Over these past six years my family has grown in leaps and bounds. In 2004 my first grandchild arrived and now at the end of 2019 I awaiting the arrival of my seventh grandchild which will arrive in March. That's going to be seven special little people under the age of 6..well for one month and they the oldest will turn 6.
Love is an amazing thing. No matter how many people you love, each for their own uniqueness you always have love for more. As each grandchild has arrived my heart has grown and been filled with love.
As the babies have grown into toddlers and the toddlers into preschool my love for them grows as well. They are all so very different and all so individually perfect!
I feel so blessed to have such a large family and yes it may not sound large to many people but when you are raised in a family of four growing to a family of 18 seems like a lot, especially when you are having Christmas dinner.
It is always fun to gather as a family over Christmas. I have all my children come on Boxing day for breakfast and then we open our gifts, well we only buy for the littles a the rest of us don't really need much.
Every other year most of them come for Christmas dinner as well but my favourite meal is breakfast and so I chose Boxing day to be my day that all my family can come together. It frees my kids up to be with their other families for the Christmas meal.
We have a great time and the kids all love to play together and the babies get passed around from person to person giving the parents a break here and there. At 84 years of age my parents are still doing well and Mom is always helping prepare the meal and doing up the dishes. It's amazing how well they do at their age compared to the last generation. My grandparents were "old" well before they hit their 80's!
I love Christmas - I always have but I have also let go on having the dinner and all the presents. That is all small stuff. What is important is for us all to be together and share in some laughter and stories of days gone by.
It was a great Christmas this year! And it will be a great new year and for some reason I feel 2020 is going to be a very special year. It just is!!
It was that time of year again...yup the time when I become another year older. This year I was really craving spending some time by the open ocean waters. I struggled with where I could go and then decided to do a road trip out through Port Renfrew and down to Sooke with stops at Sombrio beach and Mystic beach. I had been wanting to return to Sombrio beach since I hiked across in six years ago while doing the Juan de Fuca trail with daughter. That was my first big adventure with over night camping on the trail and a hike I will always treasure.
I invited three of my hiking pals to come with me and we set off rather early to try and reach Sombrio by low tide. There is a hidden waterfall there that I have been wanting to find and I was sure I would!
After an hour and half drive through foggy skies we arrived at the trail head. I was pleasantly surprised to see a nice wide newly graveled pathway down to the beach plus there were new toilets installed and other upgrades since I had last been there.
There were a few people camped along beach, some with young children and I realized it was a great place to bring the kids to and my brain began to plan. As the tide wasn't that low and we knew time was short we headed off in the direction that I believed the waterfall to be.
We searched along the bush line looking for a creek and we did find one or two but after a bit of bushwacking each lead ended with no where to go. Sadly we returned to the trailhead an headed over to the west side of the beach and did some exploring over there. It was neat to see the cliff with the rope hanging down that I had climbed up many years ago. It didn't look near as scary now as it had felt back then.
We found a spot and sat and had our lunch enjoying the sounds of the waves as they came upon the shore and the lovely sound of the pebbles as they were taken back out by the wave, it was musical.
Never one to sit for long I rounded up the gang after about 45 minutes and we headed off back to the car to continue down the coast line.
The hike into Mystic beach was much longer and a bit rougher of a trail. It wove through a beautiful forest of fir and cedar trees. The path was soft under our feet and there were many roots to navigate.
When we arrived there was just enough shoreline left for us to go and stand under the waterfall that comes from the cliff. The fresh water splashes down into the ocean. It would be great on a hot day.
We explored the small caves along the shoreline and walked the beach.
We found a spot to rest and once again just enjoyed the views and the sounds of being out in creation. It was nice to sit there and watch the sun slowly lower itself in the sky. Just total peacefulness.
We headed back to the car and drove into Sooke to share in a lovely birthday meal. It was a fantastic day and I am so thankful to have friends to spend time with on my birthday adventures. Friends are what make aging all okay.
