ANOTHER YEAR IS HERE AND IT IS SUMMER ALREADY!!

2005 August 4 to 2006 June 25

So, I have to go back to last summer and catch you up on the events that have elapsed since then.  I guess just about everyone has relatives that require trips east.  We are not the exception and like many had a Saskatchewan, homecoming that drew us further from the sea.  Okay, we had a swell time and we got to see that we were not the only ones that seem to have all these grown up kids.  Kids with kids even!!!   [The Sask Connection at left.]  Having done our penance, we made a run from the flat and the dry and back to the coast.

Due to our eastern trip through the Maritimes, we didn't get out to Good Idea until early August.  Brenda and I took a trip up to Telegraph Harbour, and on to Nanaimo.  In Nanaimo, we re-installed a propane solenoid and had a good visit with our friend Sandy from 'Sea Jester'. 

[Shown on right.]  She shared a picture of what not to do when in Nanimo.  [Consult charts!!  Watch Buoyage!!  Clearly this was Pilot error.]  We then set out for Page's Marina in Silva Bay.

The next day we met up with some wonderful people.  Glen [a former student], Lisa, Joseph and Kathleen joined us for a day cruise out of Gabriola's Silva Bay and Brenda was left ashore to run herd on their dog.  The Cap'n and crew chased down some buccaneers at Pirate's Cove.  Although we got there a bit late to find the booty, we managed to get back to port and find some treasures of our own around the dessert cart.  [Right shows the empty treasure chest and then one of many treasures available to attract the attention of all the would be pirates at Silva Bay.]

Adieu to our new friends and Brenda and I laid over for an extra day to visit with another former student who has set up a menagerie on Gabriola which he calls a farm.  Brian has llamas, goats, turkeys, geese, ducks and even an emu.  [An emu, Brian and Brenda.]  We made our way to a virgin port for us, Ladysmith YC in Ladysmith.  We had gone past the entrance to the harbour for decades but never ventured up.  While there we took time to visit an old friend, Margaret, just north of town.   Many of our charterers will  remember Marg as the woman who did our turnarounds back in the 80's and 90's.  Again, the next day, we stopped  at a port we hadn't been to since the eighties, Vesuvius.  Tied up by the ferry dock and ran up for lunch with the wasps.  Found out that the pub there and Moby's Pub at Ganges had recently been closed.  Not good news.  [Since then, Moby's has reopened under new management, but I have not confirmed it yet.]

Then on home to our port in Sidney, where we stumbled into the wedding of the daughter of a former colleague of Brenda.  They were wed on the grounds of our Sidney North Saanich Yacht Club.   What a gorgeous setting for the gorgeous bride and groom to exchange their vows!!

Former students continue to shanghai relatives for various cruises and courses and Adam and his family sent his father, Al, and Sue for a four day trip through the Gulf Islands.  [Sue and Al piloting up to Thetis.]  Having checked out Telegraph Harbour this earlier we elected to stay there again.  A trip down to the Thetis Marina for supper didn't quite go without incident Sue pulled an 'On Golden Pond' entry into the dinghy and ended up being baptized in the channel.  Dried off, changed and underway again we had a wonderful dinner. 

The next day we motored up to Pirates' Cove passing by the plane being stripped for a dive site.  Then on to Silva Bay, DURING DAYLIGHT hours.  The crew feasted once more at the Silva Bay Marina.  The Cap'n consulted with Monique over at Page's Marina prior to setting out the next day but ran into a slight problem getting through the pass against the flood. 

[Cap'n Dave with

Monique.  Dave and Al try to buck the current in Gabriola.]  Never mind, Good Idea caught a better run through Porlier Pass later that day.  [

A tug and tow share the pass at Porlier with Good Idea.] Then on to Ganges for some more great food at the Oyster Catcher.  'A fabulous first time sailing / cruise experience, wonderful hosts, tasty food with a bit of excitement in Gabriola Pass  ....  Thanks for the great hospitality and friendship, the sun and four days of chilling out.'  was their entry in the log. 

A significant birthday for my buddy, Colin, saw us head back to Calgary.  [Colin and Dianne celebrate in style. At the coast, more Intermediate smiles.]  After the party and checking up on parents, kids, etc., Dave bolted for the coast again for two Intermediate Course cruises.  Great winds for the first course found us hard on the rail with smiles ear to ear a couple of times. 

The second cruise had lighter airs but was still a success in getting everyone through the certification.  [Second crew at Pirate's Cove Marine Park.]

