Okay, enough already – 48 hours of rain is getting a little boring!! At least it isn’t freezing cold so that is about the only good part of the weather for the last two days.
We went over to Jim & Linda’s about 11 this morning and had a lovely lunch and great visit with them. They have a beautiful home here in Harrison Hot Springs, it is a bungalow with a loft and just a really nice size with the great room, kitchen and dining area all being open.
Jim and Linda have a boat that they bought last year and it is still in the water but the lake is really low because of the lack of rain during the summer (they are certainly making up for it now though!!!) and Jim said he has to get it out as the blades of the engine are buried in the mud – not good! Linda said that had the water not been so low they would have taken us out for a ride on the lake which would have been nice, but not to be on this trip.
We left about 5, just as their daughter and grandson arrived, and came back home for a bit. It was starting to thunder and lightning, didn’t look like a good night to barbecue so we decided to drive to Agassiz and have dinner at Jack’s Steakhouse, which Jim & Linda had recommended. Dinner was very good and John was happy with his liver and onions and I had the prime rib special which was delicious.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow and can only hope that the rain stops.
Friday, October 16, 2009
It started to rain about 11 last night and has rained most of the day – just what we wanted! At least it is reasonably warm – in the mid teens all day.
This morning we checked out the BC Liquor Stores and it appears that they have privatized some stores and the prices are astronomical at the privatized stores – wonder how in heck they will survive like that. It seems that all the privatized stores have the same prices – astronomical!! So much for privatization!
Janet called this morning to see if we had got over the mountains okay and we talked about going to Torfino with them and staying in motel or B & B for a couple of days. Steve had mentioned to John that they had gone there a couple of weeks ago when they had company from Hagersville so I told Janet we will check with him next to see where they stayed when they went.
This morning we just took our time and didn’t rush and we had just finished lunch when Jim stopped in for a bit. We had a nice visit with him, then when he left we went into Agassiz to get a few groceries and find a provincial run liquor store. The grocery store left me shaking my head at the prices, thank goodness I didn’t need a lot of stuff, and we got some beer at the liquor store and a bottle of California wine for a reasonable price.
We stopped on the way back for diesel – the price was $0.919/litre, which in B.C. is a good price. I was talking to the gal on cash when I was waiting to pay and it turns out she is originally from Sarnia, ON – small world as that is where we are originally from!
No pictures today, it was so cloudy and the clouds were so low it wasn’t a pretty day for taking pictures!
By the time we got back it was late afternoon – where, oh where, do the days go.
I am keeping one eye on Law & Order while doing this and when that is over I will pick up my book for a whie. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
This morning we checked out the BC Liquor Stores and it appears that they have privatized some stores and the prices are astronomical at the privatized stores – wonder how in heck they will survive like that. It seems that all the privatized stores have the same prices – astronomical!! So much for privatization!
Janet called this morning to see if we had got over the mountains okay and we talked about going to Torfino with them and staying in motel or B & B for a couple of days. Steve had mentioned to John that they had gone there a couple of weeks ago when they had company from Hagersville so I told Janet we will check with him next to see where they stayed when they went.
This morning we just took our time and didn’t rush and we had just finished lunch when Jim stopped in for a bit. We had a nice visit with him, then when he left we went into Agassiz to get a few groceries and find a provincial run liquor store. The grocery store left me shaking my head at the prices, thank goodness I didn’t need a lot of stuff, and we got some beer at the liquor store and a bottle of California wine for a reasonable price.
We stopped on the way back for diesel – the price was $0.919/litre, which in B.C. is a good price. I was talking to the gal on cash when I was waiting to pay and it turns out she is originally from Sarnia, ON – small world as that is where we are originally from!
No pictures today, it was so cloudy and the clouds were so low it wasn’t a pretty day for taking pictures!
By the time we got back it was late afternoon – where, oh where, do the days go.
