August 2013 - Brown's Bay Campbell River, Heriot Bay Quadra Island, Cortez Island, Courtenay.

 

August 1st - Brown's Bay Campbell River

 We left Sunday morning from Sooke and stopped up island at the Qualicum First Nations Campsite at Qualicum Bay for the night.  Had to pick up mail at Ray's brothers and break the trip into 2 so not such a long run to Campbell River from Victoria. Had a wonderful relaxing afternoon and evening.  Freya enjoyed swimming in the river and running over the field after her ball.

Monday it was up early and on the road to Brown's Bay. What a lovely spot. We have a really great view. Garrett and his dog Kira to arrive today, Thursday for a few days. We have had absolutely fantastic weather. Last night there was a spectacular thunder and lightening show that finally brought some rain although today it is just overcast with the sun to come back tomorrow. During that 2 cruise ships went by all lit up at 11:30 pm. This was the first rain other than a few sprinkles that we have seen since beginning of June.

We are seven units down from the left.

Stairs where Freya goes for a swim

The cruise ships pass through this narrow channel all the time.  Here's three of them.

August 6th - Brown's Bay Luau

 Saturday the park hosted a jewelry party at the clubhouse, where you could pick out a "spoon bracelet" and then accessorize it. This lady, Ellen Atkinson of Willow Shack Studios, started 10 years ago designing bracelets from old sterling silver flatware. Naturally I had to buy one and earrings to match!

Saturday also started the wood carving competition between four chainsaw carvers.  Can you guess what these will turn into?

We have had a very enjoyable few days with Garrett and his dog Kira.  Toured Campbell River yesterday stopping for breakfast at Ricky's and took the dogs for a walk along the water across from Thunderbird RV Park.

Ripple Rock was exposed in the centre of this channel

Next it was off to the Luau for roast pig and Hawaiian drinks. The pig was roasted on the dock in front of the floating restaurant.

These are fresh and they have all you can eat every Friday and Saturday for $45/person. Their biggest record was a couple of weeks ago when this little lady ate 9 crab! We opted not to get any as there is no way I could eat more than one!

Now for the carvings.

This was our favourite.

This one was slightly charred and looked great.

There are other carved statues all over the resort besides this one that Garrett is "playing" with. Thursday we move on and take the ferry over to Quadra Island and spend two weeks at the Heriot Bay Inn RV Park.

Forgot to mention that last week two evenings in a row, there were hundreds of porpoises right in front of us going after the pink salmon that are running right now. It was amazing to see but too far to take a picture of.

August 7th - Elk Falls Provincial Park

 Yesterday we decided to take a drive down the logging roads to find Loveland Bay Provincial Park on Campbell Lake.  The roads were quiet but all the campsites we came upon at Loveland Bay and Brewster Lake were all full.  Everyone enjoying the great weather.  Temps today were at 27 degrees. On the way back we decided to take a stroll through Elk Falls Provincial Park day use area.  What a lovely walk down to the pools before the waterfall. Downstream a little more is a hydro electric dam. After the walk back up we decided to have our picnic lunch right under the canopy of trees to cool off.  A lovely day.

August 10th - Heriot Bay Quadra Island

We are now at Heriot Bay on Quadra Island looking over the marina and the Cortes Island Ferry terminal.  The weather has been hot! hot! hot! Thankfully our neighbours have invited us to sit under their trees as we ended up with a site in full sun. Thank goodness for air conditioning in the coach! Looking forward to exploring Quadra and Cortez islands over the next two weeks.

HBI Heriot Bay Lodge

This is a very rustic hotel with a pub, lounge and dining room.  They offer cozy rooms and guest cottages on site.  There is a large chess set on the lawn.

Fortunately so far, we have had the space on both sides of us vacant. The sites are really small but what a view. We also have the picnic table and grass area behind us.

These large ships are training vessels for Canada's navy. They were practicing tying up to the dock and each other.  Quite a few young men and women taking officer's training.

