Movie Night and Mini vacation to Salt Spring Island. April 1 - 7

 April Fools Day. Friday morning showery although the rain quit and is just cloudy for the rest of the day. I spent the day creating "munchies" for movie night next door tonight. Had fun in my kitchen making unusual things to me, including beet root chips and tomato chips. Carmel and peanut popcorn and mini banana chocolate chip muffins. 

Ray picked up our big boat as the wiring is complete for the downriggers and motors all tuned up. His 3HP motor for his little floaty boat was unable to be fixed though and is a warranty issue so we will have to take it into Duncan to a mercury dealer.

We for movie night at 7 and had a fabulous time watching the new James's Bond movie. Great evening. They have a 120" screen and reclining theatre seats. Home and in bed at 11.

The picture below shows Roy and June's newly renovated fireplace and rock wall. Gorgeous. They also have the movie theatre room done as well. With Roy being a cabinet maker, his millwork is gorgeous.

Saturday morning a slow start as we did not get up to almost 7am. lol Breezy on the lake, but the sun is trying to come out. At 10 we decided to head into Duncan and enjoy some sunshine as well as drop the little motor off for repairs and a few things to pick up at Superstore, including potting soil for my planters. Spring is calling me.

After our errands we tried out a new little place called Fresh Kenny's, a little bar and grill downtown Duncan. Delicious fish and chips for a reasonable price. I ordered cod and Ray halibut. Huge portions that buried the Kennebec fries. 

Back home by 1:30 to finish up the laundry. Started raining shortly after we got home.

Sunday we got out of bed an hour too early! Our "smart clocks" did a time change overnight for the old change date! Pouring rain outside, definitely a hunker down inside kind of day. I did empty and clean the hot tub though, as it was under cover and that took half a day to get it all done. Here is me waiting for the water to empty. I clean the inside in stages with the hot water in the tub as it goes down. The water is pumped out and dumped into the bathtub inside the house which also cleans out our sewer system from any grease as the water is hot. This was about a 4 hour job total. Glad it's only two or 3 times a year depending on usage.

It continued to pour all day and overnight.

Monday morning the rain eased off somewhat. We packed up and headed to the ferry by 9 am for our trip to Salt Spring Island. With the heavy winds last night and early this morning there are tons of debris on the roads. The ferry left Vancouver Island 20 minutes late with the wind. Dark and stormy seas. 

Crofton Harbour with wind gusts on the water

Whitecaps on the other side of the channel.

We landed on Salt Spring at 11:30 am and drove to Ganges to have lunch at Moby's Pub. Great meal.

With the rain continuing, we decided to just drive (Ray now driving as I drank a beer lol) to the south end of the island and see what there is to see and plan for the next couple of days when the sun is forecast to be out. Check in time isn't until 4 pm, so there's lots of time to kill. Here are some pictures we stopped for on the way to the park. We took a short side road to Burgoyne Bay Provincial Park which is "part of a contiguous protected area network that, along with Mill Farm Regional Park Reserve, forms one of the largest blocks of protected areas in the Gulf Islands. It provides protection for several ecosystems-at-risk and low-impact recreational opportunities as well as the incredible viewscape of Burgoyne Bay, Mount Maxwell and Baynes Peak."

You could see why they farmed here with the protected valleys.

The end of the road.

On the way back up the road, here is a glimpse of the cliffs of Baynes Peak on Mt. Maxwell. There are lots of hiking trails in this area.

We turned back to the "main road" and continued to Ruckle Provincial Park. The residents definitely have a power outage due to the storm as the crew is out fixing a snapped power pole.

Look at the rain on our windshield, a nasty day.

Pretty Trilliums in this old church, St. Mary's Anglican Church. Our kids went to Sunday school in a church somewhat similar in the Queen Charlotte Islands. (Haida Gwaii)

After driving for 2 hours I tried the resort number while back in Ganges and they had been trying to get ahold of us to say we could check in early. lol Cell service on this island really sucks. It's too bad, as we have no TV and thought we could stream some stuff ... nope. Should have brought our cell booster from the motorhome. Even though they have wifi, it's not strong enough for streaming and cuts out all the time just looking at web pages. Oh well, we will have to read books instead. :) and watch the wood stove fire. 

