Hot and Hotter!

Apparently, our trip to Salt Spring triggered the beginning of summer. The endless days of rainy, overcast weather through June have given way to hot, sunny conditions. On Wednesday, temperature records were dropping like flies.... and the humans were wilting like last year's annuals. Paul's comment, when he saw one temperature record beaten that was made in 1941 was, "Hmmm. There must have been global warming back then, too."

We finally hosed down the garden furniture, and spent a lot of time in the shade trying to stay cool. Thankfully, the temperature had moderated from the high 30's celcius to the high 20's by dragon boat practice on Thursday evening!

The weather was perfect for a roof-off trip to Fort Langley, and a cruise up along the Fraser River in the Corvette. I should qualify: it was perfect in the 20-something celcius conditions, when it was not parked in the sun. As long as we were moving, with a nice breeze being created, it was perfect.

The garden needed a lot of extra care this week, and really doesn't look like much it is growing. We gave it some good soakings during the week, but the soil is full of clay and I think when it hardens like rock in the hot temperatures, it makes it difficult for roots to foray any distance.

I really hate the yucca plants at the front of our house. I have to wear body armer to prune them back, as the leaf edges are like knife blades. However, right now they are in bloom, and the flower stalks really are showy. I'd like to see more colour in the front, but that is a project for another year.

The first two weeks of summer vacation have flown by. There are only two more to go, and I'm sure they will pass far too quickly. In the meantime, I'm trying to enjoy every moment of free time.

Salt Spring Island Getaway

On Wednesday, July 4, we drove over to Tsawwassen to take the Gulf Island ferry to Salt Spring Island. After several weeks of cool, wet, overcast days, we were thrilled to travel in sunny, hot weather! The views from the ferry as we passed by Galiano, Mayne and Pender Islands were spectacular.

When we arrived at Long Harbour, we drove to Kent's Kottage, our home for the week. We spent our first anniversary at the cottage in 2002, so knew that it was a quiet get-away that is close to Ganges, and easy driving distance from everything on the island.

We had picked up a copy of the Salt Spring Studio Tour, which outlines all the different artisans that open their studios/workshops to the general public throughout the island. On our first day, we stopped at Salt Spring Island Cheese on the way to Ruckle Park, near Fulford.

Salt Spring Island Cheese produces various varieties of goat cheese. No goats are raised on the island, so they bring in goats milk from Abbotsford on the mainland, or Courtney and other locations on Vancouver Island. There were lots of different flavours to sample. It is possible to walk along the outside of the buildings to view the stages of the cheese making process through the windows.

After making our purchases, we toured the farm. They have chickens, but besides manufacturing goat cheese, the farm is actually an active miniature horse operation. They breed and raise these horses for show throughout North America.

In spite of spending a lot of time sampling cheese, we were ready for lunch when we left the farm. We drove a short distance to Ruckle Park, and carried our lunch out to Beaver Point to eat on the rocks and watch the marine traffic pass by. This little bird spent her time nibbling at seeds and bits of grass around our feet the whole time we ate our lunch. She showed no fear or inclination to leave.

We do love our ferries, so no journal would be complete without at least one photo. This ferry was passing by Beaver Point on its way to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island.

After lunch, we went for a hike through the campground, along the coast. We went to Grandma's Beach to sit and look at the view some more before heading back to the cabin.

On Thursday evening, we went for fish and chips at the Seaside Restaurant in Vesuvius. It is far and above the best fish and chips place we have eaten at, and we wanted to go for another meal there on this trip. We ate our meal overlooking the ocean across to Crofton on Vancouver Island.

On Friday, we began our day with a visit to Sacred Mountain Lavender. The farm produces mainly English and French lavender, but had a sample garden with Spanish lavender, which is quite different in appearance from the first two. As we walked through the fields, all you could hear was the hum of bees.

We continued on toward Ruckle Park for another hike, stopping at the Salt Spring Island Bread Co. Here they make all the bread in a wood fired oven. There were so many varieties! We picked up a savoury bread topped with cheese, tomatoes and onions, fresh out of the oven for lunch. The smells were heavenly, and we picked up a couple of loaves to take with us.

At the park, we ate next the the water again, then went for hike in another direction. These geese were cooling themselves along our route on another very hot day.

Ruckle Farm, which is right at Ruckle Park, is still operating. Toward the end of our trail, we crossed fences on stiles, and walked through fields of sheep. At the end of the farm driveway, in typical Salt Spring Island fashion, there is a produce stand. These stands are based on an honour system. Goods are put out for sale, and there is a box in which to put your payment. We picked up crab apple jelly and some vegetables.

That evening, we drove over to Mount Erskine Drive to have dinner at the home of our friends, Susan and Ken. Susan was the rector's warden at St. Mark's for part of the time that Paul was a people's warden. They moved to the island a year ago, and are situated on waterfront property overlooking Vancouver Island. It was great to spend time with them after a year, and share a lot of storytelling and laughter!

We were able to join them for church on Sunday at All Saints Church by-the-Sea in Ganges. Afterward, we went out for lunch at the Oystercatcher. We had eggs Benedict, though - not oysters.

The sunset from Ken and Susan's deck was unbelievably beautiful on Friday evening. Fortunately, the camera did come somewhat close to doing it justice!

On Saturday, we got up early to go to the Saturday Market in Ganges, which is a lot of fun to go to for the sake of "window shopping", but things are quite price-y. We thought it was more enjoyable taking the time to do the self-guided studio tour.

We spent a quiet afternoon, and later drove up to see the views from Mount Maxwell. Last time we were on Salt Spring, we hiked up, but it was late summer, and cooler for that trip - not sweltering hot! We stuck to easier, shade-covered hikes for this trip.

We were aware, for our whole stay, of The Deer Family living in our woods near the cabin. Each night, we carefully drove by various members in the clearing. We caught glimpses of them, as we walked down the lane. On Sunday morning, one of the bucks and a doe were having a snooze at the front of the cabin. They didn't bother to move, until we walked toward the car. It is a quiet area, so a perfect haven for them.

After our Sunday brunch with Ken and Susan, we took another quick tour of Ganges, then went back to the cabin to pack our things and prepare for the trip home. We love Kent's Kottage, because it has a fully equipped kitchen and barbeque, which is a real money saver for a vacation. As I mentioned, we also love the quiet solitude at the cottage, and will likely be back for a visit again - hopefully in less than five years this time!!