Pop quiz --

What has the day marks at the right?  Answer:  A vessel restricted in her ability to maneuver.    Dave returned to start teaching Navigation late September and early October had a procedure to help the plumbing function better.  Having done the procedure on the through hulls of Good Idea, the Cap'n didn't quite know what to expect with the operation being a little more personal.  But it went well and, with the exception for a few hiccups, the plumbing is fine.  One of the hiccups was a surprise visit to emergency at 08:30 and on the same day as a surprise birthday party was planned for Brenda.  [Brenda hosts her own party.] 

About three o'clock when the Cap'n still wasn't admitted, I broke the news to Brenda, she had better go home and tidy up as she was expecting about 25 guests for dinner and cake.  Thank goodness I had prearranged everything.  The party was a success and she returned to the hospital with enough cake to feed the nursing staff and me. 

Brenda's folks did a catch up with the Cap'n's folks and celebrated their 60th

Wedding Anniversary.  [Marjorie and Albert after 60 years.]  Shortly after Brenda and I flew to the coast where, under doctor's order, Brenda had to do all the heavy work putting Good Idea to bed for the winter. 

We arrived in the rain, Dave did his thing, and the sun came out long enough to get the sails down and off to the sailmaker.  Timing was good for getting to our friends, Lee and Yvonne's, 50th wedding anniversary, but due to a bad entry in the Cap'n's log, we missed the supper and celebration by a day.  [Lee and Yvonne, the day after.]  We caught the luncheon reception for the out-of-towners the next day and got some e

xtra hugs. 

Wildrose Charters and Sailing School reduced their  inventory of boats by two this year.  The Ice Boats which hadn't been out of the racks for over 4 years found new homes with some very eager sailors.  Adam and Michael carted away the two boats, Cool Idea and Other One, and Brenda celebrated all the extra storage space.  [Ice boats have left the building.] 

Renovations ate up a lot of time this year where I couldn't find excuses to be at the coast.  Our back room got renovated in October.  As a surprise to Brenda while she was in England in December, I swapped out the rug for laminate flooring in our bed room. Lastly our bathroom continues to interfere with 2006 summer cruising.  [Unidentified workperson renovates.]  Pop Quiz 2:  What has eight sides and is not a stop sign?  Answer: 

The Cap'n's 30 year old octagonal bed in the newly renovated bedroom. 

The Navigation Grad Wine and Cheese Party started the 2006.  Timing was a bit poor, so we didn't have a very big turn out.  More wine for those that did make it.  Dave looked forward to the new 2006 Coastal Navigation course.  It gave an excuse to get out of the house during the continued renovations.  Mental note: 

Don't think that a simple swap out of flooring, rug to laminate, is what you can get away with.  Sort of like buying Brenda a purse only to find out now she needs new shoes, a dress and coat to go with them.  Now we have new art on the walls, a new chest of drawers design with large screen HD TV, new moldings, new ceiling fan and new headboard.  And no money left over for new canvass for Good Idea.  Surprise David!!!

January

found us back in California, soaking up the sun, enjoying the wonderful flowers, checking out the sea lions, watching with amazement the phenomenal power of the ocean and of course celebrating the 99th birthday of our dear friend Alice.  [Alice on left.] 

Our GPS came in handy for hunting down some new favorite spots including the best Key Lime pie west of Florida.  Alice and the ocean are on the same schedule as the Eveready Battery Company, they just keep on going and going and going. 

Thanks to Jack and Melinda, Alice's kids, again for the wonderful hospitality while we are down there.  [Beauty of the ocean and on the beaches of California.  Flowers in January?  How absurd!!  They are not knots or boats, so don't ask me to identify them.]

Seems that we have a lot to celebrate which I would be amiss if I did not mention.  The Cap'n hit the big Six Oh.  I had a wonderful party with my daughter from Ottawa in attendance, along with a whole bunch of other friends that joined us at Lloyd's Rollercade for a private skate and pizza party.  As a result the Cap'n wasn't allowed to do his normal thing of breaking for ten minutes down at the Sportsman Show to blow out some candles.  Brenda arranged for another group of senior buddies to join us the next day at our house.  Not nice, Brenda made me sit at the Senior's Table, while she sat with the kids in the kitchen. 

[Dave sulks with seniors Roy and Thelma.]

On a sad note, Brenda and family celebrated the life of her mother,

Marjorie Weston in Gull Lake, Saskatchewan in April.  Timing had both of Brenda's daughters, Bekka from Ottawa, Kirsten from England, and her Granddaughters Ophelia and Greta [Ophelia and Greta on right]  with us for that time. 

