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Published: October 6th 2008
Hi evryone - and yes Lynne S. I am getting your messages so you are not as daft as you think you are on the computer - say hi to all the Surrey/ London gals.
The last day with Billybob and I dropped the girls off in Whistler so that they could do the seaplane adventure flight to Vancouver leaving me to drive Billybob. The weather was wonderful and I tried to persuade Suz to drive BB and I would take her place in the plane but she wasn't having any of that!!! And because the baggage allowance on the plane was minimal they kindly borrowed my rucsac repacked some stuff for the night in the hotel and left their cases behind for me . They are such sweet girls ...I tried making them feel guilty but I don't think it worked. They were pretending to cry when I left them of course.
And so I drove down the Sea to Sky Highway from Whistler via Squamish to Vancouver - well it should be renamed ROADWORKS HIGHWAY - the whole distance there are roadworks as they are re-building the road for the Olympics - well I managed and I am sure there were a lot of drivers behind me swearing at being there - but I stuck to the speedlimits and made it round the bends and bumps and through millions of cones. I found my way to Porteau Cove not far out of Squamish - this was on the coast in the Howe Sound. What a place - i found a spacious wooded campsite and parked with my front wheels about 1 metre from the stoney beach. Deadened white bleached trees/logs and stumps littered the beach and I looked across to forested islands and bays and to the north there were mountains and a glacier - stunning can hardly describe it. This looked like a northern version of paradise to me - and the icing on the cake came later when I was able to sit for about an hour and watch an otter a few meteres away from me - swimming, fishing , sitting on a rock eating the fish and then coming on to the beach near me rubbing himself on logs and giving his back a good scratching - what a privilege to watch a wild animal like that - I felt like I was in a Planet Earth episode.
By the time I had watched the otter anitics and also saw the sun go down - I thought it was back to business and I had to do the sani dump of all the waste water - so I backed out BB ( yes I was getting very good at reversing by now!!- will be taking my HGV license next!!!) - went to the campsite dump and found that darkness falls pretty quick in BC once the sun goes down cos it was pitch black DARK. But armed with my black rubber gloves and a torch in my teeth ( well sort of) I managed to do the job only tripping up once and falling in the water!!! Michael's good training ( he always had a torch with him ) comes in handy at times - I wouldnt dare go anywhere without a torch. So dusting myself down with a few curses I made it back to my campsite and my last supper in BB- steak again and 2 port and lemons
(well I had to use the port up!!!).
A bit of packing later and it was bedtime - I had the option the following morning of driving in a convoy of folk who likewise were returning their RVs to Delta - south Vancouver - the park warden said I could follow them if I was ready at 7am. I have to be different dont I - so woke up at 3am and lay there till 5am and got up and went at 5.30 am . Figured i would risk driving in the dark ( through the bl***y roadworks again) and losing my way thru Vancouver against being in a convoy of several RVs.
So I made it to the depot of Canadream before 8am , only made one error getting off highway at wrong exit but got back straight away ( who needs a Sat Nav!!!and who says women cant read maps!!!))- so I was pretty pleased with myself - Bob,I was under my mileage allownace, I had done about 3000km -( paid for the package of 3200) - so pretty good. Sad to say goodbye to Billybob - and I woulndt hesitate to do it again.
So I got checked out with the paperwork and taxied to the Westin Bayshore Hotel and was meeting the girls in the posh hotel lobby by about 10am. Will finish up my tales of Vancouver another time.
Here I am at my friends, Bev and Peter, in Brantford - Bev and I have known each other since we were about 5 , and our mums knew each other - in Newcastle she was training to do Physio while I was training in Radiography, then we were all out living in Canada together - and we had our first babies at the same time my Suzanne and her Andrew - so it's good to be in their company again and I am enjoying relaxing - sat by the pool in the sun today and had to borrow suntan cream. It;s lovely to have such good friends and so many shared memories and we havent shut up cos there is a lot to catch up on. Oh - and I got to practice my singing last night accompanying Peter on his guitar.
Well love to evryone and I feel so sorry for Suzanne and Tracie being back in the UK and at work this week while I am still having a lovely time.
Take care . Lynne xxx
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Bob and Prill
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mileage
Well done Lynne. More k's than us. Your last night sounds brilliant. It does seem like heaven when you are in it. BC is just stunningly beautiful. We are looking forward to a wet and windy day. We painted the outside of the house, and have a good filled log store which we have sadly started to use. Keep having a good time Love Prill and Bob PS Prill showed me how to make crumble last night and I was a great success. It was lovely.