Celebrations

As I have said many times " I LOVE caching". It is something that always brings me joy. It also sometimes brings me bruises, scratches, soaking wet clothing but it always brings me joy. This past weekend I was up in Comox with friends house sitting for my daughter. We took the ferries over to Hornby Island and went to Mount Geoffrey Escarpment park and hiked the outer ridge trail. It was a fantastic trail and made even more fantastic by the fact that you can drive up to almost the top of the ridge and then just walk along it. 

We were out caching and hoped to find the ten that were along the ridge. Thankfully up in Comox the caches seem to be hid much easier than in some other locations. I am sure there are some tough finds up there but mostly we find them quite quickly which makes the whole adventure much more enjoyable. 

The views were fantastic as we went along. We stopped and enjoyed them along the way. There were four of us so it was quite interesting when we came to the cache area as of course we all wanted to be the one to find it. It can get rather competitive at times. 

Finally we got to the ninth cache and my caching pals were great. It would be my 1000th cache so they let me find it on my own. It was a small cache hid in the trunk of a tree. It was a quick easy find and it was so very cool to have reached this years goal. We found a place to sit to have our celebratory lunch and I was very surprised to see my friends had packed up a small bottle of champagne and glasses. 

The 1000th cache was toasted and following lunch we carried on to find my pals 300th cache. They don't cache as often as I do as their main adventures are spent out on the water kayaking. Sadly the last cache wasn't there so we headed back to the car. 

It was a great hike - not too steep and not too long. We hiked about 3 hours and came back on the summit trail making it a nice loop. 
Back down the mountain we stopped in at Tribune Bay park and picked up their 300th cache and then headed home via the ferries. 

There are so many great places to hike in Comox and Courtenay. All within a short drive. We spent one afternoon caching in Seal Bay and then another day we just hiked Nymph Falls. Beautiful wide river coming down from Comox Lake and the noise from the falls was nature at its finest. 

On our last day we went to Kye Bay and walked along the dyke there and back along the beach. A great way to end four days. 

So now I guess it is on for the next 1000 caches. It will take much longer now as life always gets busy and I don't get out as much as I used to. Plus I have done most of the local caches so it always involves a drive. 

I am so thankful to have such good friends that love to cache and hike almost as much as I do. It is something I love to do but I really can't do it alone nor would I want to. Friendships are so important in life and need to be cherished. 

Family

This past Saturday we had a family reunion with all of the descendants of my Grandpa and Grandma - Edward and Annie Evans. Its been over ten years since we have gathered and we have grown in numbers but also lost a few. There are only four of the seven siblings still with us so it was well past time to gather. 

My family has deep roots here in the valley that I live in. They came here in the 1800's to farm and have been here ever since. Roads are named after my Great Uncles and Great Grandfather. Many of my friends think it is wonderful to have such a long standing connection to the valley and I have to admit it is pretty cool. Sometimes though I think of how huge the world is and how much I have missed out on by always living in the same place. I guess we can't have it both ways. 

102 of us gathering at Glenora hall just outside of Duncan. It was a fun day and I saw many of my cousins that I haven't seen in years. It was great to reconnect and hear a bit about what they are doing and where they are living. 

I am so thankful to have such a large family and so very very thankful that I was able to see my aunts and uncle again. It is so important to stay connected with family. Sometimes we start to take it all for granted and then suddenly they are no longer with us and we have missed out on opportunities to visit and catch up on life. 

It was a good day. Lots of food, lots of pictures and fun. I hope we stay connected...it is so easy now through the internet. Maybe we will gather again in a few more years. Family is such a gift and when 102 family come together it has to be pretty special!