Marjorie will be remembered for having been on the ocean on three separate occasions, twice on Good Idea, and having never sailed.  Her prayer group, I think, brought in a Pacific High on all three times and there wasn't a breath of wind anywhere in sight.  I would like to also thank the people that covered for me at the Wildrose booth at the Outdoor Adventure Show while I was away. 

Shortly after the Nav Grad party, Basic Cruising got underway.  For the first time in a long time, we logged a rain day during the motoring exercises at Little Bow.  But come on, the rest of the days

were great. 

A little overcast, but no rain, and even some sunshine. 

Although it was a smaller class then normal, we had a great spring course.  Some of the fast track students completed their Basic just prior to the west coast Intermediate Cruising course in June. 

Congrats to all the students.  [Above the three crews on final approach for their solo exercises.]  The Cap'n then took out a young

fellow for a birthday cruise around Glenmore with his girlfriend and another couple.  Another excuse to break away from continued renos.  [Skippered Birthday Charter on Glenmore on right.]

As a easy break in to the rigors of life aboard the Intermediate Course, Jennifer and Pat joined the Cap'n for a four day adventure into the San Juan Islands.  Because of the timing, we even got in an early start to the Attitude Adjustment cruise and made it over to Roche Harbor, a day ahead of schedule.  Only thing was that the Cap'n hadn't cleared up the weather totally, so we motored under cover and got rid of all the rain by Color Ceremony that first night.  The next four days, although overcast and even foggy, didn't rain on us.  [Rain stopped and Pat and Jennifer check out the Mausoleum at Roche Harbor.]  We had a wonderful time in La Conner, Anacortes and Friday Harbor.  We even got some extra exercise in Anacortes with a twenty block walk.  Then we [I] discovered our favourite restaurant, Bella Isola, had closed and joined another restaurant in town and moved close to the marina.  The Cap'n shanghaied a teenager and her car and bribed them for a trip back to town before the mutineers took over.  Maybe not forgiven, but the crew forgot temporarily and we had a sumptuous meal at the Bellissima Trattoria. 

The Intermediate Cruise started later that week and we ran up through the islands to Silva Bay and back with stops at Maple Bay, Pirates' Cove, and Ganges.  [Lou, Don and Jen pilot in the islands.]  The crew as part of their certification have to cook and they put together some of the finest dining aboard Good Idea.  There may have been an issue with the ozone layer above Maple Bay during Lou's caramelizing of the chicken, but there were no complaints from those dining.  [Caramelized Chicken a definite hit!!]  I figure what comes around goes around.  I am going to blame the extra weight on the course and not the Attitude Adjustment Cruise.  Some people complain about how tight their clothes are after the cruise opposed to prior.  The Cap'n does enjoy his desserts and has the stains to prove it. 

Keep looking, we may update the news more frequently.  But I have to go back out to the coast next week, and then a cruise, the haulout, the fall cruise and  nav class ......    You get the idea, we get busy having fun and lose track of the duties back at home.  See you on the water. 

Hope You didn't hold your breath

2004 July 21 to 2005 August 3

Well, we have been busy.  I know, I know.....   Anyway here is a catch up of our news since last (yes Virginia!!) July 2004 to August2005.  We have entered a new stage in our lives called the sandwich generation.  We have the kids and now three grandkids on one side and our aging parents on the other side. 

Late July we finished our cruising season with a charter down into the San Juans with Carl and Bente.  We came across a pod of Orcas just south of San Juan Islands.  The best way to spot Orcas, other that on whale-watch like Carl and Bente [right], is to watch for the whale watching boats.  Now that there are officially more whale watching companies than actual whales, you just look to where they are headed and join the group.  They tend to be faster than the average sail boat, so timing and placement will get you to where the action is.  Here is how close some folks get [left].  I don't know if he intended to use the net or not.  It could have been interesting!  [Right] Bente takes the helm while Carl is on watch for other elusive objects.  One you do want to miss but is a must see, is the elusive deadhead. 

[This one, left, is a true deadhead floating vertically waiting for the non-vigilant boater.]  Horizontal logs are one thing, but the vertical beasts have a tendency to poke right back up after you hit them with enough force to hole your boat. 

A popular breeding ground for the deadhead is found

around booming grounds and can often be seen following a tug that has managed to round up a bunch of his relatives [right].

Another fun thing to be on the watch for, as long as you are not suffering from Mast Envy, are the other pretty boats sharing the channels with you.  Is it possible to have too many spreaders or too many sails?  Just imagine the activity of raising a sail or coming about on some of these beauties.  Just thinking about it can wear out a fellow.  [Carl is definitely off-watch]. 