I brought some stuff for dinner from home (steak) and we picked up some Salt Spring Island mussels in Ganges for our appy. Turned out we only ate the mussels with garlic toast and were full due to the big lunch we ate. Maybe steak tomorrow. :)

Once we were checked in at 2:30, the skies lightened and we were able to go for a walk down to the rocky beach before the next rain squall came through. It will be a quiet 3 days. :) except for Ray's music on his JBL boom box.

We noticed a burnt building on site and found out from the manager that their main residence went up in flames during the heat dome last June. 

Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue Contain Structure Fire at Mineral Springs Resort on 1460 North Beach Road

By Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue  Fire & Police - June 29, 2021

On June 28th, 2021 at 18:45 Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue was called to 1460 North Beach Road, Mineral Springs Resort for a report of a commercial structure fire. Due to the distance from the firehall, the building construction and the abnormal temperatures, fire growth was rapid, and the initial crew faced an in trenched working fire. The four-story building was compartmentalized and built down a slope making access more difficult.

Eight apparatus and twenty-two firefighters worked well into the night extinguishing the fire and ensuring it did not spread to the surrounding buildings or interface forest. The dry water hydrant at St. Mary Lake was utilized for the tender shuttle operation delivering over 30,000 gallons of water to the fire site.

This is all that is left after the fire. Still waiting for insurance money to clear it up, I suspect. Fortunately they only had 2 guests staying at the time in the cabins so everyone was ok. The fire started from a faulty new fan. Apparently the RCMP were aholes, separating the owner and manager and questioning them like it was arson.  Even the fire chief was unimpressed and talked to the staff sergeant who made an apology later.

Off for our walk. These stairs across the street were too steep for us as they spiraled around and around to the beach.

We carried on walking down the road and found another lovely trail that was much easier.

The views from here are of Trincomali Channel, looking across at Wallace Island and behind is Galliano Island.

Lots of oysters attached to the shale. Of course harvesting is closed.

Interesting striated rock.

Walker Road Hook House, across the street from us.

Back to the cabin and "assume the position" lol It just started to sprinkle when we got back and then some squalls came through.

Our view out the front window.

The huge mineral springs jetted hot tub in the bathroom. The picture does not show how big the tub actually is, 3 feet deep. Took 30 minutes to fill but was lovely. Definitely made our backs and legs feel great after a day of travel in the car. With the hot water the whole room steamed up like a sauna. The owners drilled for a water well and instead at 150' they struck a (lightly) salt water mineral spring.  Duh, of course the island isn't called Salt Spring Island for nothing.  Apparently there are seven of these springs tapped on the island. 

In between rain showers, Ray managed to get a picture of this rainbow out our front window.

After our dinner of mussels, wine and cream, we just stared at our ocean view and watched the wood stove. Lovely day in spite of the rain.

Tuesday morning we were shocked it was 7am before we woke up after turning the lights out at 9:30 pm last night. The sun is out, but still quite windy. Over night it is very quiet here listening to the rain and wind on the roof. We woke up pretty stiff though, as it's one of those beds where you both roll into the middle and it's only a queen. I think tonight Ray will sleep on the single bed (couch) instead. It is pretty cool in the cabin this morning as I had turned the heat down and the bathroom window is open. Great for sleeping, but quite chilly when you get up. We got a fire going again and the heat turned up and within 15 minutes were were toasty warm sitting watching the water having our coffee.

At 9:30 am we headed out to the breakfast café near the cabin and start our exploring of the main township, Ganges, and the north end of the island today. We will save the south end for tomorrow when the winds are forecast to be less.

The Fernwood Cafe

Fernwood Point and public beach just a short ways down the road from Mineral Springs Resort.

