Summer 2021 Cruising Season

Jeff from Valley Marine launches us.

Summer 2021 was similar to the 2020 cruising season. After our extended stay in the States, we arrived in Powell River in mid-July. 

Border crossing rules shortened isolation requirements, so we got our Bayliner 2452 into Powell River's North Harbour earlier for a longer cruising season.

The last 2020 trip ended in a damaged damaged sterndrive so Halcyon Days was raring to go with a new leg and propeller.

We did a sea trial then went salmon fishing. Didn't catch anything, but enjoyed our Sunday on the chuck (salt water).

For our first and last cruises we went to Campbell River on Vancouver Island. It's a favourite destination for us. We stay at the Discovery Harbour Marina next to a large shopping centre. Rather than cook onboard we eat at restaurants like Moxie's, the Riptide Pub and A&W for breakfast. When salmon are running, it's fun to watch the action at the dock's fish cleaning stations.

The Campbell River docks and large floating office.

This was the summer for favourite destinations. Our compressed season and more windy storms than usual kept us close to Powell River. We're so lucky to live next to the Strait of Georgia and its world class boating.

Our second cruise started with a stop at the Heriot Bay Inn and Marina. It's an older resort on the west side of Quadra Island. Usually the docks are full in summer and the restaurant packed. There were only a few boats and the restaurant was closed. It looked like the RV park and pub were keeping them alive. It would be sad to lose them.

Outdoor pub service and ferry watching at Heriot Bay.

On the same trip we motored over to nearby Cortes Island to stay at the Gorge Harbour Resort. Like Heriot Bay, they tap into the RV market. The resort is upscale with a market, entertainment and the Floathouse Restaurant. It's a great spot for boat watching, especially big ones.

Gorge Harbour is protected by a narrow waterway between high cliffs.

Back in the hangar for winter.

After three cruises and several fishing trips (none successful) it was time to get Halcyon Days ready for winter. We contacted Jeff at Valley Marine to come pick her up.

After Jeff winterizes her systems, she'll go back to the airport hangar where she has a runway view and can rest up for the next cruising season. 

Do you go boating? Wayne and I enjoy the fresh air, meeting people, sleeping on board, and eating in restaurants. -- Margy

Available Online: "Up the Strait" by Wayne J. Lutz

A Great Book
for the Boating Enthusiast

Up the Strait

Coastal BC Stories

It's cruising time again. Jump in the boat and head up the Strait of Georgia with us to magnificent anchorages and exciting adventures. Drop your hook in world famous Desolation Sound, discover hidden coves and meet some of the locals. Read Up the Strait by Wayne Lutz and then join us for the cruise of a lifetime. You may never want to leave. 

Go to PowellRiverBooks.com for more information.

 Print for $12.95
Kindle for $2.99
E-book for $2.99 at Smashwords
(prices may vary in Canada)

To bed, to bed -- garden style.

Eating snow with Daddy while hiking.

Daddy would say this bedtime rhyme
to me as a little girl.

"To bed, to bed," said Sleepy Head.
"Tarry a while," said Slow.
"Put on the pot," said Greedy Gut,
"We'll sup before we go."

The last two summers have been garden disasters. 

We left our cabin in January 2020 expecting to return in March after an Arizona Snowbird RV trip. Our float cabin is in Canada. COVID turned pandemic and border crossings became difficult.

Summer 2020 weedy float garden.

When returned in July, my float garden was overgrown with weeds. It took days to ready my beds for the next growing season. Things had to be better by then. 

After what we thought would be another short RV Snowbird Trip in 2021, we were detained once more south of the border. Eased rules for fully vaccinated Canadians let us head home in July. I bet you can guess what I found, a float garden gone wild - AGAIN! 

Weeding the 2021 float garden.

Weighted soil cover.

Fool me once, shame on you me, fool me twice, shame on ME! It took days to clear the weeds, and more to eradicate new seedlings.

The writing was on the wall, or should I say in the soil.

It's time to put my float garden to bed. This year I covered the cleared beds with black yard waste bags. 

The only soil that remains clear is where spring bulbs and garlic need to grow in our absence.

The float garden put to bed with winter bulbs planted.

We are going on an Arizona Snowbird RV trip again this winter. We hope to return in March to prepare our beds for spring bulbs and seeds. Hopefully, we won't find weeds gone wild. 

Do you cover beds to discourage winter and spring weed growth? If not, what do you do to keep your garden ready for spring planting? -- Margy

Rock Painting for Cabin Decorations

Kobe in 2021.

