we think we're big but we're really pretty small...


Horseshoe Bay to Gibsons Landing ferryboat


heron flies


raven flies


abandon ship(s)!


many many PURPLE STARFISH


to die for view from our tent


night bottles


today is day 27
RAINING
we are in Powell River, BC staying dry in an internet bookstore while waiting for a ferry to take us to COMAX, on Vancouver Island. close to there, we're told there is a "wee" glacier.
on the west side of the island, we will go search for WHALES


DAY 26 Vancouver to Egmont, BC
june 26

the day was perfect. can there be such a thing and what might that mean?
each to her own on the perfection scale, i supect, but for me, in this instance, perfect includes: exceptional weather (sun being the exception on this trip); excellent communication between me and everyone i encountered (including Andrew, my love, with whom some friction has been inevitable, reduced from our usual dual palace-sized residences to living in a four-wheeled snailshell); going on a ferry boat with the Silver Sprinter (a first for the vehicle and a first for me and Andrew in our years together); having kick-ass espresso in Gibson after we got off the boat (at the Black Bean Roaster);
then ambling, without an iota of pressure regarding time, direction or intention for the entire day on a glorious coast, dipping down to the water (inlets and lakes) then back into lushly green landscapes; and TWO BALD EAGLES and one wide-winged heron sighted.

Georgina told us about EGMONT - a beauty spot on the inlet at the end of the road. she'd stayed at the Marina which we looked at and rejected because of a constant motor noise. as usual, the person at the desk said: what noise? because she couldn't hear it anymore. it is a sewage treatment of some kind (they are right on the water) for the cabins and the restaurant. i told her if we were in san francisco, we wouldn't hear it but tenting out on the end of the earth where we'd come for relief from insessant sound, it would bother us terribly. she disliked me at first, i could tell, probably thought me persnickity (am i?) and then she softened and directed us to an incredible private campground 5 minutes away.

there we pitched our tent, overlooking the water and two snow-capped peaks towering in the distance. absolute heaven.

our bikes came out and we made (for me) a very advanced ride on a rocky curvy steep up-and-down trail that led out to the Skookumchuck Rapids (a native word that means "strong water"). stunning currents that change wildly, tidally, making for hugely different depths from one side of the inlet to the other - up to six feet. the forest through which we pedaled was surely primaeval

and in the water?
PURPLE STARFISH. many many many many many of them.
not purple-ish but BRIGHT PURPLE.
utterly unexpected and magical.