I am keeping one eye on Law & Order while doing this and when that is over I will pick up my book for a whie. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
We woke up to a mainly sunny sky this morning and the temperature was 6C (43F) – a nice improvement over what it has been.
We got ready and were on the road by about 9:30 and had a good drive to Harrison Hot Springs, arriving about 3 p.m. It was a 314 km trip of a lot of ups and downs with two summits to cross; not a real fun drive for John as the road is mostly two lanes although there are a lot of passing lanes. I know he was real happy when we arrived at Hope and picked up the Trans Canada highway and saw green grass and level ground!
A Pretty Lake
The Leaves Were Pretty
Love the Clouds on the Mountain
The low temperature going over the peaks was 6C but by the time we got to Harrison Hot Springs it was 16C (61F) – that’s much better.
A Cabbage Field
In Trailer Life listings there was a park in Harrison Hot Springs that sounded okay and was open until the end of the month but when we got there it was closed – great. There was another park next door so we went in there but today was their closing day and the lady said she could let us stay for one night but not 3 or 4 as they had excavators coming in to start work. While we were talking to her a fellow came along and asked her how much the trailer lots were selling for and she said $50,000 to $80,000, Holy Hannah!!! She told us about another park so we headed there, missed the turn, found another park and that is where we are! It is not a very great park but has full hook ups and wi-fi so we are here until Monday.
After getting set up I tried the wi-fi, no signal, so went back to the manager to ask her about it and she had it on her computer and had no clue why I couldn’t even find the signal. I was walking around her trailer and the office with my iPod touch and couldn’t find a thing. Anyways, the previous manager has a place across from us so I knocked on his door and told him my problem. Interestingly, the signal is hidden, but he told me how to find it and what the password is and we are now hooked on and the internet works great.
We took a drive around town and out by the marina, Harrison Lake looks like a very large lake and there sure are a lot of boats in the marinas (there appeared to be three different marinas). The rest of the town is not very large so it didn’t take long to drive around. There was a pub and liquor store right around the corner from the park so we went in as we wanted to get some beer; what - $13.40 for a 6 pack – I DON’T THINK SO!!!!!! The liquor, wine and beer prices were astronomical in there so we walked out empty handed. A single can of beer was $2.95, who would pay those prices?
I called Jim & Linda and as we are planning on going into Hope tomorrow we will walk over to see them on Saturday and then they are coming for dinner on Sunday.
John barbecued burgers for dinner and a quiet evening is ahead. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
We got ready and were on the road by about 9:30 and had a good drive to Harrison Hot Springs, arriving about 3 p.m. It was a 314 km trip of a lot of ups and downs with two summits to cross; not a real fun drive for John as the road is mostly two lanes although there are a lot of passing lanes. I know he was real happy when we arrived at Hope and picked up the Trans Canada highway and saw green grass and level ground!
A Pretty Lake
The Leaves Were Pretty
Love the Clouds on the Mountain
The low temperature going over the peaks was 6C but by the time we got to Harrison Hot Springs it was 16C (61F) – that’s much better.
A Cabbage Field
In Trailer Life listings there was a park in Harrison Hot Springs that sounded okay and was open until the end of the month but when we got there it was closed – great. There was another park next door so we went in there but today was their closing day and the lady said she could let us stay for one night but not 3 or 4 as they had excavators coming in to start work. While we were talking to her a fellow came along and asked her how much the trailer lots were selling for and she said $50,000 to $80,000, Holy Hannah!!! She told us about another park so we headed there, missed the turn, found another park and that is where we are! It is not a very great park but has full hook ups and wi-fi so we are here until Monday.
After getting set up I tried the wi-fi, no signal, so went back to the manager to ask her about it and she had it on her computer and had no clue why I couldn’t even find the signal. I was walking around her trailer and the office with my iPod touch and couldn’t find a thing. Anyways, the previous manager has a place across from us so I knocked on his door and told him my problem. Interestingly, the signal is hidden, but he told me how to find it and what the password is and we are now hooked on and the internet works great.
