Feeling Right At Home

At Mom's Place

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At Mom's Place

Our two weeks "quarantine plan" - required when we originally booked our tickets but now dropped - has expired and we've been staying with my Mom for a few days before making the crossing tomorrow to the mainland via the ferry to Powell River (worth a click just to see the great video introducing the city). Yesterday Mom put me to work pruning her lilac - which has become a pretty leggy tree rather than a shrub. I cut out a fair bit of spindly and dead wood to bring a bit of vigour back to the plant but it will need more dramatic action once it's stopped flowering.

As an indication of how independent Mom still is, she wouldn't let me fetch the stepladder from the garage - or take it back when I was finished with it. (Yes, she IS actually 90. 💪😉)

Later in the evening I made clam chowder, with much help from the my two well-seasoned sous-chefs. Di stepped in with a deft hand for the roux and Mom kept preparations rolling nicely by making sure we could find everything we needed. Here's a picture of Mom and Dianne with Doug's Clam Chowder in front of them, along with some garlic bread:

... and another of Mom and me:

Thankfully, between some quite wet days the weather has picked up here quite a lot and we've been able to get out a little more consistently for some semi-dry cycling. More of that later but I wanted to share some photos of walking around the place first. 

Walking for Sunshine?

Most days since our arrival it has rained at least some of the time, often most of the time. However, thanks to Dianne drive the wetness hasn't kept us inside. Two walks in particular stand out.  The first is when we went up to Seal Bay Nature Park for a wander. The interesting thing about this place is that it's a recovered logging site, which  probably would have been clear-felled at least 50 or 60 years ago. Here's what the place looks like today:

Very nice regrowth forest 

Alongside the sea

Melda Buchanan

A pond in Melda's Swamp

Remnants of an old logging cable

Salmonberry flower

Another angle

It will be a little while yet before this fruit is ready to eat. Then watch out for bears!

There was a slug along the path - but only one that we saw...

An old stump, which looks like a cedar, but I didn't see any live cedars along the way

Our walk was only 6 kilometres but it was quite lovely, especially given the damp conditions. Dianne and I both feel that these forest walks, like the walks we do in the rainforest at home, are best appreciated when conditions are damp.

There were quite a few other walkers, some joggers and some evidence of cyclists in damper sections. There was a lady with two small children who wanted us to know they were "looking for frogs". They hadn't seen any but were having massive amounts of fun looking. If you'd like to see the pictures in context you could watch the Relive video I made.

A Walk Around the Spit

The other memorable excursion was our circumnavigation of the Comox Spit. This was a longer excursion, a little cooler and wetter than our trip to Seal Bay. But it was very interesting, as I'd never walked all the way around the Spit when I was a kid growing up in Comox. There is a military facility and a Sea Cadets camp and it was generally accepted that the whole Spit was off limits to the public. Since then, walking around along the shore seems to be tolerated and there is a nice little park along the neck of the spit. Here are some pictures from our excursion:

Comox Spit,  locally known as Goose Spit

Di discovered this dead but largely intact crab

Great to see signs of indigenous culture out on the shore of the Spit

And here is more signs of cultural renewal

An abandoned yacht on the leeward shore of the Spit, which apparently has been here quite some time

It looks like quite a lot of work has gone into this environmentally friendly seawall

Back on the Bike

Comox Merville Loop

The weather forecasting here has been quite good, and it promised two good days before another wet one so we were eager to get back in the saddle. And two days on the road yielded almost two complete rides without precipitation: yippee! The first was a reversal of a loop we did before. Some interesting stuff along the way, but mostly just a really nice cruise in the countryside: 

Green stuff growing, blue sky and the sun is SHINING!

Big wheels rollin'

The interesting and gratifying thing about this photo is how far the truck driver has taken his vehicle to the side of the road. If you look closely you can see his right side wheels are actually off the bitumen. And he went past at a very moderate pace. Thanks mate!

Evidence of how cool and damp it's been: wet fields and snowy mountains in the background

"Sensitive Habitat" sign on the Tsolum River

There weren't any of these signs along waterways in this area when I was growing up but now they are on almost every stream and river. Great to see, and apparently the care and concern that folks are giving the fish habitat is making a real difference.

Turkey patrol 😉

A random turkey cruising along Tsolum River Road. Di was trying to get a photo but I couldn't turn the turkey towards her.

Once a rustic camper, now a vegetable stall

At the end of our ride we arrived back at Mom's place to discover the wind had deposited a great drift of cherry blossom petals in her driveway ...

Pretty in pink

Denman and Hornby Islands

Some contextual photos to show where we're going for this ride:

Buckley Bay is a millpond this morning

The ferry between Buckley Bay on Vancouver Island and West Hornby is a cable ferry, with a cable connecting to either side of the vessel front and back ...