The Finch, launched in 1930. A beautiful vesell.

August 12th - Brunch at Painter's Lodge Campbell River

Sunday Brunch Yummmm.  We'd heard that Painter's Lodge in Campbell River features a wonderful Sunday Brunch, so we decided to check it out. It beat our expectations with tons of fresh seafood. I think between us, we ate a whole dungeness crab.  We drove to April Point Lodge on Quadra, also owned by the Oak Bay Marine Group, where there is a free 7 minute water taxi ride across to Painter's Lodge in Campbell River. (Update 20210, Oak Bay sold both lodges to separate owners)

Our water taxi parked at the dock.

(Both lodges are owned by Oak Bay Marine Group) Their facilities at Painter's are huge. Lots of accommodation and the place was packed.

Painters Lodge - Main Lodge and Pub

Awesome buffet and great service

Painter’s Lodge has a rich and noble history, rife with mystery and excitement dating from its establishment in 1929.
During the late twenties, salmon fishing in the Campbell River area became so popular that tent colonies sprang up on Tyee Spit, a finger of land at the mouth of the Campbell River. In 1929, Mr. E.P. Painter, a boat builder, decided to build more permanent accommodation, and the original Painter’s Lodge.

In the early days, Painter’s consisted of a few cabins with a boat building business alongside. The popularity of the location - within yards of Frenchman’s Pool and the Tyee Pool, encouraged construction of a main lodge, which soon became an international favourite among avid fishermen and celebrities alike. Many heads of state, politicians, and the Hollywood set made Painter’s a prime BC fishing destination. Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, John Wayne and Susan Hayward are just a few of the stars who visited Painter’s. As BC fishing began to earn its international reputation, the lodge became legendary as the prime location for trophy fishermen seeking giant Pacific salmon. (from google)

For you car buffs, a rare '57 Chev Belair Wagon

The day started out sunny and warm.  Coming back, the clouds started to move in and by supper time it sprinkled, but as the rain is needed we did not complain. The roads on Quadra are often narrow and seem to follow an "old goat track".

Friday there were about 50 kayakers starting out on a journey for the day.  Heriot Bay seems to be a destination where they plan to camp for day trips out on the water.  There is a constant turnover of people coming and going, probably because it is one of the few destinations on Quadra that allows tenting. The dock is always changing daily with new boats coming and going as well.  Lots to see sitting in your chair on the beach.

Anyone who knows Freya, would have experienced shoving her head between your legs when not expecting it.  Well, she sure gave one lady who was bent over her kayak getting the gear ready that experience.  We hear a woohoo and see this lady jump up a few feet!! She loves dogs and was OK with the experience, fortunately.

And they're off!

August 14th - Rebecca Spit Quadra Island

 There are so many places to visit here on Quadra that are only minutes away by car.  Our destination this morning was Rebecca Spit, a 10 minute drive away.  We have visited this Provincial Park by water before on Dad's 38' Bayliner where we dingyed to shore.  Many happy memories spending our summer holidays with my parents on the boat.

Dad and his boat "Stasha II"

Our son and his sister putting around. (They are now age 32 and 30 respectively)

There is a nice flat trail around the spit and lots to see on both sides.

You can see the Cortez ferry on the right.

Another beautiful day in paradise!

I don't care if my mat is on top of a pile of wood ... I'm tired!

August 16th - Touring Quadra Island

 It is pouring rain today and although we need it .... could it just rain at night! I took a drive to get internet service to blog as we are kind of cooped up inside today.

Well, we have been on Quadra Island for a week and I think we've been on almost every road on the island. Every side trip at most is 30 minutes away. Here are some pictures of some other places we drove to this past week.

 The first is Gowland Harbour, mid-island west side.

This would be a nice piece of property.

The next is Bold Point, which is across the bay from Heriot Bay where we are staying. A great kayaking starting point.