We took a drive around town and out by the marina, Harrison Lake looks like a very large lake and there sure are a lot of boats in the marinas (there appeared to be three different marinas). The rest of the town is not very large so it didn’t take long to drive around. There was a pub and liquor store right around the corner from the park so we went in as we wanted to get some beer; what - $13.40 for a 6 pack – I DON’T THINK SO!!!!!! The liquor, wine and beer prices were astronomical in there so we walked out empty handed. A single can of beer was $2.95, who would pay those prices?
I called Jim & Linda and as we are planning on going into Hope tomorrow we will walk over to see them on Saturday and then they are coming for dinner on Sunday.
John barbecued burgers for dinner and a quiet evening is ahead. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
We finally got the rain that was forecast but fortunately it wasn’t a real heavy rain and by about 11 a.m. it had pretty well quit, but the whole day has been overcast with low clouds and still cold. Maybe tomorrow it will start warming up!
Today was a pretty lazy day, I decided to wash the bedding this morning so got that job done and had a nice chat with a lady from northern B.C. while doing it. When I came back the gentlemen next to us had just come out so I asked him if they had been at Del Pueblo in Yuma last winter as we thought we recognized their motor home and dog – turns out we were right. They are heading back this year again and he was saying they also got bumped from the sport they had last year but took the other choice they were given.
I had made an appointment this morning to get my hair cut this afternoon so John dropped me off to get sheared and went and got fuel and propane and he met me back at the hairdresser’s just when I was done – perfect timing.
Today seemed like a good slower cooker type of day so I put a pot roast on this morning and it is smelling yummy - should be ready in about 15 minutes. I will cook some asparagus to go with the meat, potatoes and carrots, a real easy dinner.
I am still working on the book that I started the other day and the lady I met at the laundry this morning gave me a couple of books so I have lots of reading to do –I guess you know what I will do tonight.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Today was a pretty lazy day, I decided to wash the bedding this morning so got that job done and had a nice chat with a lady from northern B.C. while doing it. When I came back the gentlemen next to us had just come out so I asked him if they had been at Del Pueblo in Yuma last winter as we thought we recognized their motor home and dog – turns out we were right. They are heading back this year again and he was saying they also got bumped from the sport they had last year but took the other choice they were given.
I had made an appointment this morning to get my hair cut this afternoon so John dropped me off to get sheared and went and got fuel and propane and he met me back at the hairdresser’s just when I was done – perfect timing.
Today seemed like a good slower cooker type of day so I put a pot roast on this morning and it is smelling yummy - should be ready in about 15 minutes. I will cook some asparagus to go with the meat, potatoes and carrots, a real easy dinner.
I am still working on the book that I started the other day and the lady I met at the laundry this morning gave me a couple of books so I have lots of reading to do –I guess you know what I will do tonight.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Today was overcast all day and about the same temperature, so not a really nice day.
We decided to go to Kelowna, it was a nice trip but if I lived in this area it would drive me crazy to have to drive the same highway any time I wanted to go someplace! With the river, lakes and rocks there is only one route between Osoyoos and points north and that is Highway 97 so it would get really boring after a while, and, it is also a very busy highway. Kelowna is a fairly large city and the waterfront area is pretty, I would hate to imagine what it would cost to buy a condo there!
Neat Rock Formation
Looking Towards Kelowna
Sculpture in Kelowna
We had picked up a real estate book the other day and I have never seen so many properties over $1M listed at one time. I would say the average price for a house is around $500,000, we certainly couldn’t afford to live in this province! When I was talking to Steve yesterday and he said the average LOT price in White Rock is $500,000 so we don’t know how people, especially young couples, can afford to buy a house. As Steve said they would be up to their ying, yang in debt all their lives!
Highway 97C goes west from Highway 97, just south of Kelowna, to Highway 5 and there was a large overhead sign on 97 today advising that 97C was slushy and snow covered in spots – not my idea of a good drive! We will take Highway 3 across as it only has one pass and that one isn’t as high as the ones on 97C. We are hoping that Thursday will be an okay day to do the drive.
