More Hikes, and the first camp of the year

Junuary has led into Julebruary, and things are looking good to go for a cool Augtober, but we've still managed to get out a bit (despite another weekend ruined by lousy weather - we had a nice spot picked out and everything).

A couple of weeks ago we went to Zoa Peak, which would be normally be mostly free of snow by now, but that still somehow had over 2m in places. It was hard packed so we didn't need snowshoes. It's a bit closer to home now though, so I think we might make this a winter trip.
Sarah likes to make it look like she's standing on the edge of a cliff - she isn't.

Again. We got a little excited on the way down, and followed a gully down the wrong side of the ridge. Luckily I had my trusty compass and excellent (sort of) orienteering skills, and got us out alive only a little worse for the wear. There was also bear poop everywhere. 'Tis the season.

 This is a fake smile. This is a couple of weeks ago. We went to a trail that was first created in 1848, and since re-discovered and mapped. It was very steep uphill most of the way.

 This is funny because we thought we were close to our destination. It was pretty though.

Maggie is getting used to her pack again.

 Eventually we got to a camp. The water was a little brownish, but the view was good.

 We had leftover corn, so we packed that up. Worked out pretty well on the campfire. Maggie is forever hopeful we'll drop something.

 Maggie and her Christmas present: a portable food/water dish.










We had a view to the west, so a pretty good sunset.

We decided to skip climbing to a nearby summit, and to lounge around the camp all day. It's a nice way to spend Canada Day.

We have about a million flower pictures, but one more can't possibly hurt. It's a tiger lily, pretty common early in the season.

Then it rained on the way out (obviously), but it was pretty in an area that burned in 2006.

The forest on the way out was pretty, but full of mosquitoes. You can't tell from the picture, but Sarah was running (and cursing - but I'll spare you the specifics).
All in all it was a pretty good weekend. Nice to finally get away from the city for a while - even if our new city is a lot more tolerable that Vancouver...

We might do something interesting tomorrow, but probably not if the forecast is even a little accurate.

R

More Miscellany

We've been busy, but not too busy writing blogs. So I'll go back a couple of weeks to a hike we did not too far from our new home: Elk-Thurston. It's a high ridge with a couple of summits. We only did the first summit-ish because visibility was nil, it was cold, and there was really no point. It was nice to get out of the house though.

This was the best we could do for a view for a few seconds. Barely worth writing about, but here it is...

 This is a walk we did to a waterfall up the road. Just something to do around here.

 I over-photoshopped this, but here it is anyways.

 It was nice.... we may go back for a picnic if summer ever decides to show its face.

Obviously she had fun.











Then a highlight, Krista came over and was our first official house guest. We made her sleep on the floor. And if that wasn't enough, we found a mountain for her to climb. It was pretty though, and I might be talked into going back there someday.

On the trail: it was still easy at this point.

 A nice little lake near the top. We decided to skip the summit proper because we were too lazy, lunch was tasty, and why leave a spot like this?

 Maggie was lazy.

 We were tired, but putting on a brave face.

More nice views of the forest on the way up. It was a nice hiket, going through at least two distinct ecosystems, but Krista and Sarah didn't seem too interested, so I spared them.

We went camping last weekend, I'll post about that later.

Silverdale Wetlands

There's a nice little wetland about 15 minutes from the house. We take Maggie there when we're too lazy to do anything better.

The Fraser is flooding right now, so there's lots of water and looks pretty neat.

There was something nice behind Sarah, but she got in the way.

Maggie is happiest when she's destroying sensitive habitat.

There's about a million of these things in the wetlands. Purple martins. Every now and then they settle down long enough to get a good picture.


We'll post more in the next few weeks, as we get organized in the new house and not quite as lazy.

R

Home sweet home!

32141 Sandpiper Pl, Mission BC = HOME!!

I don't have a lot of time to post but here are some pictures of the move and our new home!

And Remi and I would also like to thank BOBBY TAYLOR for helping us load the truck Saturday morning despite it being an absolutely fabulously sunny day :)

 26-foot U-Haul - Remi was scared to drive it, but he did an awesome job!!

 We're HEEEERRREEEE!

 Eeek!!  Wasn't expecting this, but Remi hoisted me up and carried me not only through the door, but up the stairs to the main floor!!

 Damage from the U-Haul truck rolling down the driveway and into the house.  We don't think it's a big deal, but Remi will be going after them this week for some compensation.  THE PARKING BREAK WAS ON!!!!!  Piece of junk!

 The truck's half empty!!

 Not sure why Maggie was so tired.  She didn't carry a single box!!

 Ahh...  Enjoying some bubbly on our back deck from our super-awesome real estate agent.  If you're looking to buy in the valley, we highly recommend Shannon Pedder with Re/Max Little Oak.

 Mmm...  First BBQ of the season and first dinner in our new house!!

 The backyard.  We believe we have a few fruit trees back there!!

 Mmm....

 Relaxing by the fire yesterday afternoon.

 House tour:

The office

 The master bedroom

 

 The upstairs bathroom

 The hallway to the living room

 The kitchen

 The downstairs TV room

 The laundry area

 The downstairs bathroom

 Storage area and many boxes to unpack!!

We have lots of room for visitors now :)

S&R