Another outing in the Motorhome! Salmon Point RV Resort May 18 - 24

The storm came in overnight with the rain but we did not notice any wind here. Apparently it is still coming. By 10 am we had finished packing up the bikes and toiletries into the coach, jacks lifted and were on our way out of the driveway, stopping only to attach the car once outside the gates. It poured all the way out of Lake Cowichan until the race track where it turned dry and sunny. What a difference. The 2 1/2 hour drive was all sunny except for a couple of slight showers. The wind though, wow! Ray went slower and maintained two hands on the wheel at all times to counter the coach being blown 2 feet one way or the other with gusts of wind periodically. Once we got past Parksville the traffic really lightened so not as scary with the wind gusts. The worst winds were north of Parksville where there is high bridges over river canyons. We were glad to arrive at 12:45 and set up without the rain. :)  We're also glad for a very heavy coach. I would not have liked pulling a small travel trailer instead.

Once Ray hooked up the services, we headed out for Chinese Food at the Driftwood Café, 5 minutes up the road. As usual it was delicious, with enough left-overs for dinner. :) Although sunny with clouds here, we could see across the strait it is definitely raining with dark clouds over the islands and the mainland most of the afternoon.

A few more miles to the turnoff to get out of the wind! Heading for the blue sky.

Site #126

They have a little "boat basin" here at the park, but you really have to watch the tides to get in and out. The buoys are on dry land some times. Two excavators are working at removing silt in the entrance channel during a very low tide.

It got even windier and scattered showers for the evening. By morning though, the sun is out and the wind quit. A beautiful day. Kristi and Jason with Amelia arrived at 12:10 pm. Let the fun begin. As they had a later start and were arriving right at lunch time, we ordered pizza to have waiting from a little place just down the road. Food first, unpack later. lol

Quite a breezy day, so we sat outside at their campsite for the afternoon waiting for Amelia to wake up from her nap. Too cool for a campfire, but we enjoyed a lovely evening in the MH with the baby exploring. Of course Zeus is always in the thick of it, as close to Grandpa as he can get. :)

Friday we woke to a sunny, warm day with minimal wind. Wow, it's been so long waiting for a day like this. Our usual May weather is finally here, a month late. We decided after Amelia's morning nap, we  would drive up to Campbell River and go out for lunch. Spent a little time at the oceanside park  (Robert V Ostler Park) with the baby, before heading back to camp ... another nap time approaching. :) Rest of the day spent sitting outside watching boat traffic and sea life swim by.

Quadra Island Ferry

Amelia likes to sit in the "big people chairs", so I bought her one. lol

The coastal mountains with lots of snow. Views from our campsite.

Looking towards Campbell River

Managed to see a cruise ship going by. The tides were such that most of them passed either early in the morning before we woke up or after we went to bed.

After Amelia went to bed we sat outside with a fire. 

Saturday, warm and sunny, with no wind again. After breakfast, we did another family walk down the trail. Ray walked this trail 3 times a day with Zeus as he needs to lose ten pounds (and so Ray can eat more). lol

The spring flowers are gorgeous along the trail.

Amelia enjoyed our morning family walks, looking at everything. She certainly sleeps well with all the fresh air. Made it lovely for Jason and Kristi.

After Amelia's morning nap, we all jumped in Jason's truck and took her to Saratoga beach a short distance away. Lots of other people enjoying the first really warm day this spring. Unfortunately, she wasn't very impressed as she doesn't like to get her hands dirty ... and it was cooler out than we thought and she got quite cold. With her hands having some strangulation problems during Kristi's pregnancy, her hands are very sensitive and I think she has a little problem with circulation and gets cold easily. Once we were back at camp and warmed her up she was back to her happy little self.

Snack Time

On my tablet like Grandpa!

Met our neighbours, Stephen, Michelle and Michelle's sister Denise. Stephen is a General Surgeon in Salmon Arm, so Kristi and he had lots to talk about. lol Spent the evening with them around our campfire. Apparently they love Ray's margarita's too. lol Beautiful sunset tonight.

Eagle perched on the lighthouse, a usual sight every time we come here.

The setting sun painted the Salish Sea and sky with pinks.

Sunday another gorgeous day. After Amelia's naptime, we made the jaunt into Comox as Kristi picked out a pub called the Church Street Taphouse to eat lunch at. Delicious beers and non-alcoholic choices for Ray and Kristi. Their burgers and sandwiches are great as well. Good choice Kristi. Our little peanut did very well there too. 

