Camping in Canada!!

Happy Canada Day to us all!! This is a great country to live in, work in and play in....and play this weekend we did!! This is a pretty long post since I will combine about 5 days in one. Get ready and get your reading glasses on!!

Thursday the 27th. We headed over to White Rock.The ride over on the ferry is always nice, even when it's grey and wet outside, but first a bit of prep!

 Stargazer lilies. I love these, they smell so nice!! These are in a pot in our "yard"  

Doug makes waffle cookies for camping...

 

 Super nice trip across to the "lower mainland" from Nanaimo.

It is a bit pricey at $81 Cdn for car, driver and passenger - one way!!

But, the trip is priceless when this little guy awaits you at the other end!!!

Sorry Gus is a bit blurry but he is always wiggling and squiggling!!

 

 

Friday, the 28th, we headed up to Golden Ears Provincial Park in Maple Ridge BC. It is a gorgeous park, about 1 hr from White Rock and an absolute jewel in the lower mainland. We are very lucky to have this so close!!

 

The camping crew was Josh, Kathy, Gus, Kathy's sister, Mary, Doug and I. We are hoping more of our family comes next year so we can start a new tradition of camping on the Canada Day weekend! As always, the party can start once the camp is all set up.....and the new add-a-room tent worked pretty good!!

 

 Gus sees fire for the first time and was pretty amazed by it!!

Such a beautiful area - Pacific Coast rainforest....

Old logged stumps. Most of this Pacific coast area is second growth rainforest.

Logging happened in these areas first more than 100 years ago...

Gus' very own adirondack chair...

 "Nurse tree".
Many years ago, the big, old tree fell down and new trees grow out of it....

 Mr. Slug....the only wildlife we saw for the entire weekend - and that's okay with me!!

 Okay, let's get this "camping" thing on the go here!!

We're burning daylight!!! We can all s-i-n-g!!!!!

 First of all, you ain't going no where without some grub in your tub!!

Kathy, Gus and Josh

 

Saturday the 29th. We awoke this morning to a beautiful, bright sunny day. So nice!! We got finished eating, napping (well some of us...) and then the plan is to head out for a walk. 

 

I know, I am at the top of the handsome scale, aren't I?

 

 

 

 One is NEVER too young to hang out in Euri!!!

 ...except somebody got tricked into having a nap!!!

 Napped up and ready to head on down to the beach...

 Josh, me, Mary, Kathy, Gus & Doug...

 Alouette Lake Beach....

 The twins, Harrison & Emma, come for a visit....

well, with parents Paul & Kristina of course!! 

 Kristina with Harrison...

 With Paul & Kristina, we made a 2nd trip back down to the beach....

 Nancy, Gus & Mary...

 "Just me and my boy".....

...and finally, checking out some babes on the beach!!!

 

 

Sunday the 30th. Always, always have to have pancake morning when camping....ever since our kids were babies!!

 

 Doug, Mr. Master pancake cooker!!

 Mary is quite the carver. Meet our Easter Island mascot, Herman.

 This looks like a lovely napping spot for Gus...

 

After Gus was sufficiently napped up enough, we headed the 2.7 kms up to the falls. I wish I had taken more pictures of how muddy the trail was in places. This is one of the nice spots. Many other places were 6" deep in mud, all the way across the trail. We have had lots of rain in June!!

 You can just see our group having to go around the mud wallows...

"Stay to the side!!!"

 

 Teach 'em young about the foot shots!!

About half way up to the falls was a beautiful beach on the side of the river...

 

The awesome men in my life....

 

 

 

 Gus and his Grandpa!!

 Mary's foamy shoes, after wading in the river to try and get some of the mud off!! 

 Logged trees....

 You can still see where the springboards were put into the trees so the men could stand on them and manage the huge saws to cut these beauties down, so many years ago.

These forests are like a living history of the province of BC....

We made it!!

 

 

It was 5.4 kms up and back. Kathy carried Gus in the baby carrier, both ways! She is a tough lady, that daughter-in-law of mine!! The baby carrier can hold Gus facing out or facing in so she and Josh switched him back and forth according to how he was comfortable. He even managed to sleep a bit but he is getting pretty heavy at 17+lbs  

 

This is for Barb and Sal. Our version of the Mexican magic fire,

only ours came in a package!! 

 

Monday, July 1st. Of course, Happy Canada Day - 146 years old!! And of course, it was pack-up day. It always seems to go faster than set-up day, doesn't it?!!

 

 

 Euri, the diaper changing table too!!

 

 

 

 

Our happy forest boy. He loved being outside for the whole weekend!! 

 From us, and our beautiful Gus, who is celebrating his first Canada Day,
HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!

 

We are back in White Rock at Josh & Kathy's for the next two nights and then we head over to North Vancouver (about 1/2 hour away) to "cat-sit/house-sit" for my Mom while she is away on a two week cruise. Hope her kitty is ready for us!! We will be able to do some fun posts from living the "high-life" at Grandma's place in the swanky apartment she has!! Stay tuned!! 

 

Cheers friends!!