Aug 20 - 24 Back to Vancouver Island: Pre-wedding fun

Aug 20
We got going early and finished packing. We are looking forward to this trip for lots of reasons but the best part is Shannon and Dan getting married. So happy for them and they will be a great pair forever! We hit the road by 9 am with no particular destination in mind. Drive until we want to stop. This is odd for us but we have a couple days to get there. Our buddy Ailsa had sent us some pictures from the Log Inn Pub in Avola on her way back from Whistler and that reminded us of how good the burgers were. Leslie and I had stopped there once before and they do make a fabulous burger. No fries, potato chips only if you ask, very limited menu and that's all they make. 

Sign at the bar where you order food & drinks.

The shine makes it hard to read so I'll type it here, "This is not Burger King. You don't get it your way.... you take it my way or you don't get the damn thing." Some may take offense but it's a great stop if you like burgers. Avola is between Clearwater, BC and Blue River, BC. Check it out.

Really nice building too.

With a happy belly we continued on our way. The smoke from the fires is pretty thick in places but we only saw one place where we could see a forest fire behind the mountain. Helicopters and planes were frequent sightings.

It's pretty hot too, 34C in Kamloops. Thankfully the Mustang is air conditioned. We stopped for fuel in Merritt but felt we could go a little further so we carried on to Hope about another hour away. 

Tunnels between Merrit & Hope, Les likes tunnels lol.

By the time we got to Hope we were tired and hungry and ready to get out. The Mustang is a fun car to drive but it's not long trip comfortable. Plus, we're old and our backs get sore. We found a quaint little motel, the Alpine Motel, that was super clean and quiet. It was close to a good restaurant and behind a Save On Foods so we could grab some breakfast and go in the morning. A good night with almost 1000 km's behind us.

Aug 21

We woke to a really smoky day in Hope. We had decided to take the Horseshoe Bay Ferry to Nanaimo so we could have a short visit with my cousin, Holly and Leslie's Uncle Bill.

Leslie does not breathe well in this!

Of course in the summer there is highway construction and we slowed down for some just outside of Surrey. The posted limit was 70 km/h but at one point we had to come to a fairly quick total stop on the freeway. The vehicle behind me also stopped but, unfortunately, the one behind that was not that lucky. The vehicle behind us got hit pretty hard and bumped into us as a result of it. Great! Luckily when I pulled over and got out there was no damage to Leslie's car. That was a close call for sure.

Port Mann bridge in Vancouver, not as smoky

We made sure to leave a little extra space in front of us and all was much better when the construction ended. Made the 11 am ferry to Nanaimo. We should be able to visit in the afternoon and make it to Victoria by tonight.

Ferry to Nanaimo

We stopped at my cousin Holly's place first and had a quick but nice visit with her and Bob. Sorry no pics :(

On to Uncle Bills place in Saltair.

Love this guy! Leslie should be in this pic.

We visited with Bill for a little while and then had to say good bye sadly. We stopped briefly in Chemainus to call Ray & Deb Kyle Link to tell them we wouldn't be able to make it to Lake Cowichan to see their fabulous place. As it turns out they already had guests so we will have to come back another time to visit that part of the island. She has a second guest room with a bonus doggy bed but we are cramped for time. So great to be welcomed to their home and we only met them once through Steve & Dianne. Thanks Deb, we will definitely accept a raincheck for next time on the Island.

We arrived at John's about 9 pm. My niece Heather and her boyfriend Sam are also staying at my brothers place for the wedding. They flew in all the way from London, England earlier in the week and we haven't seen Heather in years! Of course it's our first time meeting Sam but he seems like a great fella. We are beat though. We visited for a little bit and had a beer but I was so tired. Les and I went to bed to power up for tomorrow.

Aug 22

We woke up at a decent time and I wanted to go for a run around UVIC. John lives across the road from the campus. I asked John if he wanted to come too and was only mildly surprised when he said yes. Leslie was going to do her own thing so it's the brothers out for a run. John is the oldest in my family and I'm the youngest, 15 year difference. He'll be turning 70 soon and is in great shape, he's a squash referee and plays 3 times a week as well. We did a 4k loop around UVIC at a great pace going stride for stride! I only hope I can do what he is doing when I'm 70! Good work buddy.

