Expedition Canada

To Forest Setting Sat May 22   We are now in the 'Venice of the Sunshine Coast', with lakes galore.  We have two modest lakes on the property in front of the house (the dark blob at 7.00 O' clock in the black circle, it's a large natural pond (with fish in it) and we're close to Mixal Lake to our NE for paddle-boarding, fishing and swimming.  We will be exploring tomorrow.  Jack has already checked out both of our lakes here and also made acquaintance with the resident Douglas Squirrel, who 'squirrels' at him just out of range!  Quite a stand-off.  We thought we would have to watch him with the local Bobcat.  He has disappeared at regular intervals and comes back wet, when summoned!  He is rather a water dog!  Camp Burley Rd We are in one of about 14 cabins set in a large private parcel of forest about 15 minutes from Pender Harbour, where the nearest collection of shops are located.   We are up by the small blue circle on...

Not all Apple staff Know that! Fri May 21st I had calmed down this morning after yesterday's rant about Apple iPhones.  I didn't believe a phone bought in one country would not work in another.  But that is what the Apple said yesterday.  Today it was a different story.  The tech expert confirmed the different model numbers represent how Apple deals with conformity with local legislation.  It does not affect the call performance, that underlying technology is the same.  I do believe that! So I now have a new Sim, and we wait to see if that fixes the problem. This morning was a mix of packing for our move to Garden Bay, collecting a replacement phone SIm and waiting to see if we were able to connect with Nick's citizenship ceremony.  Inevitably it was a virtual event, such is the impact of Covid.  He is now a Canadian Citizen.  We are delighted he has succeeded in his ambition, so pleased and proud of him.  It is though in other ways a sl...

I Don't Believe it! Thu May 20th    Setting aside Covid, there can be no doubt we are living in a more global, homogenized market place.  Standards are converging, the same brands are found in high streets around the world.   As my old iPhone 8 was not working properly before we left the UK and repair looked expensive, I switched to a new iPhone 12.  The most modern of the Apple phone fleet. We switched to local SIMs a few weeks in.  Fred's old iPhone 8 works fine with the local number.  Our older iPhone 6's with our UK SIMs work fine.  Not so the latest iPhone 12 technology.  Calls in cannot connect reliably, get dropped and outgoing also just won't ring 50% of the time. Time to chat (online) to those lovely people at Apple.   " Well, what happens mike is that you bough (sic) a model that works only at the location that you bought it, that's why it is not working as it should right now, I'm going to share with you a link...

This time .... Memories of Yesterday Evening Wed May 19th They say moving is one of the top five emotional demands in life.  We can attest to that; more so if you add an international dimension, uncertainty over residential status and the cost of moving internationally.  My former BBC Recruitment colleagues will understand this.   We have withdrawn our offer and paused our search.  The vendors asked for a delay and in hindsight it worked for us.  We love the place and want to stay, but things don't always work out as you expect or plan; so we will remain in the rental market for a while longer. The upside here is the relaxed way of life, stunning scenery, friendly locals, amazing trails and opportunity.  We wish we'd done it 30 years ago, but glad we have done it now.   Relaxed is great, but permanent holiday isn't.   The downside of being a 'visitor' is not being able to work, open a bank account, get a Canadian credit ca...

Beach Camp Fire Sunlight on ferns Tue May 18th A grey start to the day though it cleared quickly.  Across the strait, Van Island remained covered in cloud and rain which lasted most of the day.   To my surprise (but not Fred's) Nick pitched up just after breakfast with a birthday cake.  What a delight.  It was raining in Vancouver as well we learnt from Nick, such are the micro-climates around this part of BC. In between his work conference calls we reviewed our figures on the property we're interested in, before going back to the agent confirming we are sticking with the last offer.  We wait to hear.   Late morning Nick and I took a drive out to Sechelt for him to see the house.  A we drove out I was pleased to see the Telus (local BT) cable team working on the overhead fibre cables that serve the house we are in.  Whatever had been the problem was fixed by early afternoon.  The TV was no longer a jumble of colour and the internet ...

That is the Question Jaws or something else Mon May 17th I'd like to be able to say that we have done lots of interesting walks today and taken lots of pics of the wildlife that puts on a daily show for us on the water's edge. There was an early beach walk, but only after getting up at 'dark o'clock' to speak to our UK bank.  The size and timing of moving money for house-purchase in Canada, the banks says is very simple.  On-line banking!  We'll see. The walk, provided a few Bald Eagles, an otter, seals and two other dog walkers.  I've got enough pictures of the wildlife.  One curious sight was the fin in the water - see picture.  No thrashing sharks taking bits out of boats or boatmen, but a Sea Lion.  They like 'sailing', sculling along with their other appendages with one fin out of the water.  After a brief bit of research, it is apparently their way of managing body temperature, a bit like a radiator.  It seems a shame tho...

Uphill - As Usual! Sun May 16th      A brief beach walk this morning as we were off to tackle the Triangle Lake Trail.  A 15 minute drive to the other side of Sechelt, the Halfmoon Bay area and we found the start.  Dogs to be leashed unfortunately, though as this trail was new to us and Jack likes to explore, probably not a bad thing. The trees in the foreground are 2/3s of the way up the lake The trail was forested from beginning to end with some steep, rocky and tree rooted sections.  It was amazingly quiet and we were first ones on the trail.  Jack soon found the first creek and was in.  Like most trails we have ventured along, it was well marked, with information boards at various places, describing the flora, not so much the fauna.  The lake opened out before us as we got to the top of the trail, though lake slightly overstates it.  The water was low and only about a quarter of the water was visible with quite a lot of vegetation in...