For over a year my daughter and I have been wanting to hike up Mount Prevost from Bings Creek. We have driven up the mountain many times beginning when I was a child and then when she was a child but both of us really wanted to hike from the bottom up.
We finally found a time that worked for us both and off we headed bringing the dog along. It was a beautiful hike among the trees and the weather cooperated.
It is a trail that is up and then more up and then more up!
The trees and the flowing creek made it all worth the while though. It truly is a beautiful hike.
There is a very small section where you climb up using a rope...it was a bit difficult for the dog but with my daughter pulling and me helping from below we managed to get her up.
Once up the views were just wonderful. We sat and had an early lunch and just enjoyed looking down on the valley.
We are so blessed to live in the Cowichan Valley surrounded by magnificent mountains that allow us to hike, climb and enjoy some fantastic views!
So ropes are not really my thing. Going up is fine but coming down is a whole different matter. I was a bit anxious. When we got to the top of the roped there were three hikers waiting to come up and well long story short one of the nice gentleman came and helped guide my feet so that I could get down. The dog had no problem nor did my daughter. This is the second hike involving a rope that I have gone on with my daughter and both times we have switched roles. She has become the encouraging parent and I the scared child. LOL
It was very steep hike but going down was a bit faster. It took us about five hours to do the 11 km hike with a nice break at the top.
I love getting some hiking time in with my adult children. This day was perfect!
One of the many trips on my bucket list was fulfilled this past weekend. My parents and one of my friends journeyed up island to Port Alberni and took the Frances Barkley ferry down to Bamfiled and back.
We booked a two night stay at the B n B my parents stayed in ten years ago when they first made this trip. We arrived there Wednesday night and enjoyed a relaxing evening touring a bit and playing some cards. A family passtime. In the morning we boarded the ferry at 7am and found some awesome window seats. The ferry travels to Bamfield three times a week delivering mail and supplies to the ocean side towns. It makes a few stops along the way.
The morning weather was cool and there was a low laying fog but thankfully it wasn't ow enough to block our view of the coastline along the Alberni inlet. It was so wonderful to just relax and enjoy the views out the window although we did eventually spend some time sitting outside when the sun came out. There were lots of logs tied up along the shoreline ready for transport when we first headed out.
We also spotted a bear on one of the beaches but as I had the binoculars I was the only one to see him before he headed back into the bush. We then went past China Creek Campground and saw some sea lions.
Our first stop was the Kildonan post office. A tiny little village with an even smaller post office. It looked like a very remote and peaceful place to call home. After dropping off some mail and supplies we headed out again towards Bamfield.
As it was almost noon we popped downstairs to the cafe and enjoyed a good lunch. I chose the burger which was just massive and had a fair bit of cheese on it which made it difficult to eat but it certainly was good!
Our next stop was at the old hotel on the east side of Bamfield. Most of the passengers disembarked here to walk along the boardwalk and explore for an hour. However we chose to stay on board and go into Bamfield and watch the unload the cargo. It was actually quite amazing. The boat has a crane on it that lifts the crates and containers of supplies. Food, drink, housing materials, we even had a load of lumber and siding. It took some time for it to unload. We then headed back toward the ocean school where we picked up a large group of students before heading across and picking up the rest of the passengers who had now returned to the dock.
On our way back toward Port Alberni we are lucky enough to come across two whales. We kept our distance but did manage to see them blow quite a few times.
It began to rain on the journey home but we were quite dry and comfortable sitting inside and still had great views.
The ferry trip took ten hours and was something I definitely would do again.
That night we went out for a nice meal and then returned to our B n B.
I will always treasure having spent this time sharing an adventure with Dad and Mom. Something I need to do more often. It was great to spend time together and have time out on the water and be in creation. I'm so very, very blessed and thankful to have such loving people for parents and my good friend who is always game to join in on any adventure!
It was a great day and off four of us went to Osborne Bay park where we headed up the Blue trail on Maple Mountain. It is a trail that I have struggled going up with in the past but for some reason it was relatively easy this time around.