This calm anchorage/government dock is Granite Bay, the most northern area that you can reach by road on Quadra. There is a lot of logging activity around this area.

Yup, still raining.

Yesterday we decided to explore the Cape Mudge area looking for the petroglyphs before the rains come again. In the Cape Mudge Village we saw a few large boulders with old markings. They also had a welcome area to tell stories. 

This is a 100 year old church in the Village of Cape Mudge. (Built in 1902)

And the Cape Mudge Lighthouse:

Next it was off for lunch at the Tsa-Kwa-Luten Lodge, a short drive down the road. Beautiful views. After lunch we took a stroll on the beach below the lodge with Freya on the search for more petroglyphs. 

This is the most beautiful carved eagle we've ever seen and have been on the hunt for a similar one since seeing this one.  No luck as of July 2021!

Beach directly below the lodge. No luck on finding any more petroglyphs.

Another beautiful day in paradise!

What do you mean it's too late for a swim. lol

Yup the rain is a comin'.

Cortes Island - 2013-08-22 09:14

We decided to do a short ferry ride to Cortes Island from Quadra. It was fun to see all of the places we went on my Dad's boat years ago when our kids were young. This island is very small and it did not take too long to drive around it. The ferry lands at Whaletown.  Not much there except a beautiful bay.

The Cortez Island Ferry (45 minutes to Cortez)

A short drive down the road brought us to Gorge Harbour Marina and RV Park.  What a beautiful place. Well taken care of, great dock facilities for larger boats and a wonderful RV Park with a store. The booze prices surprisingly were cheaper than the Tru-Value stores on Quadra.

Hot tub for the guests with a beautiful view.

Next stop Manson's Landing.  What a pretty beach with a small government dock.  Very pretty. A good place to stretch our legs and give Freya a bit of a run.

Small government dock at Manson's Landing 

Time for lunch so we drove over to Squirrel Cove to the Cove Restaurant where we heard they make excellent food.  Our tips were correct. Ray ordered an Octopus burger and I the wonderful pizza pictured below. Delicious!

What a patio with a view!

My wonderful fresh prawn pizza

Overlooking the small government dock at Squirrel Cove. See the boat on the beach ... the fuel dock is on the other side of this bush!

These are the stores at Squirrel Cove. The General Store had tons of boat parts for people needing a quick fix of something.

The funniest thing we saw was in front of this store was a fuel pump for the small dock that sat high and dry at low tide...saying use at own risk.

Time to head back to the ferry ride home to Heriot Bay. Tomorrow it is off to Salmon Point just south of Campbell River. Back in cell phone range and much better internet!

August 22nd - Back at Salmon Point RV Park

 Back at Salmon Point RV Park what a lovely moon last night!

August 27th - A walk on Campbell River's waterfront.

On Sunday we took a short walk along Campbell River's waterfront taking advantage of the sunshine before the rain begins on Monday. There was also a wood carving display set up in one of the parks.

Painters Rock, a well known spot in Campbell River

After this little stretch of the seawall, we hoped into the car to visit the other seawall patch in downtown Campbell River.  There is a nice shopping centre, a large marina and of course our typical stop at the Riptide Pub for lunch..

Notice the helicopter on the back of this yacht.  Lovely converted tug in front.

Our typical eating spot in Campbell River, the Riptide Pub.

We happened to stop at Crabbie Bobs where three Dungeness crab happened to fall into our shopping basket! 

Yesterday Ray and Freya went for a walk in a new area and obviously spooked a wasps nest buried in the grass. They came home with 6 or 7 stings each. The wasps were imbedded in Freya's fur and were flying around the coach for a bit as well. Youch!!! I gave them both some Benadryl before they started swelling. Other than Freya climbing on my lap for a few hours they both went to sleep and everything was fine, thank goodness.

Pouring today until late afternoon so short walks with the dog and paperwork day. We still do not have appointment times for Ray's next two tests ... we probably will be back in Victoria by the time we get an answer!