After coffee and a breakfast sandwich, we carried on to Ganges downtown and walked around all of the little shops, buying some chocolates and bakery items (for tomorrow's breakfast). It's been years since we walked Ganges when we were there on my Dad's boat and our kids were really small.

Chocolates for Ray.

Centennial Park where they hold the Saturday market

The island is very eclectic and is full of old hippy's and free spirited younger people.  Our last time at the market, Ray commented on not seeing so many unshaved women's armpits!

For "off-season" there still is a lot of boats at the docks.

Treehouse Cafe

Outside patio seating for the Oystercatcher Pub and Grill

Before leaving Ganges, we bought a smoked meat sandwich from Buzzy's Luncheonette where they smoke their own meat, for our further travels. (It was delicious)

After wandering around for a couple of hours, we jumped back in the car and headed down to Long Harbour. There sure are lots of huge new homes down this spit of land. We stopped to take a few pictures.

Yup huge house.

Back on the road past Ganges turnoff, we headed northwards, stopping at a Glass blowing, fusing gallery called the Glass Foundry. Of course we bought a couple of things. lol 

That feather came home with us. lol

The artist also showed his museum of insulators. He has the largest insulator collection we've ever seen. He claims it to be the biggest collection in Canada. These were used for telegraph and telephone lines in the past. Unbelievable colours and shapes.

Some very rare artifacts

These show the fiber optic cable now compared to the lower picture of the past.

Fibers all wrapped in paper.

His outside display.

Look at the old tools displayed on his workshop. All painted yellow I guess to prevent theft. :)

Just outside Ganges is the historic Harbour House Hotel. We couldn't see the hotel but these statues are in the front yard. Very interesting.

Back in the car to Sunset Sheep Farm. Our purpose is to buy some lamb shanks to take home. Many butchers on Vancouver Island carry their product. We managed to get two packages and a few other things, wool mittens and a scarf. :) They have some cute baby lambs to pet and the larger sheep, Rocket, came running hoping for a handout of hay.

Here he comes!

Cute baby that loved sucking my fingers.

They send their wool to Prince Edward Island to have it woven into woolen blankets and sent back.

Lots of wool for knitters available in various colours.

Ba Ba Black Sheep :)

Next stop Southey Point, the most northern tip of Salt Spring Island. Again down a very windy and up and down road to a small kayak launch. 

Definitely time to head home after a day of traipsing around. :) Time for beer. We managed to sit outside on the lawn for a half hour before the wind came up and chased us back inside.

 As we only had a small lunch, I grilled up a steak with shrimp in cream sauce, veggies and a slice of  fresh bread. Tried to use the BBQ provided for the steak but it's out of propane. Good thing I packed a cast iron fry pan. :) (Ray here... of course she did and knives, spices, whisk, etc. Not complaining though!)

Wednesday morning, after having coffee and a couple of baked items and of course a mineral bath ... we jumped into the car for our south end tour. Earlier than yesterday as the forecast is for high clouds in the afternoon and not the best for Ray's pictures. 

First up is Ruckle Provincial Park. Gorgeous views and trails. You first drive through the working farmstead within the park.

In addition to its natural beauty, Ruckle Park is an area rich in cultural history. Irish emigrant Henry Ruckle first homesteaded here in 1872, marrying Ella Anna Christensen in 1877. Their descendants have farmed the Salt Spring property for more than a century. The Ruckle family donated their land to BC Parks in 1972 for the creation of Ruckle Provincial Park. The family still operates the Active Farm area of Ruckle Park and maintains several residences through a Life Tenancy Agreement established with BC Parks at the time of the donation.

They have a heritage farm stand here where the goats are, that you can purchase goods and coffee before heading into the park.

We carried on down the road to the parking lot for the trail and then to the campsite where you access other trails.

