Extrication

We are now planning our extrication from Nanaimo. This
involves contacting various utility companies in Nanaimo and
Sandpoint (our new Sandpoint number will be 265 1638 as of
May 1), planning the kayak pickup in Anacortes, scheduling
the condo carpet cleaning, coordinating with Tom Tillisch who
once thought he would return from Nanaimo with an empty
truck, etc.

Although eager to get back, we are continuing to enjoy our
stay here - especially since the sun now appears every 8th
day. Eli gets in at least two hikes per week plus some more
mellow walks. I join her on some of these. We do regular
dinners out with the crew from the college. We avail
ourselves of some of the frequent concerts and esoteric
movies that can be found on campus, if one is willing to do
some detective work. Of course, our frenzied sea kayaking
schedule continues with our weekly Thursday-evening-in-the-
cold-rain sessions.

Eli is devising her final silk screen project. This Friday
she'll join with other art students and take the ferry to
Vancouver for a gallery tour. At least that's what she told
me.

I'm guessing that I'll have finished grading etc. by April
26. The kayak pickup could be as early as April 27 and,
hopefully, no later than the 30th. We may spend a night or
two in Olympia with Hanna and Joe, if we can figure that out.

At the end of May, there is a five-day kayak guide course
here at the college. My tentative plan to take that remains
semi-firm. If the kayak pickup plan in the prior paragraph
doesn't work out, it may be rescheduled to coincide with this
course.

Our plans for next Fall remain in flux, with vague options.
There may be a possibility to do another Nanaimo gig, but it
is far from certain. Despite bad mouthing its rainy season
and unsolvable homeless problem, it is delightful in late
summer and Fall. We want to spend the next winter in
Sandpoint, however.

Happy Vernal Equinox,
The Richard (and Miss Eli)

River Walkers

It's more or less Spring here on Vancouver Island. The shrubs, trees, and other plant life seem to think so. The cold, grey, rainy season is gone; replaced by the cool, grey, rainy season. However, enough photons from the sun penetrate the cloud cover to enable photosynthesis. And the rains are no longer unrelenting; we do get snatches of blue sky - sometimes stitched together to cover an afternoon.

Our Thursday evening kayak tours have resumed. The first of these was cool, grey, and rainy - what else? However, with daylight savings time again underway, next Thursday's finish will not be in the dark.

Today, upon arising, we found a cool, grey, and rainy day. In fact, the rain was sincere. Nevertheless, Eli's Norwegian synapses clicked on a decision - this would be a good day for a walk in the forest. We donned our rain gear and headed for the Westwood Lake trailhead on Arbot street. We then skirted the NW end of the lake and headed uphill.

The trees in and by the lake are dressed in a luminous light green moss. This is not a rainforest? - well, not compared to the forest on the west coast of the big island. The uphill/downhill trails are often brim full with running water this time of year. So we trudged up these rivers toward the Westwood Ridges - thanks to Al Gore for inventing GoreTex. The viewpoints at the top offered occluded views of lower trees, but certainly no glimpse of the strait. The top of the ridge is somewhat open and has some splendid specimens of the arbutus trees (called Madrona, elsewhere).

Our departure from the island will be late April, about a month and a half away. I may return at the end of May for a kayaking course - to help me become less dangerous. We are also considering returning after Labor Day for some kayaking with local friends, if our enthusiasm hasn't waned by then.

Richard
2007.03.11