Over the years I've painted several large rocks. When fall arrives and flowers depart, they brighten our lower deck.

Sometimes a rock tells me what it wants to become. The first one told me it wanted to be a turtle. Rocks sometimes tell different people different stories. Wayne saw Kobe Bryant's basketball shoe so I named it Kobe after the Los Angeles Lakers star. Kobe needed a repaint in 2016 and again this year.

The original rock that became Kobe the Turtle.

For my second project, I searched for a ladybug shaped rock. It was smoothed by Powell Lake's waves and easier to paint. It was so heavy I had a hard time carrying it from the Shinglemill beach to our boat. 

This summer I painted a rock I call Frogger after an old-time computer game. I selected the rock on a barge camping trip to Goat Lake. It looked perfect, but after painting I don't think it was best shape.

Frogger on the corner of the front deck.

Frogger has taken up residence on the other side of our front deck. Her weight will help hold the corner down when wind and boat waves wash through our front "yard."

I had lots of fun painting this summer. Do you paint rocks? Are they large or small? Tell us your stories. -- Margy

Returning to a New Normal

First time heading up Powell Lake in July.

Like for many of you, the last year and a half has not been normal. In the beginning, I tried to blog about throwback topics. But without the ability to get home to our float cabin on Powell Lake, the joy of blogging was lost. 

I even lost interest in reading blogs and making comments. You would think with time on my hands, blogging would be a welcome diversion, but that didn't turn out to be the case.

Our float cabin finally comes into view, homecoming is sweet.

I hope this interim period of a new normal finds you with good health and more joy in life. For Wayne and I, we are settling into a safe, vaccinated, masked and distanced existence.

On July 5, Canada lifted its mandatory 14-day quarantine for returning fully vaccinated citizens using land borders. We waited until July 12 to let agents get used to the new procedures. On September 7 restrictions were relaxed for fully vaccinated foreign nationals as well. These are huge steps towards a new normal for individuals and businesses.

A new coat of yellow paint and green trim makes a our home look new.

After an absence of eight months, getting back up the lake was a relief. We worried about what might have happened in our absence, but our good friend John kept an eye on things. By and large, everything was just as we had left it, except for a beautiful new exterior paint job. John and his brother Rick made our 23 year old cabin look brand new. 

Uh, oh. My float garden went wild with weeds.

Jeff from Valley Marine launches our boat.

Over that last month and a half Wayne and I have focused on cabin chores, boating and relaxing. There's no safer place than home, but at this home we can get outdoors whenever we want. I think that's what I missed the most, the ability to get outdoors and enjoy nature.

How about you? How are you adjusting to a new normal? -- Margy

"River for My Sidewalk" by Gilean Douglas

Between our float cabin and the granite wall there's a protected pool. In summer, the water is warmed by the reflect sun, making a natural heated swimming pool. 

The water can reach 24ºC (76ºF). It's a perfect spot to sit in a floating chair to read. I usually read on my Kindle, but in this watery environment I choose print backs. I find a good selection of at our local used bookstores, thrift shops and the Powell River Kiwanis Club book sales.

A memorable read from this summer was River for My Sidewalk (Sono Nis Press, 1984) a memoir by Gilean Douglas. It was first printed by J.M. Dent and Sons in 1953 under the male pseudonym Grant Madison. They thought customers wouldn't believe a woman could live alone in the wilderness and wouldn't buy the book. Gilean continued as Grant Madison until 1983, with the majority of her works first printed under that pseudonym.

Gilean was born in 1990 in Toronto into a privileged life. That changed dramatically when she was orphaned at sixteen. She married several times, traveled extensively and worked as a photo-journalist. In 1939 she moved to British Columbia and began living off-the-grid in remote cabins. There she continued working as a journalist, author and poet.

I got a signed book.

River for My Sidewalk is about her years living in an old miner's cabin on the Teal River near Duncan on Vancouver Island. She gardened, fished and gathered foods from the land. Few visitors were invited to stay, and her elevated hand pulley river crossing kept most fishermen and hunters away. She shared her land and life with animals including Grampa Cougar.

Gilean was an adventurer willing to give up an easy life to experience the wonders of nature. The tales of her experiences cut across time. There are still places where you can live a simple life, if you are willing. 

In 1947 her cabin burned. She married again and moved to Cortes Island, up the coast from my Powell River home. After her marriage ended, she remained on her 138 acre waterfront off-the-grid homestead and lived there until her passing in 1993.

Uganda Passage near the location of Gilean's Cortes homestead.

Do you like to look for old and unique books in used book and thrift stores? What are some of your best discoveries? -- Margy