Ray took a bit of a spill trying to get a picture from the rocks ... they were covered in green algae and he did not wear non-skid runners. (Love my new boots I bought this winter for just this thing. lol) He sported a wet bum and legs for an hour or so until he dried. lol Luckily other than a small cut on his hand and a skinned knee he survived. One second I was watching him and then his head disappeared and a big thump! Fortunately the camera survived as well even though it spat out it's battery onto the rocks.

We saw a couple of sea lions but they were too quick to get a picture.

This area has gorgeous walk-in campsites.

The slippery rocks that got Ray and a little waterfall.

BC Ferry to Long Harbour

A couple of deer graced us with their presence on the way out. :) No pictures though. 

After an hour or so of hiking around we headed back to the main road and stopped at the Salt Spring Island Cheese Factory. They have quite the operation there. Several Goat kids to pat if you wished. They have glass windows through which you can watch the cheese making process. I normally do not like the taste of goat cheese, finding it too "gamey" the few times I have tried it. However, this cheese is so fresh it tastes amazing. We ended up buying 3 different kinds.

Very cozy accommodations for those goats. :)

Walk around viewing window

Cutest little kids.

They have a lovely garden to eat your purchased cheese and crackers.

Lovely to see all the spring flowers.

Next up is the very hairy drive 9 km up Mt. Maxwell to the view point overlooking the Gulf Islands and further points south. Our car did great with AWD, but you have to watch you didn't get high centered in places or hit a rock on the bottom of the car. :)

Glad we did our touring before lunch. You can see the clouds coming in and making it look hazy.

Lion Rampant Pub centre right, Maple Bay centre left, Duncan centre, Lake Cowichan behind the mountain top left.

Samsung Narrows bottom right, Cowichan Bay top centre.

Looking down on Burgoyne Bay

Looking down at Burgoyne Bay Heritage Farm

Happy tourists!

Last time we were here was in 1996. Here we are looking down at the Burgoyne Bay Provincial Park Historic Farm Site from the top of Mt. Maxwell. 

By the time we walked around taking pictures and back down the 20 minute drive down the mountain, we were starved, so back to Ganges to the Oystercatcher Bar and Grill for lunch. We missed the lunch rush and ended up being the only ones eating. Perfect. :) Good thing we did the picture taking earlier as by 1 the clouds had really rolled in. Ray enjoyed a tasty lamb burger and I the crispy chicken.

Great view of the marina from this restaurant.

On the way back to the cabin, we stopped at Wild Cidery to taste their product, well I did. :) They also have a bit of a restaurant so you can eat while you sample their product but of course we were full of lunch. 

4 large bottles of cider were quickly stowed in the car and on our way again to our last stop back to Sunset Sheep Farm. Kristi saw my pair of woolen mittens via video and decided she would like a pair for Christmas. I picked up a pair for her and we also grabbed some racks of lamb to take home. The last item was a woolen duvet for our bed at home. Our current one's stuffing is all flattened out and after 5 years is not as warm. This one I'm told will not do that and will last us for the rest of our lives as long as we keep it covered with 2 duvet covers to keep it clean as you cannot wash or dry clean it. It's warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

Home by 3 pm to enjoy a glass of Saskatoon Berry Hard Cider. Yum. Ray of course drank his non-alcoholic O'Doul's beer. Dinner is fresh bread and butter. :)

Another great day. We drove every "main" road up and down as well as sideways on this island, so I think we have pretty much exhausted all the things we wanted to see. There is a map featuring 20 little shops and even after all the driving we only had time to visit 5 of them! Home tomorrow. It's been a lovely mini vacation. I'm glad we did not bring our e-bikes. The roads are so narrow and very windy all over the island. In fact, we saw very few people riding bikes. Some of the hills are quite steep and our e-bikes would not like them.

Thursday morning we were up, packed and out of the cabin by 9 am. We headed back into Ganges for another coffee and cherry turnover at Barb's Buns before heading to the ferry. Glad we left early for the 10:50 ferry as the lineup was quite long when we got there. Home by noon. 

After unpacking and finally sitting down in our chairs, we are exhausted. The best way to be after a great vacation!