Amelia, second time at a bar. lol

Back home more sitting on the beach in front of the MH. Unfortunately, the clouds came in with more of a breeze, so not quite as nice as yesterday.

Three generations.

Tonight we decided to order in Chinese Food with me cooking all the other dinners and the kids wanted to give me a break. :) Of course there's enough for them to each take a plate home with them for their lunch tomorrow and three meals for Ray. I also gave them the leftovers from dinner yesterdaym so they don't have to cook tomorrow at all. They will be busy enough trying to unload their trailer and get organized for Kristi going back to work on Tuesday with Amelia underfoot. :)

Last campfire with the kids. We did not last long, as the wind came up and the neighbours campfire was smoking us out.

Monday, overcast but no wind . Good pack up day. After I fed Amelia breakfast while they finished packing, the kids left just before her naptime, at 9am to beat all the long weekend traffic back to Nanaimo. While the kids were here, we did see a small pod of dolphins and a seal and otter but of course no pictures. lol

It's been a fabulous 4 days with the kids and Amelia. She is such a little cutie. Although the MH looks like a bomb went off .... I will have it "righted" in no time. Lots of sticky fingerprints to find and wipe off as she had herself a grand ole time crawling around inside from front to back, especially the mirrors in the rear bathroom to look at herself. Jason was able to read and finish a book for the first time in 2 years and did not have to cook any meals. He did do the dishes though with Kristi. Kristi was able to read as well with Ray and I keeping the baby occupied so Amelia was not "joined to Kristi's hip" constantly. Me ... no computer, no reading just watching the baby or cooking lol.

After tidying up from the baby, washing the couch cover and vacuuming etc. and making breakfast which took about an hour or so, we decided to go for a ride on our e-bikes from the campsite down the "pub to pub" trail. A bit of a misnomer now that there are no pubs at either end, due to a fire at one end and a closer at the other. The last part of the trail along the Oyster River is full of roots and so we walked our bikes over some sections, trying out the walk function ... it worked. :) It's quite a technical ride for me, with lots of rocks and a skinny trail. I managed fine, but I really concentrated so I would not go off the trail and tip over. lol We came back the road which had a very wide shoulder so it felt pretty safe with the traffic. Took us about an hour total with all the stops for Ray's pictures. 

Beautiful second growth along the Oyster River

Bridge connection on the "pub to pub" Oyster River trail system.

By the time we got back, with the sun out it's a gorgeous afternoon. Back to sitting in the sunshine with shorts. Ray noticed a white truck with a fifth wheel arrive. It turned out to be our old neighbours from Port Alberni days, Denny Prior and Linda Kendall. We enjoyed a lovely chat with them for a couple of hours. Some friends of theirs are arriving tomorrow, so I'm glad for the chance to catch up before they are busy.

Back home for 6 to make an easy dinner, steak and corn on the barbecue. The wind came up again, so we stayed inside and watched the water through the window. No fire tonight.

Tuesday morning, high overcast clouds. Saw the tail end of a cruise ship when we opened the blinds. Last full day here of our mini vacation. After breakfast, Ray headed out for some picture opportunities at some "potholes" he read about close by on the Oyster River.  A nice outing for him and I stayed home and relaxed after doing the dishes. Feeling tired today after being on the go for the past week.

Turned out a bit of a bust for Ray as the potholes not visible with quite a bit of water in the river.

Above and below one can see the potholes below the surface.

Ray got back at 10:30 and it's still very grey outside and I think that is the forecast ... no sun. As it was not very nice to sit outside, we headed into Courtenay visit Costco and lunch at the Seh-Mi Japanese Restaurant. Delicious and as good as our favourite sushi place, Nori, in Nanaimo. We decided Costco is a no-go.

Back home, I napped while Ray put away all our outside things and chairs, as the weather looked like it might rain. Bikes loaded back into the car and we also packed the firewood we were unable to burn due to the wind. We leave tomorrow. After that we "assumed the position", Ray watching the Edmonton versus Calgary hockey game while I read. Leftovers for dinner. Saw three cruise ships go by later in the evening. These pics taken with my new Galaxy S22 Pro through the front window. Love the zoom. :)

The ships time the day to make the tide at Ripple Rock (just north of Campbell River), then slow right down, as we saw the Holland America ship (the first picture) arrive in Vancouver at 6:30 am on the news the next morning and these pictures were taken around 9pm tonight.

Wednesday morning, pack up day. What a great time with the kids. Glad the weather cooperated for the most part. At least our trip home won't be in a storm. :)