We found a Super Wal Mart at Westbank so stopped to pick up a few staples, which were much cheaper than at the local grocery store. We stopped at Okanagan Falls to get something for dinner and they had brook trout on sale for $4.97/lb so guess what tonight’s dinner will be.
It hasn’t started to rain yet but the mountains around us are beginning to get shrouded in clouds so I am sure the rain isn’t far off.
Tomorrow I have to try to find some place to get my hair cut, as my mother would have said I am starting to look like a shaggy dog – LOL!
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
We decided to go to Kelowna, it was a nice trip but if I lived in this area it would drive me crazy to have to drive the same highway any time I wanted to go someplace! With the river, lakes and rocks there is only one route between Osoyoos and points north and that is Highway 97 so it would get really boring after a while, and, it is also a very busy highway. Kelowna is a fairly large city and the waterfront area is pretty, I would hate to imagine what it would cost to buy a condo there!
Neat Rock Formation
Looking Towards Kelowna
Sculpture in Kelowna
We had picked up a real estate book the other day and I have never seen so many properties over $1M listed at one time. I would say the average price for a house is around $500,000, we certainly couldn’t afford to live in this province! When I was talking to Steve yesterday and he said the average LOT price in White Rock is $500,000 so we don’t know how people, especially young couples, can afford to buy a house. As Steve said they would be up to their ying, yang in debt all their lives!
Highway 97C goes west from Highway 97, just south of Kelowna, to Highway 5 and there was a large overhead sign on 97 today advising that 97C was slushy and snow covered in spots – not my idea of a good drive! We will take Highway 3 across as it only has one pass and that one isn’t as high as the ones on 97C. We are hoping that Thursday will be an okay day to do the drive.
We found a Super Wal Mart at Westbank so stopped to pick up a few staples, which were much cheaper than at the local grocery store. We stopped at Okanagan Falls to get something for dinner and they had brook trout on sale for $4.97/lb so guess what tonight’s dinner will be.
It hasn’t started to rain yet but the mountains around us are beginning to get shrouded in clouds so I am sure the rain isn’t far off.
Tomorrow I have to try to find some place to get my hair cut, as my mother would have said I am starting to look like a shaggy dog – LOL!
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving everyone - we hope you all have enjoyed your thanksgiving dinners with friends and families.
Today was the same weather wise as we’ve been having with a low overnight of -6C (22F) and a high today of about 10C (50F) so still not warm. Now the weather forecast is for rain the next few days, we don’t seem to be able to win with the weather this trip!
Our Spot at Desert Gem RV
We are just watching the news and this is the coldest October on record, with the below freezing temps during the night the vineyards are in a race to get the grapes picked within the next few days or they will lose their crop – not nice for them! It seems like it looked like they were going to have a bumper crop until this cold arctic air came and froze everything! We have certainly seen a lot of vineyards with the ground (and some vines) covered in ice so can see what they are dealing with. At least they are having a bumper crop for pumpkins here!!
Today we decided to drive around a bit and we ended up finding the road from Okanagan Falls along the east shore of Lake Skaha, we followed that north to Namarata which is on the east shore of Lake Okanagan. Penticton sits between the two lakes and there is a river, creek, whatever, joining the two lakes and running through Penticton.
Okanagan Lake
Talk about wineries, there are so many of them around here it would be impossible to start naming them. We stopped at one winery but found the prices out of our range – the cheapest 750 ml bottle was $20 so we passed on buying a bottle for dinner – we will just have to be content with our home made wine, which is really good and much cheaper than that!
On the way home we took a road out of Okanagan Falls looking for the falls and all we did was end up on one of my most unfavourite type of roads – lots of climbing, twists, turns and sheer drop offs – I was glad when John found a place to turn around and we got back to the main highway; and we never did see the falls!