Our ferry awaits

... which replaced this now idle vessel ...

And here is Di aboard the ferry with our bikes. Note the room afforded cyclists. And something else of note which is quite different to what happens when we catch the ferry across to Bruny Island south of Hobart: pedestrians and cyclists board FIRST, while motorists wait patiently! Also, there is a separate ramp for cyclists and pedestrians leading down to the ferry. Very civilised!

An eagle and an anchor welcome us to Denman Island ...

We were trying to maximise our chances of catching the connecting ferry to Hornby Island so we didn't dally along the 11 kilometres across Denman and southwards towards the terminal. When we did make the crossing and start wandering around Hornby this is the sort of riding we encountered for much of the way:

Apart from small clumps of cars passing periodically there was very little traffic. No doubt it is quite a lot busier later in the season but it was really nice having the roads largely uncluttered with vehicular traffic.

I had to stop at this roadside cedar to prop my bike up against it and take a photo to show the size of the thing, which must have been a small sapling back in the day when the area was logged:

Hornby is a very funky place, with lots of alternative lifestylers and artists. How the folks who live in the property behind this old yacht got said vessel placed in its present site must have been an interesting exercise.

 

I wondered whether this is this an art installation or did the owners of the house behind sail it back in the day. They had a motor cruiser parked in the driveway with a "For Sale" sign on it.

Very very green in this part of the island which was thickly clad in luxuriant forest ...

Our "destination" for lunch was  Ford's Cove near the southern end of the island, where we got a coffee and gobbled some much needed nutrition, including a cinnamon bun each. Here are a bunch of photos taken around the shop and marina, which apparently gets pretty busy in the summer months:

A gorgeous shot from Di

Logs, rock, water, forest, sky and mountains

A concentration of lost logs in the lee of the breakwater

Hydrographic Service marker

Back on the bikes we wandered around a bit before making our way back ...

Books and a nicely crafted gate

A glimpse south and west back towards Vancouver Island 

As we were making our way back to the western side of Hornby we caught up to this gum-booted, serape-clad gal tootling along on a nifty electric bike with fairly wide tyres. Apparently ready for pretty much anything:

ELECTRIC!

A house clad in overlapping slices of log rounds

Mural on the side of a cafe/guesthouse

The ferry back to Denman Island; note the pedestrian walkway

Once back on Denman we made a beeline for the ferry to the mainland. We'd been hoping to stay dry but a short sharp shower came through forcing us to don our rain jackets, which then then cleared away almost immediately. We needn't have rushed as we had another half hour to wait for the ferry once we reached the terminal. This was the scene back across the water, showing the Beaufort Range once again covered with cloud and showers coming down.

A glimpse of the weather back on mainland Vancouver Island

Di kept her rain jacket on for the ferry ride, and the shower cap she uses over her helmet when it's cold and the rain is falling ...

I must get one of those shower caps 🤔

Competing or Complementary Relaxants?

New Tradition Brewery is located in downtown Comox and has some fun names for their beers

Something we've noticed since arriving here in B.C. is the explosion in craft breweries, which is much like what is going on back home in our own island state of Tasmania. What is completely different though is the proliferation of cannabis stores. Now that laws restricting the use of cannabis have lifted there is a world of difference from what was the case when we were last here. While there was always a significant use of weed in this part of the world dating back to about the time I was growing up here, now it's all out in the open rather than clandestine.

The Buddery Dispensary is located on K'òmoks First Nation Land along the Dike Road

If one were to draw a direct comparison between the number of craft breweries and cannabis outlets, you'd have to say that cannabis is winning the competition between craft breweries and cannabis outlets: there are at least ten cannabis stores in the Comox Valley (ranging from the family owned and operated Comox Valley Cannabis Company on First Nations land to the City Cannabis Company which is "now delivering") but only six craft breweries. However, the craft brewery scene seems much more sociable, with plenty of cars parked outside the ones we passed and a hum of activity. And on our way home from Denman and Hornby the other day we detoured via the Church Street Taphouse in Comox. While not actually themselves a brewery, they've got about a gazillion beverages on tap from all over the island and across Georgia Strait on mainland BC, with  a mouthwatering menu to complement the ales, ciders and wines. The place was abuzz with folks having a good time. By contrast, the cannabis "dispensaries" were all pretty quiet. Although I realise it's ridiculous to compare the two in this way, I declare the craft brewing scene the winner based on just having a fun time with friends and food.

A Fine Final Foray

Comox to Qualicum Beach and Back Again

The forecast for our last full day on Vancouver Island was for largely sunny conditions with light winds. The ride I had most wanted to share with Dianne while we were on the island was a trip down the coast to the charming town of Qualicum Beach and back again. Perhaps if you look at the image above showing our route for the day you'll understand why: the route hugs the shore for much of its length, with views across to islands to the east and the mainland. Di was keen to have an extended outing after a full day of rest and this route at 130 plus kilometres fit the bill nicely.

