Guitars and Wagons in Grande Praireeee!!

Last weekend

a hop (sky train), jump (Vancouver to Edmonton) and a skip

took us to Grande Prairie.

Our Becky picked us up at the airport

and whisked us through this

city of wide streets, open spaces,

trucks, and tumble weed sunshine.

Macie greeted us and we immediately

fell in love with this sweet

chocolate lab!

We came on the perfect weekend - it was a true Wild West "mini stampede"

Pomeroy Guitars and Wagons Weekend.

What a thrill to be given VIP passes

to chuck wagon races, bull riding, barrel racing,

concerts, and delicious banquets!

Corb Lund performed on

the Friday evening - what a blast.

We sat in the "Grande" stand

and enjoyed sunny days

filled with lots of

action and cheering crowds ....

"That's A" Tractor - with my 3 favourite peeps

.... but the best part of all 
was staying in the bestest B & B & L & D!!
We really enjoyed staying with the "kids"
in their beautiful and comfy home.

Our cozy Dream bed!

The back yard with a touch of Ontario

The inviting dining room.

Sunday dinner and market lunch was spent with Shari, a friend and 
foodie blogger at Tales from a Small Kitchen.

Patrick cooked up some delicious burgers (Buffalo, Beef, and
Sausage mixture with brie cheese and seasoning) on the grill.

Becky made a tasty salad
of fresh greens from Shari's garden,
guacamole, and all the fixings.

Dessert was rhubarb dumplings made with fresh
and lovely red rhubarb from the garden.
(I need to get a root from that rhubarb variety)

Homemade Pizza on the BBQ for our last evening.
Patrick is an excellent BBQer.
It was so much fun making the pizza dough with Becky.
We should have cooked together more often ... hope we
have many more times like this!

 

Before we knew it - it was time to say our
good-byes!  We miss you already!

Well, we made it home safe and sound
to a garden full of huge weeds - ugh!
a little doggie glad to see us again,
hot and humid weather,
and a good night's sleep in our own bed!
Home Sweet Home......

Till next time .......... needing a vacation from our vacation - smile!

P.S. Enjoy this Canada Day Weekend!!!!

B.C. where old and new friends meet!

We were so privileged and honoured

to have our friends Wayne and Judy

meet us in 

Vancouver and give us the "Rick Steves Style"

tour of their beautiful city.

They picked us up right at our hotel

and took us for a walk on the sea wall

at Stanley Park - fabulous.

Lion's Gate Bridge

Off we went to Granville Island.

What a treat for the senses!

Delicious Fish Tacos at the "Go Fish" vendor
was the perfect lunch!

A stroll thru the colourful farmer's market....

Then, they took us to their beautiful home
and fed us the most delicious
Cedar Planked BBQ'd Salmon
paired with the perfect B.C. wine,
a tasty "fresh picked from the garden" salad
topped with seared shrimp,
and delicious sides of roasted asparagus,
and perfect orzo pasta!
My mouth is watering as I recall this meal.

Thank you so much Wayne and Judy!
We enjoyed every minute .....your
warm hospitality and friendship is a treasure.


The next morning we had coffee with Ev,
a dear friend we met on vacation in Mexico
a few years ago - I just happened to see
on my fb that she was in the city for a conference
and we quickly made arrangements to meet.
Ev is from Saskatchewan - who knew we'd see each
other again in Vancouver!

We picked up our rental car and 

headed out of town.

Alex Fraser Bridge - so impressive!

In Chilliwack I met a very dear
blog friend - Kathy!!!!
from Memories and Moments 
and one of the famous
Mennonite Girls Can Cook gals!
What a thrill to meet her face to face.

Thank you Kathy for "making" my day
and for the beautiful gift
bag from your Winks store!
I have always wanted to go there
and especially if YOU were there....

(I'm using your picture - mine didn't work?)






The rest of the day was spent
with a quick "Sea to Sky" drive up the mountain 
to Whistler ... it was raining
the whole time but well worth the drive.
Beautiful scenery all around - our last few glimpses of this 
picturesque Province of British Columbia.

We headed back to our 
hotel and packed up
for the next leg of
our trip - a very special
part!

Till next time ......  see you in Grande Prairie!!!

Beautiful Vancouver

Beautiful Vancouver City!