This is after our run, he's not even sweating!

When we were all back from our exercise Heather and Sam were up and ready for breakfast as well. We all enjoyed a big hearty breakfast together while discussing our plans. Heather and Sam are going to hike Mt Finlayson just north of Victoria, beautiful views and a great hike, or so we were told. Leslie, John and I are going shopping and prepping things for a dinner tonight at Johns place with Shannon & Daniel, Heather & Sam and Johns girlfriend Patty. We're doing barbecue salmon with salads and corn on the cob. Delicious and nutritious, nummy! We started with some beers and appy's in the afternoon. Patty is working and will be a little later than the rest of the gang that are either retired or on vacation. Heather and Sam brought Shannon and Daniel gifts from England so they opened them first.

Heather & Sam with their first beer & clamato juice!

Shannon with her royal gift, Dan trying to connect to the printer :)

Patty and her son Nathan got there around 7 pm and we all had a great dinner with some wine and lots of laughs. So great to be here and enjoying time with everybody. We of course forgot to take pictures but we had a great evening and called it a day, tired and happy.

Aug 23

Exactly one month from my race day in Golden! I am itching to try my new shoes so today is the day. John declined as he has other activities planned. The shoes felt pretty good and I did the same 4k as yesterday, just need to keep working them in. John, Les & I did some cleaning and yard work at Patty's before she hosts a family evening on Friday for about 30 of us. She has a great house and yard for entertaining and generously offered to host the party. Thanks Patty. After a little work John took us to Maude Hunter's pub which is close to his house. Really nice pub and great food and John bought lunch. Great deal for us !! Thanks John.

We drove back to Johns place and just relaxed for the afternoon, even snuck in a nap, bonus. In the evening we all went back to Pattie's place to help prep some of the food for Friday night.

Heather and Sam at their cutting boards :)

Me,Sam, Heather,John & Patty, done with prep and relaxing

We're as ready as we can be for Friday night and we're tired. We all said good night to Patty and drove back to Johns and off to bed.

Aug 24

John had some errands to do and stopped at Patty's again so Heather, Sam, Leslie and I decided on a walk around the University. John had dropped off Patty's dog, Betty, earlier so she is coming too. We miss having Margaret around so it's good to walk Betty.

There is an awesome path around UVIC

The afternoon was a chance to sit and relax a bit before the party tonight. We picked up some champagne for a small toast after the wedding ceremony and did a couple other little things but basically took it easy. We all headed over to Pattie's around 3 pm to put things out and be ready for 4 when everything starts. So tonight is a gathering of my family and the wedding party. There is a rehearsal up Mt Tolmie for the wedding party tonight and Pattie's house is close so they can do the rehearsal and come back for drinks and food. It's been a long time since we have seen my sisters, Donna and Margie, and their families so we're excited that we get to gather for a happy occasion.

Me, Margie, Patty, Niki, Ellison, Sophia, Terryn & Bryon

The back of Heather & Sam, Donna & John, the 2 eldest of my family

My nephews wife Niki & my niece Kerry

It was so good to see everyone again and have a chance to catch up a little. We really need to try to do this more often but time and distance makes it difficult. I think a lot of families are the same but it sure is nice when you do connect again. Now that we're retired all we can do is try to visit more often. Forget the past and just move forward. 

Around 9ish everyone headed home or to their hotel and we all pitched in to help clean up Patty's place for Saturday morning. She is hosting the bridal party for all the hair and makeup which starts at 8 am. The groomsmen are coming to John's to get ready but that will start a little later. When we finished up we enjoyed a quiet glass of wine on the patio. Thank you Patty You worked very hard and opened your home to our family and we appreciate it very much. 

Patty even took this pic! Still working lol.

Tomorrow is the wedding day!! Shannon and Daniel have worked all the little details and now just need to walk down the aisle and say their vows. We wish them all the happiness in the world and hope their married life is healthy and happy for a long, long time. The next post will have lots of photos from the wedding and will be devoted to their day! Congratulations Shannon & Daniel !!