One of the downsides of this area is that there is mainly only one road to drive – Highway 97, the rest of the roads in the area don’t go anywhere so it gets pretty boring doing the same drive to and fro from wherever you go.
John is cooking a turkey breast for our Thanksgiving dinner – we will have turkey, dressing, squash and green beans – no desert.
Yesterday I started a book that takes place in Lompoc, CA, which we went through in the spring, so I am looking forward to picking it up after dinner again. I always enjoy books that take place someplace we have been as I can then visualize the area.
We heard from our friends, Steve & Cheryl, who live in White Rock so think we will spend a few days in their area, after Chilliwack, so we can visit with them before heading to the island.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Today was the same weather wise as we’ve been having with a low overnight of -6C (22F) and a high today of about 10C (50F) so still not warm. Now the weather forecast is for rain the next few days, we don’t seem to be able to win with the weather this trip!
Our Spot at Desert Gem RV
We are just watching the news and this is the coldest October on record, with the below freezing temps during the night the vineyards are in a race to get the grapes picked within the next few days or they will lose their crop – not nice for them! It seems like it looked like they were going to have a bumper crop until this cold arctic air came and froze everything! We have certainly seen a lot of vineyards with the ground (and some vines) covered in ice so can see what they are dealing with. At least they are having a bumper crop for pumpkins here!!
Today we decided to drive around a bit and we ended up finding the road from Okanagan Falls along the east shore of Lake Skaha, we followed that north to Namarata which is on the east shore of Lake Okanagan. Penticton sits between the two lakes and there is a river, creek, whatever, joining the two lakes and running through Penticton.
Okanagan Lake
Talk about wineries, there are so many of them around here it would be impossible to start naming them. We stopped at one winery but found the prices out of our range – the cheapest 750 ml bottle was $20 so we passed on buying a bottle for dinner – we will just have to be content with our home made wine, which is really good and much cheaper than that!
On the way home we took a road out of Okanagan Falls looking for the falls and all we did was end up on one of my most unfavourite type of roads – lots of climbing, twists, turns and sheer drop offs – I was glad when John found a place to turn around and we got back to the main highway; and we never did see the falls!
One of the downsides of this area is that there is mainly only one road to drive – Highway 97, the rest of the roads in the area don’t go anywhere so it gets pretty boring doing the same drive to and fro from wherever you go.
John is cooking a turkey breast for our Thanksgiving dinner – we will have turkey, dressing, squash and green beans – no desert.
Yesterday I started a book that takes place in Lompoc, CA, which we went through in the spring, so I am looking forward to picking it up after dinner again. I always enjoy books that take place someplace we have been as I can then visualize the area.
We heard from our friends, Steve & Cheryl, who live in White Rock so think we will spend a few days in their area, after Chilliwack, so we can visit with them before heading to the island.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Today was another beautiful sunny day with a high of about 14C (58F). It was nice in the sun and we were even able to sit outside for a bit – a nice change from the last couple of days.
The last couple of nights the temperature has gone down to about -3C during the night so John has left the kitchen tap on a slow drip so the hose doesn’t freeze. This morning I woke up about 3 and had trouble going back to sleep and about 3:30 all of a sudden could really hear water dripping so got up to see what was happening, oh no, somehow the plug was in the sink and the sink was almost full to the top with water!! I can just imagine what kind of mess we would have woken up to if I hadn’t heard the dripping and got up to investigate (the plug is now out of the sink so it can’t happen again tonight!!).