One of the tranquil places we put into was the Orcas Island Yacht Club found in Westsound on Orcas Island.  The nice little dock offered us some reciprocal moorage along with an abundance of blackberries.  While the Cap'n and mate slept, the crew slipped out and picked a pail to go with our pancake breakfast.  [Good Idea at the Orcas Is YC].

A more crowded and popular stop is at the marine park on John's Island just west of Orcas.  [Carl and Bente take shore leave in the inflatible after we snatched up one of the few mooring balls in the area].  After our charter left, Brenda and I did some thing we hadn't done for awhile, we cruised solo.  Sans guests. 

We missed the fresh berries and the company but had some relaxing time prior to heading back to Calgary.  We climbed the big landmark showing the entrance to Cap Sante Marina and took in the vista of the marina, the terminal and the town of Anacortes. 

[Vista of marina, left, and the rock face we climbed from the marina side, right.]  We saw a couple of the huge oil tankers offloading at the terminal.  Wouldn't it be nice to have one of them at your disposal with the current price of gas? Although a little slow on the climb up from the pathway around the marina, up to the top, we made it much more rewarding by taking up our scooters and coasting down the roadway back into town - past the blackberries, of course, for nourishment. 

August and it was time to make a hasty retreat to Calgary.  Our daughter smuggled a nice little package in from London, England.  She announced that she would like to have her baby on September 22 even though her due date was in October.  She also brought over our granddaughter, Ophelia, making the incentive for Brenda to bolt across the Atlantic less likely. [Brenda seen here with grandson, Nicolas, and Ophelia ready to head out.  A very pregnant Kirsten claimed shotgun for the next month.  We soon got into a regular routine of waking up, having breakfast and then making trips to Value Village, Starbucks, Relatives, Starbucks, various malls and outlets and Starbucks.  My granddaughter is a Starbucks junkie and got me hooked.  She can spot the little round green logo from half a kilometer away at 80 klicks.  Now I'm mainlining tall or grande, caffe vanilla frappachinos.  There goes the girlish figure.  Well actually, I was beginning to resemble Kirsten,

I had to get away from the little pusher so I headed back to the coast to do an Intermediate course.  We had some great winds and Good Idea made it back with the full crew and no additional war wounds from the exercises.  I, however, did get a Mayday from Calgary.  Brenda had gone off to teach and left Wan, who arrived the night before, the car in case Kirsten went into labour but she had neglected to leave the keys.  Wan, Kirsten and Ophelia were supposed to pick me up from the airport in the afternoon and it would have been quite difficult pushing the car that far.  So Brenda returned home with the keys at noon. They picked me up on time and then I drove home.  I prepared for the Nav class I had to teach that night, had a hasty supper and took off to class. 

I was telling the class what a silly wife I had when I reached into my pocket and discovered I still had her keys which I pocketed after driving home from the airport.  Oh Dear!!  I called Brenda, who hopped a bus down to the CAOC  center where I teach, picked up her keys and then stole my vehicle to get back home.  Wan, who was suffering from jet lag having only arrived about twenty hours before I did, was grabbing a nap while Brenda and Kirsten took off to pick up some music for a birthing song.   Minutes later, back at home, it happened; it was time to call in Uncle Rob who was going to cover home base, and head off to the hospital.  My phone rang to see if I would like to join them.  I couldn't leave right then but about 9:45 I dismissed the class and hitched a ride from a student down to Rockyview Hospital.  Brenda managed to bring our video camera to record the event but neglected the AC and DC pack and the cords, so, at 11:24, I headed back home to pick them up, figuring I had lots of time.  Ten minutes home, ten minutes

back time for a wee visit with our sleeping babysitter, and I was back in 40 minutes at 00:04, September 22 -- just two minutes after my baby granddaughter, Greta Satine was born.  Based on Kirsten's prediction from six weeks earlier, she should be buying lottery tickets  Five minutes later after the parties had been cleaned up and made decent I was in with the camera.  [Wan and Ophelia join Kirsten and Greta in the morning.]  At noon Kirsten and baby were discharged and back home.  No sense in wasting any time in the hospital.  There were Starbucks to be visited!  [Right. Greta at about 3 weeks, minus cone head, and bent nose.]   

Well worth coming home for and forfeiting some of the sailing season. 

Besides, we had to come home and supervise the installation of our new roof.  Just under $15,000.  Do you know how much that set back my electronics budget?  We had a near miss as Kirsten was heading up stairs to the solarium when the workmen accidentally broke the second sheet of glass in the skylight.  The glass was everywhere in Kirsten's room and she, but for the sake of about 30 seconds, would have been right under it changing Ophelia.  The gods have been with us! 

