It finally stopped raining and spring in BC is absolutely gorgeous! I didn’t realize how much I was just getting used to the beautiful scenery around me and not really appreciating the beauty until I spent a few weeks near Victoria in another gorgeous spot. While Michael worked on a privately owned island just off the coast I had full use of an oceanfront home right next to a big park full of hiking trails! This is another one of those way too good to be true experiences we have had since giving up stable jobs and taking the chance to do what we love. I mean who would have thought this could happen! The anonymous multimillionaire (we don’t even know who owns it as it was the caretakers for the properties that gave us the keys and they were very tight lipped) allowed us to stay without ever even meeting us! Wow!
So I mentioned the nice place but that isn’t the good part, the good part was the trails! I enjoyed every minute of it and saw deer, bunnies and eagles every single day! We saw lots of seals and a sea otter hobbled away from me as I tried to take a picture. I easily logged 20km or more of training hikes daily! It felt so good to be on real trails every single day! While in Maple Bay I often just hike on old logging roads or a quiet lane that follows the coast (also beautiful) but it’s not the same as a real trail. I was a little sad to leave such an amazing spot when the job was finished but was amazed at the changes as we drove back towards Maple Bay. The flowers are all out, the leaves on the trees have grown in. And the contrast in the colour of leaves here is stunning! The Japanese Maple leaves are a deep red/burnt orange colour (a colour you would imagine belongs in autumn yet the leaves are so vibrant and alive) and contrast so nicely with the many shades of green and the pinks from the rhododendron, and the arbutus and the whites, pinks and purples from the peonies. There are beautiful giant red flowers here that I have never seen before in my life and have no idea what they are. I will find out though. So it turns out that they are also rhododendrons, I have just never seen red ones before.
Since I have been back it has been harder for me to get my hiking miles in but am getting into a good routine of taking turns walking the dogs through the nicest of places along the Bay. Of course just as I get back into a routine, I will leave again. This time on my own for a trip back to Ontario to visit the kids. Micheal went back to visit at Christmas and now it’s my turn! When I return from Ontario I will only be back for a month before I leave again for the PCT. With that in mind I am clearing out my few belongings and packing them away to give Michael a little more room while I’m gone.
I can’t believe how few personal items I have now. My hiking gear is a large percentage of it but I am also eliminating the food I know he won’t eat while I am away as well and even the food items take up more space than my clothing items. I hadn’t realized how much I have continued to downsize since living on the bus. I guess that’s a good thing. It makes me
Wonder what the next phase of my life will be like...
No comments:
Post a Comment