Saturday Walk

This is early into our walk today. View from Dallas Road.
Right after the coffee, of course.

It was so gorgeous here today. Gorgeous, wonderful summer weather. Did you hear that word - summer?  It evokes such an amazing feeling in our bodies.  And our minds.

Well, today was one of those perfect summer days. A gentle and warm breeze. Full on sunshine, maybe a little sunburn. In fact, it was so warm, make that hot, that there were hundreds of people wandering around in shorts and t-shirts.  And some, make that lots, were eating ice cream.  Sigh.

I found an abandoned rusty mattress that was screaming for a little attention ...

After dinner at home, I discovered the lilac bushes behind our building are officially in bloom. Well, the purple ones are, in any case. The white ones are a little behind, and the California lilacs are trying very hard, as well.

 Can't you just smell that distinctive, lilac fragrance? It was wafting in the back stairs, so I went out to get up close and personal.  Then, look who popped his head out the window! 

My sweetie!

Ah, September

Well, it seems I mispoke.  Summer is not over.  It may be winding down, but it is definitely not over.  Thankfully.

Tickets and a backstage pass.

Last weekend we had the great pleasure of spending time with our friends James and Eve from Vashon Island.  They'd come to spend the weekend visiting Victoria before the k.d. lang concert on Sunday evening.  James is a part of k.d.'s crew, and the Sunday concert begins a month of touring for k.d. lang and the Siss Boom Bang gang.

James and Eve had their road bikes with them and Peter joined them on Friday for a nice ride out through Saanich to Sidney and back.  Friday evening was spent sharing salad rolls, some wine tasting and stories and a slide show of their recent bicycle tour of New Zealand, as well as a different trip spent in France.  Nothing like some awesome photos and good stories to get the travel bug active again!  Not that it ever is very far from the surface in this home.

View from the Laurel Point Inn.

Saturday was a lazy day for me.  I'd had a hectic week with 3 days on-the-job training, meeting new people through work, and walking the picket lines for a day (Wednesday - a first for me).  I even got to fly to/from Vancouver Friday via Harbour Air!  Peter met me at the terminal and had a good laugh that it was now my turn to be getting on/off planes, and him greeting me at the terminal at the end of the day.  In any case, Saturday was my down time; time to catch up.  James and Eve, on the other hand, checked into their hotel (great view), changed into their cycling clothes, fueled up with a good cuppa joe and rode off towards Sooke for a ride.  We met them later for some great tapas and live entertainment at The Superior.

Sunday morning was a lazy one for us.  Midday was spent wandering around downtown Victoria, checking out the Eat Here Now: Victoria Harvest Fest, and popping in and out of stores we don't normally venture into.  More stimulating conversation and some of the best coffee around.  It's at Habit on Pandora.  Then more stimulating conversation, some noodles at a Thai restaurant, then off to see k.d. lang at the Royal Theatre that evening.  The show was fantastic - what a character that k.d. is;  and that voice!  Boy, I wish I could sing like that.  Actually, I wish I could sing. Period.

Monday Night Picnic

It was a beautiful evening tonight and Pete had the picnic ready to go as soon as I got home from work.  So we packed up and off to the beach we went!

You'll have to imagine the happy grin on Pete's
face because it was so sunny that I failed to properly capture it in this image.

A coworker was paddling by us so I flagged him down for a visit.
He is one heck of an enthusiastic SUP'er!

Unpaid Vacation

Judith was awarded the picnicker of the month award for randomly finding this new spot.

Cruising south for a couple nights on the inside of Vancouver Island.

My cruising hosts. The Skipper, Chef, and Cruise Director.

Cruise Director or Skipper, you be the judge.

The second best part of cruising is when your lovely wife picks you up, and whisks you away for a picnic lunch.

The boat was fun for sure, but walking around in the mountains with Judith tops it all.

Yup, it was thirty plus degree's and we needed a swim at six thousand feet above sea level.

Mount Washington Ski Hill.

Paid Vacations

July 21st - Another early morning drive from Victoria to Hornby Island.
Ah, the sun and fluffy white clouds!

... watched a remote controlled sailboat race (July 22nd)

... visited friends (July 22nd),

... amongst them Anna and Ava (July 22nd),

July 24th - went hiking up Mount Geoffrey
with the visiting Alberta Snikles,

After our hike up the mountain, it was time to cool off and have some lunch.

That evening we went down to Ford Cove to watch Alex and Paul
swim in the rather cool water.

July 28 - Peter enjoys a much needed chair
massage at the Saturday Market.

Sunday July 29 - picnic at the beach. Here
Meka enjoys a roll in the warm sand.

Some of us attempted a game of frisbee in the frigid waters
of Whaling Station Bay.

Some of us enjoyed the warm sand ...

One of us happily got buried in the sand,

 and all of us enjoyed a bite to eat, al fresco!
Check out Alex's six-pack.

The next day the Alberta Snikles started on their journey home and Judith drove back to Victoria to go to earn her next paid vacation.  Frank and Mary Jane stayed home to recover from 2 weeks of visitors and Peter stayed on Hornby for more 'healing.'  Thankfully, we are all recovering nicely and looking forward to warmer weather in August.

September 12th - Full Moon

Full moon by St. Ann's Academy.

Saturday September 3rd

BluesFest arrives in Victoria - we start our Saturday walkabout here.

... and check out the Classic Wooden Boat show in the Inner Harbour. I think 50 to 70 feet would be enough for me. LOL

The walkabout takes us to Beacon Hill Park for the lunch picnic where we devour half a small watermelon each. Judith is still wearing her wonderful Hornby Island birthday t-shirt.

In the evening, we end up at Clover Point again watching the waves caress the rocks.

And wait for the sunset. A beautiful day.

Another relaxing and satisfying sunset at Clover Point.

August in a nutshell - Part 5

Aug 13 - mmmmm, roasted bananas for breakfast.

Aug 13 morning - we drove out to La Push, which is on the other side of the Quillayute River mouth about one mile south of Rialto Beach.  Here you can see we are waiting for the fog to burn off and testing the water.

Aug 13 afternoon - Just after our picnic lunch at the beach the sun managed to shine through.  Here we were visited by a flock of pelicans.

Aug 13 - a view toward the mouth of the Quillayute River.

Aug 14 - time to leave the campsite and head back to Port Angeles. On the way out of the Olympic National Park, we stopped at the Salmon Cascades on the word of a young Park Ranger that she had seen salmon jumping.  We did in fact see salmon jumping and in this photo you can just see one below the surface of the water. Really!

Aug 14 - in Port Angeles the Snikles dropped PeJu off at the ferry terminal for their ride home. Here is Peter all packed up and ready to go!

Aug 14 afternoon - after a lovely sunny ride back to Victoria we arrive at the breakwater. So many times PeJu have stood on that very breakwater and waved at the Blackball ferry!

August in a nutshell - Part 4

Aug 12 afternoon - after lunch we drove out to Rialto Beach on the west coast of the Olympic Peninsula to see the Pacific Ocean. As you can see, the fog hadn't burned off yet. This is the view north.

Aug 12 - Rialto Beach: view to the south.

Aug 12 - Rialto Beach: Snikles skipping stones in the Pacific Ocean.

Aug 12 - One of the highlights of the Olympic Peninsula is a stop in Forks, the vampire capital of Washington State.