Then came sad day when the group packed up and headed back to England. Oh yes, the group included the Grandma to help ride herd

on the two granddaughters.  Besides the trip coincided with a school holiday.  Back here at home we set up for Nav Grad {September Class at right] and then soon were dragging out the Christmas lights to try to match the display just south of us. Shortly after Christmas, we escaped to Monterey to visit our now 98 year old friend down there and take in the sights and sounds of the ocean. 

And now a new year, 2005.  Of course, we started Navigation again and set up in February for the annual Sportsman Show. 

This is where we get together to celebrate my birthday along with my niece and, now, new nephew and to try to sell a few charters and courses.  Hey, when you have your own private chef cooking you lunches and dinners, a birthday cake and your whole family joins you to watch you blow out the candles, who cares if the advertising budget eats up more than we do!

We finished off February with a landmark of my folks, Hugh and Marge, celebrating 60 years of wedded bliss.  

April saw Brenda take a quick trip to be witness to Kirsten and Wan's wedding in London, England.  The days after all the beautiful photos were taken, both Ophelia and Greta were covered head to toe with chicken pox. 

After our Nav Grad Part which had a poor turnout due to bad timing David still tried to balance the now out of kilter travel budget by starting the Basic Cruising Course. 

We had fantastic weather for the whole course and were just finishing up when the snow pack and the spring rains came in and flooded Calgary and all the neighbouring towns.

This resulted in the Reservoir being drained to make room for additional capacity so the damage would be minimized.  During the last few sails, we managed to run aground in the middle of the lake on some of the unexposed sand bars. 

One of the eventful man overboard drills was for my shoe which fell off during a shroud adjustment.  Now I know my clogs float and the drill was quite successful.  [Some of the crews during their final practical dockings.]  

Our Intermediate Cruising practicals started in June with a wonderful cruise aboard a 42 foot Bavaria, Willow. 

Sally, Paula, Blair and Seanne shared their space and time while we went through the drills.  Unfortunately, the Man Overboard drill resulted in the loss of the Bob, the Man Overboard light. 

It was a sobering experience as we all learned the importance of the practicing the procedure, maintaining a pointer and marking the spot well with additional

floating objects.  We could have used the rescue boat [right] to help us find the light.  I suspect the strong current and rippled waters allowed it to sneak off to some distant shore. 

We drowned our sorrows and raised a glass to Bob at Roche Harbor over Barista Sundaes, Chocolate Cakes etc.   We proceeded through Cattle Pass and south end of San Juan Island and headed over to Deception Pass.  Again we got to race a tug and log boom for the narrow pass under the bridge. 

We had an interesting event, preparing for our night passage.  [Paula rigged and ready]  We were heading up the Swinnomish Channel when the DSC radio alarm went off and a Pan Pan was announced.  Tsunami!!! Tsunami!!! 

We were sitting in a dredged channel of about 16 feet when the earthquake struck off the coast of Northern California.  We were about to head for the deeper water around Anacortes when the radio announced that the tsunami had not developed.  Dodged another bullet!  [Sally, Blair, Paula and Seanne with Cap'n Dave aboard Willow, right.]

It was back to Calgary to see if there was any water in the reservoir or if it had been washed away all together.  We set up some more charters so students could practise their skills.  Soryu and gentle winds gave the sailors a easy break on their first solo sails.  The busyness of the season took its toll on our Wine and Cheese Basic Cruising Grad Night, but those that were able to come had a great time and are even more hooked on sailing. 

July, we took off to the East to visit our other daughter,

Rebekka, in Ottawa, and to tour the Maritimes.  Don't attempt to do this when they are setting record highs in both temperature and humidity!  Our student daughter's apartment is not air conditioned and so when we finally headed out, motel keepers could have charged us a mint if only they knew how desperate we were to chill out. 

We finally found a break in the weather around Maine and took in a lobster dinner.  The one to the left is attached to my future son in law, Ciprian.  Bekka and Ciprian had toured the Maritimes earlier this year and set us up with about forty pounds of travel literature.  We hit every province except for Newfoundland.  We'll have to do that on our next trip.  We had a great time in Cape Breton where we visited with our sailor/school/sport parent friends, Graeme and Dianne.  They moved back there after raising their daughters with ours here in Calgary. 

We just got back in Calgary in time to turn around and attend a family reunion in Saskatchewan tied in with Gull Lake's 100 year homecoming.  We had a great time mixing it up with a bunch of relatives we haven't seen for years. 

And that about wraps it up for now.  Stay tuned and we'll try to be more current.  Enjoy the summer! 

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