometres but connecting trails and and crisscrossing of the main trails create a network whic h makes it possible to walk (run or ride) your distance of choice.  (See image)....

It's Warm Sun Jun 27th It is not often that you start a dog walk at 0630 and it's 21c.  Today was the exception.  It was going to be a two shower day - at least! There were few people "out and about" and we (Jack and I) were back on the Hyannis trail in North Vancouver, a route well trodden on our morning walks  during out last stint in N Van.  Jack seemed to know where he was going.   The tall pines helped make for a cooler walk and as we dropped down to Seymour Creek the temperature dropped a further few degrees. A round trip of 4.2k and 120m climb I was 'glowing' on my return.  By the time we got back the parking around the trailhead was full.   A new addition to the walk was some carefully placed rocks in a moss laden tree stump with ferns atop.  It looked like something from the 'Monster Munch' or 'Don't Forget the Honey Mummy 'advert, I can't remember which or what the last one was for!  Very clever. Our lovely host Shari drop...

It's Hot! Fri Jun 25th and  Sat Jun 26th The predicted heatwave has arrived and Friday's late twenties has become Saturday's early thirties.  Most of Friday was spent around the cabin packing, cleaning, trips down to the lake to cool off swimming and generally lazing around. Occasionally there were a couple of other people around, it was getting quite crowded! I discovered a new walk Thursday morning, a trail that runs along the north side of the lake.  Slightly disappointing that we'd not found it before as it would have been a good one to explore. The tree on the right at the beginning of the trail seems to have been popular with the resident woodpeckers.  The volume of chippings at the base of the trunk looked as though they'd taken a chain-saw to it.    The full trail will have to wait until we return to the cabin, which we know we will do at some point.   We have come to appreciate the remoteness and sparse population of this end of the Sunsh...