The best conditions were meant to be early in the day so we set off just after seven. Within a few kilometres we just had to stop for a photo op as we were afforded the best view of the Comox Glacier since arriving:

Comox Glacier in all its glory

Around Comox Bay we went and then headed southward; well, southeast actually. Soon I had the GoPro out of the pocket to take a picture of a deer crossing the road:

In shadows just south of Royston a deer crosses the road

Not much further south we were back on the coast with gorgeous, soft light and very light traffic and relatively still conditions, so another chance for a photo on the fly:

The light was sublime early this morning

We were making good progress but thought it would be smart to have a break before the turnaround in Qualicum Beach. Our first real opportunity was at Bowser, about 46 kilometres into the journey. And what a find! The Bootless Rooster cafe has excellent service, even better coffee, and some scrumptious food on offer. 

Quirky name but an excellent cafe!

Having a predilection for sampling cinnamon buns whenever possible, we thought maybe these were a little large to have one each so we decided to share a bun and an apple fritter, which was just a little smaller. Di was really hungry but this stage and had difficulty waiting until I took a photo of our snacks before tucking in:

Yes, very hard to resist!

The lunch menu looked so good we resolved to just have a quick coffee in Qualicum Beach and stop here again on our way back. Quite a good plan because this would break our ride into three sections of roughly 45 kilometres each.

Conditions continued to be favourable so we made good time to Qualicum Beach and found another great cafe, this one called French Press Coffee Roasters.  They've got a fun little video on YouTube which reflects quite nicely the vibe of the place: 

The place was humming when we arrived, which is always a good sign. This is what our coffee looked like when I picked it up at the counter:

It tasted as good as it looked, but what we also liked was the personalised receipt which made it very clear which coffees were ours (look closely at the image above).

What really made our visit a total delight though was the sight of the group occupying a large table in the middle of the cafe: seven adults with six chortling babies. It was so special seeing such a big group of (well behaved!) babies together that I just had to ask if they minded me taking their picture for my blog. They were happy to comply. Not a brilliant photo because of the backlighting but still, here it is:

Happy parents with a bounty of well-behaved babies!

Oh, I almost forgot: as we were coming into the town we passed a bike shop with one of the best names I've ever seen:

Big Grin Bikes in Qualicum Beach

Absolutely chuffed with our quick visit to Qualicum Beach, we set off for the return journey. We were back in Bowser almost before we knew it. We took a nice long break this time, with a savoury dish to start, followed by a sweet and coffee. By the way, it's worth knowing that a small coffee at at virtually every cafe we've visited on this trip would equate to a large at home in Tasmania.

Once we left Bowser there was no stopping before reaching Comox. I did take a few photos while moving, including the two below, which hold particular significance for me:

The first is of Tree and Denman Islands. Tree Island is a place my family a number of time with friends for picnics, where we'd swim (there are actually sandy beaches which is a rarity on this coast!), play games and cook oysters in the fire. Great memories:

Tree Island is the small one on the left, Denman on the right

The other photo I had to take was of the Fanny Bay Inn, known forever to locals as the "FBI":

The "FBI"

This pub has special significance for me because almost half a century ago (48 years, to be exact) I stopped in here while riding south to Victoria, at the start of my second year of university. It was by far the longest ride I'd ever undertaken up to that point. I'd made a later start than I should have, and decided it would be a good idea to stop off for a snack and a refreshing ale. Because I really didn't understand the need to keep properly hydrated, I was feeling fairly thirsty and one refreshing ale soon became two. Once back on the bike, it wasn't long before I was feeling a bit wobbly and decided it would be prudent to pull off the road and have a little lie down. The next thing I knew a concerned motorist was shaking me awake, concerned for my welfare. Assuring him I was fine, I climbed back on my bike and the rest of the journey passed uneventfully. I did however arrive a little late.

While we were at Bowser I put the proposition to Di that upon arrival in Comox we make our way to the Church Street Taphouse for a basket of fries to replenish, diminished carbs. A (small) beer to celebrate the day was also suggested. Here we are upon arrival:

The end of a brilliant day out with my favourite riding partner

Because she was planning on making her way back to Mom's place at a recovery pace, but didn't want to diminish her average speed as shown on Strava Di decided to stop recording her ride at this point. Because she was quitting early (well ... sort of) I decided that I would do my normal rounding up after all. There are more photos on my Strava post, and you can watch the Relive video here if you're so inclined.

Although the weather has been fairly dreary for most of our stay here in the Comox Valley, the past few days have almost erased our disappointment. Today was particularly special. 

Tomorrow Dianne and I will take Mom out to lunch, say goodbye and then catch the ferry across to the mainland to begin the next phase of our holiday. I'll report back in a week or so.