There were four new caches on the trail that we managed to nab as we hiked along. It is a beautiful trail with awesome ocean views along the way.
One of my favourite stops is at the three crosses. I was saddened to find that the middle cross has snapped off. Hopefully someone will be able to replace it before next summer. We stopped there for a much needed break.
We had planned to just hike to the end and then go back but seeing we had lots of time we headed down the mountain on the other side so we could enjoy being close to the water.
We reached the light stand and stopped for our lunch break and just enjoyed the peacefulness of the trail. We had only run into two other hikers so it was a good day to be out and enjoy the stillness of the forests and also the quietness along the ocean shore.
Hiking back along the Yellow trail along the water was fun and it was good to be close to the water and breathe in the ocean smells. It was cooler but still the sun was shining. There is something about being near the water that just refreshes me and uplifts me, allowing me to have the energy to deal with all that life delivers during the week.
Sadly you are not permitted to cross certain property when you return so you have to hike back up to the Blue trail and then back down. By this time we had hiked for over four hours and I had had quite enough but did manage to tag along behind and get back to the car. It was a five hour hike and around 9kms with three of the four of the five caches found so not a bad day at all.
I have to laugh as I always start out on the trails as the leader and always return as the last....next time I might just cheat and take the short cut!
It's September and fall has arrived. Summer has come and gone and I am not sure how. It was a very strange summer with only one or two hikes. Time was mostly spent with family and the grand kids which was great fun, however I have missed exploring new areas this past month.
I find my life has changed so much this past year. It seems I have gone from craving to be out on the trails geocaching every weekend to being content to just be home and do the odd outing. It's not that I want to give up hiking it is just that life is so overwhelmingly busy that I can't seem to find the time to get outdoors as much.
This past weekend however I spent four days with friends up in Comox and we managed to take a day trip to Quadra Island. I have never been before and was very thankful to be able to explore most of the island.
Arriving on the island we headed south and stopped at the Cultural Center there. It was a quite little First Nations village and it was very peaceful to be there. I found myself comparing it to where the First Nation's people live in my valley and I must say it out shined ours completely. These folks obviously knew how to care for the land and their homes and be proud of their heritage.
Sadly the town I live in, a town I have been so proud of for many years is now become a town filled with homeless folks hooked on drugs and First Nations people who live in homes filled with and surrounded by garbage. It's so very very sad to see. I hope these folks who live on Quadra are very proud of the care they have taken with their village.
Upon leaving the village we ventured down to the light house at Cape Mudge and spent a few minutes at the beach before heading up the east coast to Rebecca Spit. We hiked out on the spit and had lunch. What an amazingly beautiful park. The beaches were lovely, the water warm and I could have sat there for hours watching the boats go by.
Next stop - Heriot Bay. It was a very peaceful bay with lots of boats at the marina and loads of people dining at the pub.
Heading further north we drove out on a very long dirt road to another little place where you launch a boat from. It was also the trail head to hike out to the narrows.
However with the tide not being very active we headed back down towards the ferry.
It had been a great day and we were so blessed with wonderful sunny weather, a day to be truly grateful for. Life on small islands is slower and quieter. It gives one lots to think about. Sometimes life just gets too busy and we all need to escape to somewhere to find respite.
The next day had us all heading up Mount Washington to hike the Helen McKenzie loop in Strathcona park. This hike I had done a few times but it is always great to revisit places as Mother Nature changes daily and one can always find something special to view.
It was a 9km hike and once again the weather cooperated and we didn't get wet.
Enjoyed a quick break at Lake Helen McKenzie
and then headed over to Battleship Lake where we stopped for lunch.
It is so quiet and peaceful out in the woods in Strathcona park even on Saturdays when the trails are filled with hikers. The park is so vast that there is room for all and lots of times you find yourself alone with nature and it's wonderful sounds.
It was a great last adventure weekend with good friends. I am so very lucky to have friends who love the outdoors as much as I do and are willing to "follow" me on my adventures! My heart is filled with gratitude for nature and friends and family to share it with.
