Snakes and Lakes

Highlights of today according to the boys: the snake, the lake, the rows of pick and mix in the supermarket.

The abundance of wild life here in and around Dand B's property continues to fascinate the boys. Squirrels, tree bats, white barn owls, woodpeckers and this morning, the snake. The snake slithered away as they walked along the path near to the house.

Jacob loves the creek below the house, over which D built a wooden bridge. The black bear passes through every now and then, so Jacob looks carefully before walking over it. The dog and Jacob have bonded so the two are often seen lying together in any cool spot.

A short drive to Alouette Lake this morning, a breathtakingly beautiful expanse of water surrounded by steep sided conifer covered mountains. We had been warned that the water is glacier fed, so potentially very cold. Marcus and the boys were delighted to swim in the zoned day beach area where the shallower and clear water provided relief from the 34 degree temperature. Families were erecting gazebos over the sturdy picnic tables and grilling food on their portable BBQs.

Sophie, Isaac and I accompanied Barbara on the trip to her local supermarket - a 15 minute drive ....it was here that the row upon row of pick and mix sweets got a "wow" from Isaac and warranted a photo of the Lego man with the isle of sweet dispensers.

The province is currently experiencing drought conditions, minimal snowfall over the winter and three months without any rainfall has resulted in many forest fires and a level 3 water restriction. There were a couple of days rain just before we arrived, this cleared the smoke haze over Vancouver but not sufficient to help the trees which are distressed and loosing leaves. For residents there is a ban on watering lawns and washing their cars, apart from windscreens.  A camp fire ban is also in force.

The water source here for this property is a well. Though the level has dropped recently the quality has not been affected.

One of the benefits of the climate here is being able to prepare meals and eat outside. There are spray parks for the children (on the list to do),  disc golf courses -  Marcus and cousin Simon are playing this evening for the third consecutive night.

A final night around the fire, smores cooked, camp songs from the boys, bats flying around and a few mosquitos swatted away.

Tomorrow Barbara will ferry the Neweys into the city of Vancouver for the next phase of our Canadian Adventure. We leave with a tinge of sadness but a heart full of wonderful memories of the time here. Thank you.