NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

"No man is an island, entire of itself; 

every man is a piece of the continent."

- John Donne 

No, we haven't moved to Canada, although lately it's been very tempting. Rather, Vancouver, Canada was the next stop on our journey, where we met up with Doug's sister Deb and her husband Mike. We have such fun travelling together - taking in the sights and playing lots and lots of Pinochle. Visiting new restaurants is also on our list of favorite things to do together. Hapa Izakaya became our favorite spot for excellent Japanese cuisine, as recommended by Doug's son Ben and daughter-in-law Kelli. 

For almost the whole month of May, we floated around the spectacular, uninhabited landscape of Utah. After that, we nestled in the rolling hills of Lewiston, Idaho and Clarkston, Washington, immersing ourselves in the historic sights and stories there. The day we left, it took only five hours to go from farm pastures to navigating the narrow streets of downtown Vancouver during rush hour to get to our campground just outside the city.  You'd be amazed at how loud the background buzzing of civilization sounds after being surrounded by the silence of nature for so long.  

Vancouver is a seaport city along the west coast of Canada. It has  modern, avant-garde sky scrapers that reflect the sky and surrounding buildings, creating urban art through reflection. The air is crisp and fresh, with low humidity. The temperature while we were there was cool at night (great for sleeping) and in the low to mid-seventies during the day. 

This is the kind of weather we love for traveling, hiking and painting. We've been blessed with mostly clear weather in this temperature range for our whole trip so far. Spring is gradually giving way to summer heat and we keep heading further north, experiencing the newness of the spring season all over again at each new destination. 

"The mountains are calling 

and I must go."

- John Muir

Even amidst the hustle and bustle of Vancouver, we were never far from the beauty of nature. Doug made a day trip into the mountains near the town of Whistler and captured the remnants of winter on their peaks. 

Passing Clouds

Winter's Remains 

"We may all have come in different ships, 

but we're all in the same boat now." 

- Martin Luther King

The highlight of our Vancouver / Canadian coast adventure was a visit to Victoria Island. We left our RV nestled in the campground and took our car by ferry to the island - a very unique experience. Imagine a boat that is able to load four decks with vehicles of all sizes and weights (trucks and RVs included). The whole process of loading and unloading took only about 20 minutes and was very organized. Once underway, we were able to leave our car and go to the upper deck, which had spacious seating and even a snack bar style restaurant. The casual atmosphere and beautiful scenery made the two hour trip quite enjoyable. 

Although we could have brought our RV with us to the island, we opted to take a break from "life on the road" in order to enjoy the convenient sights surrounding our hotel right on the harbor. 

Coco was not quite sure what to make of it all:

Victoria Island had the cutest little water taxis to take people to various spots around the island:

"To plant a garden is to believe 

in tomorrow" 

- Audrey Hepburn 

Victoria Island is also home to the famous Butchart Gardens, named for Robert and Jennie Butchart. The land was originally the site of a limestone quarry, owned and operated by Robert in the late 1800's. In the early 1900's, Jennie commissioned a well known gardener, Isaburo Kishida, to build a Japanese garden on their estate. This original private garden still exists today. 

In 1909, when the limestone quarry was exhausted, Jennie began work on her vision to return the quarry to its natural state by creating a sunken garden. Upon completion in 1921, they opened it to the public, calling it "Benvenuto" which means "welcome" in Italian. Over the next several years, they added an Italian garden and a grandiose rose garden. The garden has stayed in the family and open to the public ever since their deaths. A  fountain and additional features were added over the years, making Butchart Gardens what it is today. Jennie Butchart's dedication to nature and finding a creative way to restore it to the land is an example to all. 

As we mentioned, our journey this year takes us continually north as spring temperatures warm our ongoing destinations.  And so, after saying goodbye to Deb and Mike (again...), we headed northwest to Kelwona, British Columbia, to spend a few days in Canada's wine country. Our campground was situated on a wonderful hillside overlooking farms and vineyards. Next door was an apple orchard, hence the name: Apple Valley Orchard & RV Park - an interesting combo, right? 

"There's a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore 

looking like an idiot"

- Steven Wright

We visited the various parks in the area around Kelowna where Doug enjoyed fishing. The photo below provides proof that he actually caught a beautiful rainbow trout. Being a lover of all creatures, Sue made Doug whack the poor fish over the head to put it out of its misery before reluctantly taking a photo. Once the head was off and the fish cooked, Sue had to admit that being at the top of the food chain has its advantages. 

Kewlona was a short stop-over on our way to the most northerly destinations of our trip: Jasper, the Columbian Ice Fields and Banff  - all  located in the province of Alberta. Spring and her warm temperatures were going to have to step it up a notch in order to follow us this far north with a climb in altitude of 3 - 5,000 ft. 

Stay tuned!