We decided to have a very quiet day and really didn’t do a lot. John started refinishing the trim in front of the door, which badly needed to be re-stained etc. and I did a couple of loads of laundry – talk about a lazy day. I also got caught up on reading blogs and replying to e-mails. We walked around the park just as the sun was disappearing behind the mountain as we knew once the sun went away it would be cold again. Not an exciting day but an enjoyable one none the less. I expect tomorrow will be another quiet day as being a holiday it is probably a good day to stay off the road.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
The last couple of nights the temperature has gone down to about -3C during the night so John has left the kitchen tap on a slow drip so the hose doesn’t freeze. This morning I woke up about 3 and had trouble going back to sleep and about 3:30 all of a sudden could really hear water dripping so got up to see what was happening, oh no, somehow the plug was in the sink and the sink was almost full to the top with water!! I can just imagine what kind of mess we would have woken up to if I hadn’t heard the dripping and got up to investigate (the plug is now out of the sink so it can’t happen again tonight!!).
We decided to have a very quiet day and really didn’t do a lot. John started refinishing the trim in front of the door, which badly needed to be re-stained etc. and I did a couple of loads of laundry – talk about a lazy day. I also got caught up on reading blogs and replying to e-mails. We walked around the park just as the sun was disappearing behind the mountain as we knew once the sun went away it would be cold again. Not an exciting day but an enjoyable one none the less. I expect tomorrow will be another quiet day as being a holiday it is probably a good day to stay off the road.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Today is another bright, sunny but cold day with a high of only 9C (49F) – sure would be nice to see it warm up a bit.
We drove down to Osoyoos this afternoon, it is pretty but I don’t think I would like to live in this area, just doesn’t appeal to us that much.
Coming Into Osoyoos
In checking it out on the internet I saw that temperatures here during July and August are above 30C and the fall – September and October, are supposed to be warm, so what is happening here!! We stopped at a Fruit/Vegetable stand and the lady said this is really unusual weather for here, I was going to say the cold weather seems to be following us but didn’t because she might charge me triple for bringing the cold – LOL!
From Osoyoos we took Highway 3 westbound which leads to Keremeos and the Similkameen Valley via Richter Pass, a really pretty drive. At Keremeos we picked up 3A north to just below Penticton, so while almost there went back into Penticton to get fuel. Highway 3A to Keremeos is the route we will take when we leave here, that way we cut off quite a few kilometers and don’t have to go all the way down to Osoyoos and across.
The Drive Along Highway 3 and 3A
Yellow Lake
Penticton and Lake Skaha
We stopped at Marks Work Warehouse in Penticton as I am looking for a new sweatshirt, turns out Marks only carries men’s not ladies sweatshirts – go figure! John saw a nice sweater jacket there so I bought that for him for his birthday so now he will be able to keep warm.
We got home about 6 and another quiet evening is in store. We don’t plan on doing too much the next couple of days and then maybe Tuesday we will take a drive up to Vernon and Kelowna.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
We drove down to Osoyoos this afternoon, it is pretty but I don’t think I would like to live in this area, just doesn’t appeal to us that much.
Coming Into Osoyoos
In checking it out on the internet I saw that temperatures here during July and August are above 30C and the fall – September and October, are supposed to be warm, so what is happening here!! We stopped at a Fruit/Vegetable stand and the lady said this is really unusual weather for here, I was going to say the cold weather seems to be following us but didn’t because she might charge me triple for bringing the cold – LOL!
From Osoyoos we took Highway 3 westbound which leads to Keremeos and the Similkameen Valley via Richter Pass, a really pretty drive. At Keremeos we picked up 3A north to just below Penticton, so while almost there went back into Penticton to get fuel. Highway 3A to Keremeos is the route we will take when we leave here, that way we cut off quite a few kilometers and don’t have to go all the way down to Osoyoos and across.
The Drive Along Highway 3 and 3A
Yellow Lake
Penticton and Lake Skaha
We stopped at Marks Work Warehouse in Penticton as I am looking for a new sweatshirt, turns out Marks only carries men’s not ladies sweatshirts – go figure! John saw a nice sweater jacket there so I bought that for him for his birthday so now he will be able to keep warm.
We got home about 6 and another quiet evening is in store. We don’t plan on doing too much the next couple of days and then maybe Tuesday we will take a drive up to Vernon and Kelowna.
And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to another nice day tomorrow.
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