We boarded the sea plane in Nanaimo

and "hopped" over to 

the city.

Beautiful views - my wrist bands

worked well and got good use on

this trip!

We had a bird's eye view from our Robson Street hotel room!

What a great vista.

The weather was perfect

and we took full advantage of the 

Hop On/Hop Off Trolley

which took us to

Gastown, Chinatown, Canada Place,

Grouse Mountain (complete with two Grizzlies).

This gave us a wonderful overview

of the city.

Till next time ............... Day 2 in Vancouver - meeting old and new friends.

Forty!

June 15, 1973

Forty years .....

what a journey!

We have been blessed

in so many ways.

Fast forward to June 15, 2013....

We celebrated in Tofino, BC

with a stroll on the beach,
a fun day downtown,
watching the fishermen bring in loads
of fresh salmon,
a 4 hour kayaking trip,
and a delicious late night dinner at Schooners.

Seafood Chowder lunch with Corn Bread
at Sobo's

A stroll on the beach

The kayaks

In 1973 we paddled our canoe in Algonquin Park.
40 years later we paddled a kayak in Tofino's Inlet!
No too bad for two old folks.

Till next time - we're off to Vancouver.

Tofino Trails and Tales

One of the Rain Forest Trails

The Bog Loop

What a pretty place Tofino is!

The drive from Ucluelet is simply

amazing through

the Pacific Rim Park and it's unique

and beautiful boardwalk trails

through rain forests and 

bogs.

And the beaches - oh, the beaches!!!!

So beautiful,

stretching for miles....

What more can I say.

Perfect for the surfers
young and old.
(those tight fitting, skinny wet suits,
not for me - ha!)

Transported in their 60's 
Camper vans
and old army jeeps.
We saw them EVERYWHERE.
It was like stepping back
in time - cool man!

The B & B there was perfect!
Gull Cottage
Our hosts Robin and Duncan made us 
feel right at home,
gave us lots of information,
and were well located right across 
from one of those beauty beaches.

Our "rain forest" room was the rounded one on the upper level

A soaker Tub! Such luxury.

We were treated Royally
and their hearty and 
delicious breakfasts
were
such a treat.

Good thing that we had lots of 
trails and beaches to walk off
all those yummy calories.

Their home was surrounded by beautiful gardens
and was home to two
adorable Boston Terriers and 
two pretty and much loved felines.


Thanks so much Robin and Duncan - your warm
hospitality made us feel so comfortable
and welcome.

Sunset at Chesterman Beach

Till next time .......... stay tuned for some 40th anniversary adventures in Tofino!

Ucluelet's Finest - Copperstone Inn

From the moment we arrived at Copperstone Inn

we were super impressed!

This B & B far exceeded our

expectations!

There is only one unit so we had

complete privacy.

The suite was fabulous

with a cozy fireplace,

comfy bed,

hockey game on the TV!!!,

The bed was so comfortable that

we felt like we were sleeping

on and in a cloud,

a bathroom with heated floors

and a double shower like I've

never seen before!

completely equipped modern kitchen,

and a private deck with the most

exquisite view of the wild Pacific Ocean,

I can't remember ever staying

at such a first class, glorious place as this!

We went hiking several times on the Wild Pacific Trail

and were not disappointed with it's

breathtaking views and paths through

the ancient woodlands.

On our last evening we bought 

a huge crab from "Fishful Thinking"

some veggies at the local Co-op,

and cooked it on our private

BBQ

What a wonderful meal!!!

We simply can't say enough good things

about our stay at Copperstone Inn

in Ucluelet!!!

Thank you to our wonderful hosts

Debbie and Gary!!

Till next time...........heading to Tofino!!!
Wow - Post #200!

That's A ......

Everything is bigger here......

and reminds me of the Tupperware "That's A Bowl" meaning

it is huge!

That's a huge ancient tree!

That's an "aunt" amongst giants....

That's a maple leaf on steroids!?

That's a slug - some are up to 10 inches long!

That's a Skunk Cabbage.

That's a fresh cod lunch from Jiggers!

I have a feeling "that's a" I'll be bigger as well

by the end

of this "wee" Get-Away!

Especially if we keep eating this well.

Till next time - loving Ucluelet, BC!